Support Black Zine-Makers

We've been using our social media this week to share zines created by Black artists and writers. Below is a compilation of those posts, including short Q&As with the founders. Show your support for Black zine makers and buy some of the work listed below!

BlkGrlsWurld Zine

Who are the founders of the zine, and when did it establish? 
Two sisters, Courtney & Christina in 2013.  
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What is the content that you cover and/or your mission statement?
Our mission is to celebrate and document Womxn of Color who participate in the heavy music scenes through our zines and photobooks. From metalcore to punk, we love it all! We also always strive to create a sense of community, because we want our readers to feel seen and heard. Especially the young ones, because we remember what it felt like to not be.  

Tell us about the Punk Fest & Zine Fair, and where we can follow to stay up to date for future events?
Oh that was so much fun! That took place in September 2019 at Philadelphia's Institute of Contemporary Art. We had our own Panel Talk, booked 6 female fronted bands, and hosted 11 Zinesters. It was an honor to be able to put it together and we can't wait to do it again! I can't tell you how amazing it is to watch a crowd enjoying themselves and know it was your event that did it! Want to stay up to date? Follow us on Instagram @blkgrlswurld_zine or our website at www.blkgrlswurld.com.   

What are you currently listening to?
We actually have two Blkgrlswurld playlists up on Spotify if anybody is interested: We got an R&B lineup called "#Selfcare for Black Womxn" & #Blkgrlswurld Moshing for Black Lives" for our top metal picks.   

5). Where can people go to buy your zines or merch? Do you have a Venmo or Paypal where people can send donations?
You can find our merch on Etsy! Our Etsy name is Blkgrlswurld. Awww y'all are too sweet. Our Venmo is @C-L-1-11. You'll know its the right one because #Blkgrlswurld Zine will be in the profile picture! 
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Kindred Creatives Art and Literary Zine

Tell us your name, where you're based, and when you started your zine.
​I am CicelyRenee the creator of Kindred Creatives Art and Literary Zine. I am based in Dallas, TX but international. I started Kindred Creatives in January 2020.

Tell us about the content of your zine and/or your mission statement.
My goal is to create a platform for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color to submit their creative works. It first was just a project but then after attending the Association of Writers Conference, I saw a need for publications that had more opportunities for Black, Indigenous and People of Color. So I decided to make it a more powerful zine.

What have been some themes of previous issues? What's next on the horizon?
We have a quarterly printed zine that is theme based and we also have year-round submissions for the online publication. The past two themes have been Radical Rebels (first issue) and AfroFuturism. People created short stories, art, poetry and artist interviews. The upcoming one is called an Ode to the Harlem Renaissance and we are seeking submissions.

Where can people go to support?
If you are interested in purchasing a zine, head to www.creneeart.com where you have the option to buy on Amazon or my store. IG: @kindredcreativeszine and @creneeart

​Brown Recluse Zine Distro

​Brown Recluse Zine Distro is a DIY collectively-run distro based in Oakland, CA. Their mission is to uplift zines written by QTBIPOC. They are currently featuring all Black zine makers on their distro and adding more to their webstore each day! All sales directly support the zine maker. Donations to Brown Recluse help them achieve their following goals:

• ​To continue to buy and print zines to keep the distro well stocked and affordable. BRZD wants to remain an affordable and accessible project to everyone. 
• To make a paper catalog available for free to increase accessibility to folks who do not have access to the internet. This would make the distro available to a variety of communities including those incarcerated.
• To make the entire catalog available to incarcerated trans folks and women for free.
• To be able to help folks set up zine libraries in communities that serve People of Color. This means sending one copy of every zine in the catalog to existing zine libraries or those starting zine libraries nationally and internationally.
• To distribute free politically-relevant zines with all on-line orders (for example, we have given copies of Lil' Dope Fiend about overdose prevention and a NoDAPL zine about the water protectors in North Dakota).

Shop their collection here; https://brownrecluse.bigcartel.com/products

​Diasporan Savant Press

Diasporan Savant Press, based out in Philadelphia, PA, creates zines, prints, patches, posters, and more. Previous issues of the zine have been: 

• BLKMZIC issue no 1: Black Banjo - discusses the African roots of the banjo, including early banjos in the Caribbean and the Akonting, the banjo's oldest ancestor
• A Love Supreme: Meditating While Black - about the  the struggle to find meditation spaces that are not majority white across settings and Black meditation practitioners
• Making Your Mark - 70+ pgs of women, queer, and genderqueer gender artists sharing the wealth of their experiences- over 50 years of tattooing between them
• and many more!

​Shop the store on their Etsy account. 

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Note: Each zine maker gave us permission to be included in these posts.​

This is obviously a small list and there are countless amazing zines out there curated by Black writers and artists. You can always follow #blackzinemakers hashtags to continue discovering more zines in your social feeds, follow more zine distros that uplift zines made by BIPOC, and show support at your local zine fairs too (well, at least whenever doing things in public spaces is a thing again.)
Shop, support and share!