Vital vanguard, wonderful warriors: Marcus Books and Black Classic Press

Marcus Books, the legendary Black book store that for more than 50 years has been the intellectual heart of African American life in the Fillmore district in San Francisco, is facing a forced eviction -- or may have already been evicted -- as announced in a San Francisco Examiner article, "Marcus Books on the brink of closure"  (June 9).

The Victorian residence at 1712 Fillmore St. that Marcus has occupied for years was purchased, and the new owners had an eviction notice issued to the store with a deadline to leave by the end of this week.

I haven't found an update on any action taken following the eviction deadline this week: Color of Change had a petition soliciting support for the Marcus Books at http://colorofchange.org/blog/2013/jun/17/action-help-save-oldest-black-bookstore/.

Stay tuned, or please share an update if you know what's going on now.

Even as the disheartening news of Marcus Books' crisis circulates, there is uplifting news about another Black book business that is surviving, even thriving.

An article in Publishers Weekly recently announced that Black Classic Press founded by publisher Paul Coates in Baltimore is celebrating its 35th anniversary with a series of events that included a book signing by Walter Mosley.


Congrats to you, Paul, and Black Classic Press on your 35th anniversary!

Academic institutions, k-12 and higher education institutions, do not adequately integrate narratives that highlight the presence and influence of people of African descent in Western culture and in world history. Black authors, Black publishers and Black book store owners are the vital vanguard, the wonderful warriors, who arm the community with knowledge that affirms our humanity and debunks myths and lies about our history.   


The longevity that Marcus Books and Black Classic Press have accrued in the struggle is quantifiable and worthy of honor, but the real achievement of both institutions is their success in fostering self-realization and self-determination among Black people, and the impact of that achievement is immeasurable.

The local bookstore you save must be your own

White Over Black by
Wintjrop Jrodan

Stories abound in the media including on this blog about the closing of beloved bookstores around the country, both corporate and independent. The most recent news that circulated widely in the media concerning African American books was Hue-Man Bookstore. the ten-year
old Black bookstore in Harlem which closed at the end of July.

Hue-Man opened its doors with an attractive range of titles by Black authors on its shelves; I remember my first visit to the store, seeing a deep selection of African world history titles, by Dr. ben Jochanan and J.A. Rogers, for instance, as well as titles by contemporary Black authors such as Benilde Little, Mary Monroe (no relation -- I don't think!) and Pearl Cleage.

Hue-Man's selecton was impressive, but increasingly trends in the bookselling business 
required more than just good books to sustain walk-in customers, ironically enough. Many
brick-and-mortars bookstores, including Hue-Man, adapted their marketing
strategies in order to increase walk-in traffic, or at least sustain their local and
devoted customer bases, which nonetheless were being drained by competitive online sellers.

The economic collapse that hit the U.S. in 2008 only steepened the slope that bookstores
(nearly all commercial entities) had to climb in order to survive, let alone thrive.

Independent bookstores adopted new strategies to sustain themselves: expanding their product
base, (products and/or adding eateries), hosting (more) author events, specializing in a
genre, even adding online selling, but like Hue-Man, many of these stores still closed
their doors.

So, what does it take in the current digital media environment for brick-and-mortar
bookstores to be able to serve their communities and be profitable?

A mix of the some of the strategies named above and as many as are effective in a local
community of readers. That's the other part, though--a community of readers has to be
committed to the bookstore culture. Readers have to want the bookstore culture, like the
bookstore culture, and be willing "to do bookstore culture," which means to take the walk or
15 minute ride to the store. Like we used to do and spend time and money there.

I am not chastising, but merely saying that the online selling industry has nearly
perfected the means that readers get books by delivering them directly to our doors. Can
it be that part of the answer to how bookstores survive is that readers collaborate with
many new ways to keep bookstore open, useful to the community and profitable?

In the last three weeks I have collaborated with a local bookstore, blackPrint Bookstore in New Haven, holding informal discussions around a civic curricula my sister and I created that has our group reading the U.S. Constitution and other founding documents of our country. Quite a rich discussion to have in a store filled with African-centered books and images. The discussion is enriched by the surroundings, and the events bring new visitors to the store and expand its branding as a venue for learning.

