Re: <nettime> Let the Archive Speak

[d.garcia@new-tactical-research.co.uk]

Hi Ryan, thanks for the encouraging words and the link to what looks
a very useful book by Debbie Gould.. I know it a little but have not
yet fully engaged but I will.

There is one general point I would add to what I took from Schulman's 
book
and that is the answer to the question of what makes an archive into a
'living archive' and that is the act of actively reading and re-reading.

Schulman does this by returning to certain questions around 'how
happens'. And in relationship to this the importance of periods of 
latency.
Schulman quotes second wave feminist philosopher Ti-Grace Atkinson 
observing in 1968
that women in society can only progress when men progress. If men do not 
move,
women remain suppressed.

Atkinson goes on to assert that the great leaps of progress cannot be 
forced they
depend on the zeitgeist. But that the interim periods of latency are
vitally important where small groups of people continue to practice what 
Gary Indiana
called the “politics of repetition,” trying to stop the rate of giveback 
and regression.
So when the zeitgeist moment hits -and AIDS activism was one of those 
moments-
there is a mass surge forward as a movement forces the creation of 
social space
where persistent voices can finally be heard.

Best

David

On 2021-07-30 18:50, Ryan Griffis wrote:
> Thank you for sharing your thoughts on Schulman’s book and personal
> reflections on ACT-UP’s significance, David. It definitely sounds like
> it’s worth checking out, even if one has read/viewed much of the other
> accounts of ACT-UP, so I really appreciate your taking the time to
> post this!
> I also wanted to make a plug for another, slightly older (and more
> academic) book by Debbie Gould - ”Moving Politics” that also focuses
> on the role of affect in ACT-UP and AIDS activism, just in case others
> are interested in more reading.
> A PDF is even available here:
> https://transreads.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/2021-07-15_60f0412da8a40_deborah-gould-moving-politics-emotion-and-act-ups-fight-against-aids.pdf
> Take care,
> Ryan
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