Since a lot of people in my sphere of Tumblr are particularly interested in literature/the arts and in social and political activism, I wanted to shout out a newly updated and expansive resource: the Open Access Library, presented by The Operating System!
On this database, the Operating System provides free access to a large range of works from a diverse collection of artists (of varying gender identities, sexualities, races, ethnicities, etc). These works include books, chapbooks, and a series of small publications known as “field notes.” Once again, these resources (many of which speak to anti-capitalism, anti-racism, resistance, etc.) are free, but the OAL also provides methods to purchase works or directly support artists.
More about The Operating System below the cut:
The OS is an independent publication whose mission is “a community where permission is freely granted, where access isn’t behind lock and key (perceptual or actual), where tools, information and resources are equitably shared and made easily available. Creative people from all disciplines are encouraged to work with one another, to explore every and all media freely and without fear. Both creative output and practice / process are equally valued. Those who are new to creative practice are encouraged to engage, explore, make mistakes, and play, without shaming. Degrees can be useful but do not grant any special privileges — rather, it is the responsibility of those of us with resources (be they intellectual or more classically capital in nature) to gather, document, make accessible, and pass along skills, information, and other salient lessons to those without.”
The OS's mission “is primarily archival in nature. On the surface, this often looks like “being a publisher,” but it misses the point: the Operating System makes “books” as a radical act of canon correction. We actively seek out and make room for work that might have in another time been referred to as “avant-garde” but the label is unimportant; what is critical is that the most groundbreaking, unorthodox, visionary work produced in any era is all too often in danger of being lost, and we are committed to carving out space for those voices.”
[Image description: A screenshot of the Open Access Library homepage, displaying a search function and the covers of some titles available for free access on the site.]