Holding a reading group in a bookstore, I know, is not new, but it is a way that I can commit to support my local bookstore, even as I pursue my own online bookselling.

The Huffington Post published an article that suggests 20+ ideas a bookstore/ community can
adopt to sustain its local bookstore, among them some very good ideas. Let me know, let
everyone know, if you recommend these to your local bookstore and if the store owners implement them, how things work out.

Revised July 11, 2013

Save Black bookstores

News of Hue-Man Bookstore's closing later this month in Harlem continues to evoke dismay among readers and book lovers about the loss of that landmark store, in particular, and the loss of Black bookstores around the country. Recognizing the impact of bookstore closings on the Black community, L'Heureux Lewis-McCoy, an assistant professor of Sociology and Black Studies at the City College of New York, published a piece in Ebony, "Why We Must Save Black Bookstores."

Stop to start: Hue-Man Bookstore closing

Dr. Poussaint and Biil Cosby, November 2007

The news that Hue-Man Bookstore will close its doors on July 31st is reverberating throughout Harlem and across the Twittersphere. Once again, many readers are despairing the loss of a bookstore that is more than a commercial enterprise, that functions as a place that sustains culture.

Of course, the decision that owner Marva Allen has made -- to abandon the traditional brick-and-mortar model bookstore in order to consider how to re-invent their bookselling presence in a technology dominated world -- is practical, proactive even. However, the decision leaves a void in the community where her store, the largest Black bookstore in Harlem, was a coveted destination.

The news is disappointing beyond Harlem, too, like here in New Haven. Lots of folks in Connecticut followed events at Hue-Man; the store was their bookstore away from home. I have hopped on the Metro-North train to travel to a number of events at Hue-Man, such as the Bill Cosby and Alvin Poussaint booksigning (pictured). I saw folks from Bridgeport, CT at the Cosby and Poussaint event that evening. I've seen folks from Connecticut on other occasions at the store, too. As I did with Liberation Bookstore, also gone now, I have made a point of visiting the Hue-Man many times when I was in the city on other business. 

In her letter to the Hue-Man patrons, Marva Allen left readers to think about how booksellers that cater to Black interests will transform themselves to serve a readership that increasingly accesses books and information across many platforms, not just through a book store. With the loss of another venue, I consider how we as readers will make new conventions to sustain the cultural exchanges that took place when we flocked to our favorite bookstore to celebrate the release of a high-profiled book, at readings and at events to talk about a pressing community issue? How will we replace the cultural and intellectual impact that the iconic Black bookstore has had in our communities?

Liberation Bookstore owner, Una Mulzac, 88

A few days ago when my August 2010 post about Liberation Bookstore and Una Mulzac blew up with hits, I knew it was a signal that this matriarch and soldier in the army of black political struggle had, as one headline read, "joined the ancestors."

Like many who lived outside of the Harlem community, and outside of NY state for that matter, I "knew" Una Mulzac and Liberation Bookstore more by reputation than by personal experience. In a wonderful culturally-conscious period between the early '80s through the mid-'90s, I heard the name of Liberation Bookstore invoked by brothers and sisters at black cultural fairs, literary conferences and black arts festivals in my hometown of Baltimore. From what these sisters and brothers said, I learned that Liberation Bookstore was a mecca where the conscious, the righteous brotherhood and sisterhood traveled to fortify themselves with black literature but also to meet up with other disciples of black culture who patronized Liberation and admired Una Mulzac.

I don't remember when I learned that the owner of Liberation Bookstore was a woman, but that news was indeed liberating for me. Una Mulzac was likely the first contemporary Black woman that I heard of who, as an entrepreneur, was dedicated to providing her community with black literature. Liberation became a destination that I kept faith to visit one day. Fortunately, I did visit several times, and listened first-hand to Una Mulzac talk about her father's dedication to the cause, and her own life devoted to freedom and human rights.

My post on Liberation Bookstore after the Harlem Bookfair in 2010 has been one of the consistently popular posts on this blog; I offer it here again in tribute to Una Mulzac, with gratitude for the example that she set for me to pursue a life devoted to books, according to my own interests, in the promotion of education and the progress of Black people.

