Alt. Media, Want a festival? Do it yourself (On Canada, Manitoba, Winnipeg's 6th annual anarchist BookFair & DIY Fest happens November 8-10, 2013

Sixth annual Anarchist BookFair and DIY Fest shares skills, ideas, and fun ---- Image 
provided by wpgbookfairdiyfest.com 
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---- If we didn?t have leaders, bosses, or managers, how would we ever get anything done? 
---- This weekend?s Anarchist BookFair & DIY Fest proves that you can hold a weekend-long 
festival without falling into typical organizational structures or hierarchies. ---- While 
the festival is in its sixth year, it has a very loose organizational structure. It 
doesn?t have an annual date or time, and past festivals have happened anywhere between May 
and September. ---- This year, as the organizing committee lost members and energy, it 
looked like it might not happen at all. But as new members came forward, the committee was 
invigorated.

?Our organizing team has no established structure, but rather works upon ideas being 
voiced and people volunteering to take on that role. We are not organizing this because it 
will bring in money, but because we wish to see something and act upon it by organizing it 
ourselves,? says Quincy Brandt, an organizing committee member for the BookFair & DIY Fest.

This year?s festival has many offerings, including but not limited to books.

?We have a solid mix of evening entertainment both fun and educational and daytime 
learning opportunities, so I think it?s shaping up to be a really good weekend for anyone 
willing to try it out,? says Tim Brandt, another organizing committee member.

The festival will open with a cabaret on Friday night, followed by a talk and book launch 
by Norman Nawrocki on Saturday night, as well as a later-evening dance party for those who 
choose to dance their way to revolution.

Of course, there will be a BookFair, and out of respect for the November weather, it will 
be entirely indoors this year.

?We?ve had the tables outside every year and withstood some cold days but this year we 
took so long to get going we had to plan for a time that?s just too late to be out there 
so it?ll be the first one entirely inside and we?ll make maximum use of the A-Zone,? says 
Quincy, referring to the Autonomous Zone Co-op building located at 91 Albert Street.

The book tables will wind their way up the stairs from Mondragon, all the way to the top 
level of the building. Quincy commented that they had to make the difficult choice to hold 
the BookFair in a venue that wouldn?t be accessible to all due to time constraints and a 
very ?shoestring budget,? which is mostly based on small donations.

The workshops?held on Saturday and Sunday?are also based on donations of time and 
expertise. They range from the theoretical and ideological, such as Building Class 
Struggle on the Prairies, and Privilege, to practical skills like Plumbing Basics, 
Fermentation Sensation, Screen-Printing, and Intro to Electronics and Soldering.

Other workshops explore local political contexts, from a panel discussion called ?Indians 
Wear Red: Colonialism, Resistance and Aboriginal Street Gangs,? to the politically 
personal topics of consent and Alternative Travel. For those who may crave a cold beer 
after all of this discussion, there?s even An Introduction to Home Brewing workshop ? 
though they?re not promising immediate results.

Tim hopes that besides learning concrete skills, people may be able to take something more 
from these workshops.

?I would love it if some newcomers learned about how terrible the artificial constructs we 
call nation states are to the planet,? said Tim, adding ?how much better we?d all be if we 
stopped being obsessed with monetary wealth and things, and just learned to live free and 
simply!?

While some of the evening events are on a sliding-scale or pay-what-you-can basis, most of 
the other daytime events, including the BookFair and workshops, are free, and the 
organizers invite everyone to come and see what DIY and Anarchist organizing is all about:

?[The Anarchist BookFair & DIY Fest is the only annual festival in town that offers 
everything for everyone without any corporate sponsors whatsoever!?

For the full events listing, visit http://wpgbookfairdiyfest.com. The Anarchist BookFair & 
DIY Fest will be held from Nov. 8-10 at the A-Zone, (http://a-zone.org/news/632/)