In addition, two obituaries (you will need to sign up for accounts):
Liberation Bookstore owner, Una G. Mulzac, passes at 88, by Herb Boyd, Special to the Amsterdam News

Una Mulzac, Bookseller With Passion for Black Politics, Dies at 88, by Douglas Martin, NYT, Feb. 4, 2012

Howard University Press passes baton to Black Classic Press

Congratulations to Howard University Press and Black Classic Press for forging this historic transaction that preserves the legacy of a distinguished university press and extends the the reach of a venerable Black publisher.  

Black Classic Press Acquires Howard University Press backlist; Plans New Editions 

By Calvin Reid (Publishers Weekly)

May 24, 2011

After 39 years of distinguished scholarly publishing focused on African-American life and history around the world, the Howard University Press is closing its doors. The university has reached an agreement with Baltimore-based Black Classic Press, an African-American independent press and print-on-demand vendor, to acquire a selection of the press’s backlist of more than 175 scholarly titles with plans to reissue most of them in new editions under BCP’s new line of Howard University Classic Editions.

Black Classic Press

W. Paul Coates, president of Black Classic Press, is a former Howard University librarian and a former street book vendor who began his publishing career selling books on the streets in front of Cramton Auditorium on the Howard campus. “It’s humbling to have the opportunity to extend the awesome legacy of the books created by Howard University Press because, for decades, Howard was the ‘gold standard’ that advanced Black publishing beyond the realms of any other press,” Coates said.

Howard University provost and chief academic officer Dr. James H. Wyche, said the closing of the press is “related partly to the significant changes that have transformed the publishing business,” and said, “after nearly four decades of unparalleled service to the scholarly publishing field, we have made a difficult decision.” But he also said, “This is a win-win proposition for Howard, HUP, Black Classic, and the many scholars, faculty, and students around the world who have benefited from the insightful and much-needed scholarship published by Howard’s scholarly press over the years.”

In a phone interview with Coates he outlined big plans for Howard University Classic Editions and said he plans to “immediately incorporate the titles into Black Classic Press’s digital database.” BCP will acquire about 84 of HUP's 175 backlist titles. John Hopkins University Press will continue to distribute HUP Classic Editions and the press will begin rejacketing about 6 titles a month in preparation for uploading them into the Black Classic Press’s POD database for reprinting. BCP is short-run and print-on-demand publishing house that specializes in reprinting classic works of African-American literature and keeping them in print. Coates said he expected to upload “the best selling titles first. We’ll eliminate on-hand titles through sales and remaindering.”

Founded in 1972 under the director of Charles Harris, at the time a former editor at Random House, the Howard University Press published about 12 titles annually during its best years. Among the press’s best known and best selling titles are Walter Rodney’s 1981 How Europe Underdeveloped Africa; and Dr. Joseph Harris’s 1993 seminal work, Global Dimensions of the African Diaspora.

HUP Press also sponsored the HUP Book Publishing Institute, an annual summer workshop that specialized in training African Americans, other minorities and women for careers in magazine and book publishing. Coates plans to revive the work of the publishing institute through an intern program at Black Classic Press.

“There will be an opportunity for Howard University students to intern at BCP to provide experience in print and an increasingly digital world. Students can grow as we grow in this sector,” Coates said. Coates also intends to extend the HUP’s publishing legacy by continuing to publish scholarly works by Howard’s and other faculty, particularly in the field of black/African studies as well as works on Africa and on African diasporan life in Latin America, the Carribean and elsewhere. “The acquisition will strengthen the BCP list in those areas and make BCP visible to everyone as a place to submit manuscripts,” he said.

Noting a long association with Howard University that dates to the 1970s, Coates said his acquisition of the list is the culmination of a dream to become a publisher that began on the campus of Howard University when he used to go to Founder’s Library to warm up on cold days when he was a street book vendor. “My whole idea to be a publisher began at Founder’s Library,” he said, “that’s where the idea that I would develop a press and be a publisher began. This is a unique opportunity. HUP is the only black academic press to turn its titles over to an independent black publisher and we will work to maintain an important black legacy. “

See the article and comments at: http://bit.ly/j2CAGX

Alexander Book Co. news

Profile of Alexander Book Company in Bay area

Bernard's B-list puts authors, bookstore on A-list

Edward Guthmann, Special to The Chronicle

Monday, March 14, 2011

When authors visit Alexander Book Co. in San Francisco, Bernard Henderson hosts the event like a personal party for his best friends and neighbors.

"Hey, girl!" he says to his best customers, giving them a hug. For actresses Pam Grier and Mo'Nique, singer Jill Scott and attorney Johnnie Cochran, he prepared a feast of fried chicken, macaroni and cheese, candied yams, black-eyed peas and cornbread. For Russell Simmons, he arranged a catered vegan meal.

A Detroit native and Bay Area resident since 1993, Henderson, 45, also produces "Bernard's Bookshelf," a public-access TV show, and occasionally performs stand-up comedy. He's single, has a daughter, 16, and shares a house in Richmond with two roommates.

Mo'Nique was the nicest, the sweetest of all the people who came here. She talked on the cell phone to people, she signed every book.
If someone was standing in line and talking on the phone she'd go, "Who you talkin' to?" They'd say, "I'm talking to so-and-so and waitin' to get my book signed. And they don't believe I'm here." And Mo'Nique would say, "Gimme that phone!"
I have Sister Souljah coming with her new book, "Midnight and the Meaning of Love," on May 5. She's credited with starting the urban lit, or street lit, genre with "The Coldest Winter Ever" (1999), about a young girl named Winter, the daughter of drug lords.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/03/13/DDSV1I8EMT.DTL#ixzz1GZu3cQeQ

Read the full story at:: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/03/13/DDSV1I8EMT.DTL#ixzz1GZslRsAa

Social Bookselling

Is 'social bookselling' a trend of the future? Waterstone's is moving toward expanding the idea

A view of why the big box model made Borders bankrupt

Cultural shift hurt Borders' image
Sunday, February 27, 2011
By Bob Hoover, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
When Borders opened its first outlet in Pittsburgh in 1990, the book-selling world was a far different place than it is in 2011, the year that store and two other Borders in the region are preparing to close in April, dropped by the bankrupt chain.

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11058/1127761-74.stm#ixzz1FLqtE8ae

How do I acquire books?

Me at Charing Cross Rd, London

 From time to time people ask me how I acquire so many books (most of my inventory is not yet posted to Amazon.com.) I share my experience which is that great books in great condition can be found in numerous places-- or maybe they can be found in a few places that are numerous, such as at library sales, in charity stores-- antiquarian book dealers and secondhand shops, and even through private sellers.

Parable of the Sower

American Negro Folktales

I have bought books from all of these types of sources. I love visiting new locales to buy books: I've bought new and quality used books in various cities such as Chicago; Philadelphia; Brattleboro, New Hampshire; Baltimore; Cincinnati; Boston; Atlanta, London, England; New York City and their close environs. I am always on the lookout for books that deepen my inventory in non-fiction African and African American studies and Women’s Studies, as well as those books that expand my stock into literary genres like science fiction from Octavia Butler or collections of African and African American folklore.

Borders: Last chapter

Publishers Weekly Daily posted this item on 2/14 about Borders bookstore:

"Still waiting for Borders"
With nearly every major news organization reporting that Borders will file for bankruptcy this week, the question among publishers is becoming more and more can the chain avoid a Chapter 7 filing that would result in the liquidation of the company. Borders had virtually no contact with publishers last week on whatever plans it is working on, even though it is believed an agreement by publishers to resume shipping books to Borders will be necessary to obtain debtor-in possession financing that will allow it reorganize under Chapter 11. One publisher told PW that before his company would start doing business directly with Borders again, he would need to see a detailed turnaround plan that includes not only new strategies, but financial projections that the plan is a viable one.

Late this morning, the official position of Borders was that it "will not comment or speculate upon its future course."

Eso Won Books still going strong

One of our leading booksellers, Eso Won Books, received well deserved recognition in the Los Angeles Times "Jacket Copy" book column on January 13, 2011--congrats brothers James Fulgate (pictured below) and Thomas Hamilton!

Bookstore of the week: Eso Won Books

Owner James Fulgate and his partner, Thomas Hamilton, opened Eso Won Books in 1990. The original location was at Crenshaw and Slauson, upstairs from the shop Africana Imports. "The UPS people hated us," Fulgate laughs.
Since the fall of 2006, the store has been located at 4331 Degnan Blvd. in Leimert Park. Although Eso Won Books' current store has more than 3,200 square feet, it's a shade smaller than its previous location on La Brea.

In 1995, a young activist who'd just written a memoir came to Eso Won for a signing. There wasn't a huge crowd for Barack Obama and his book, "Dreams From My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance," but the bookstore made him feel welcome. When he returned to Los Angeles with "The Audacity of Hope," Obama told his publishers that's where he wanted to go. The store sold more than 900 books.

Selling books at that volume is a rare bounty for Eso Won. In late 2007, news spread that rough economic times and discounts from Amazon and retail chains had brought such difficulties to the store that it might close by the end of the year. But friends rallied, including Pastor John J. Hunter of the First African Methodist Episcopal Church, who called the bookstore "a treasure in the African American community." Eso Won pulled through.

- Carolyn Kellogg

Photos: Eso Won Books. Credit: Carolyn Kellogg / Los Angeles Times

Read the full article here: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/jacketcopy/2011/01/bookstore-of-the-week-eso-won-books.html

Liberation Bookstore Inventory for Purchase -- Immediate Response Appreciated

Walking back to the Metro-North train from the Harlem Book Fair last month, I couldn’t help but glance with longing over at the corner of Lenox Avenue and 131^st Street where Liberation Bookstore had held court for nearly 40 years.

Liberation Bookstore was founded in 1967 and run by Una Mulzac, a woman whose knowledge of Black heritage, and memorable personal style, were both seasoned cultural treasures in themselves.

When you walked into Liberation, you were as much impressed with how small the shop was as you were with how much material was packed into it. Books and pamphlets and posters filled up much of the wall and floor space—the shop was a veritable repository marking the pr

ogression of Black American politics, economics, health issues, social movements and cultural arts.

Una Mulzac is 85 years young, now, frail but still feisty, as relayed to me in an email from her niece Leticia Mulzac.

And now, the thousands of items that remained after Liberation Bookstore closed is being offered for sale, explained in an email that Leticia Mulzac sent (reprinted below)

Leticia Mulzac says that the inventory will only be available for a short time given consideration of the cost of maintaining the thousands of items in its catalog. In an email to me last week, she said “a decision must be made soon.”

Please read the email below and send around to any institution or person whom you think could keep this archive together and available to the public. Thanks.

And my warmest thanks to you, Ms. Una Mulzac, for keeping the banner raised so admirably for so long.

Email from Leticia Mulzac (reprinted with permission):

From: Leticia Mulzac <

lmulzac@hotmail.com
Date: Sun, Jul 18, 2010
Subject: Liberation Bookstore (see attached PDF for Inventory)
I am writing to you in regards to my Aunt Una Mulzac, owner of the historic Liberation Bookstore in Harlem for over 35 years.)
For most of her life she dedicated herself to improving the condition of the African American people through education and as an activist championing civil rights causes. Her work has been recognized and praised by many in the community and has been interviewed on many occasions. It was her father’s legacy, Hugh Mulzac, himself an important historical figure that inspired her to work endlessly to advance the cause that became her life‘s work.
At 85 years old she was no longer able to look after herself or her business. I am now working with her legal guardian to find a buyer for her stock of books - a catalog of nearly 10,000 political & historical titles - some that have been out of print for many years. The collection is perfect for a cultural or educational institution. This collection is on offer as a whole and open to any party with a vested interest in maintaining their educational value. While many libraries are working with limited budgets, perhaps a philanthropic alumni association would be able to purchase the collection on behalf of their alma mater.
Anything interest or helpful suggestions would be most appreciated. Please respond as soon as possible since time is of the essence. I would be happy to forward the inventory list to you.
Sincerely,
Leticia Mulzac

[Minor edits were made to this post on Monday, February 28, 2011.]