Over the past summer, I’ve immersed myself more into the GTA alternative and punk scene, most specifically by attending fundraisers and shows. Whether it be a local venue or a park, I’ve witnessed empowerment and advocacy in its finest aspect: made by the community, for the community. Let me lay out the scene— a pay-what-you-can at the door to fundraise for local charities and organizations, small business vendors left and right, a loud band at the centre of the stage, and most importantly, the joy, dancing, and participation from the overall community. Some vendors might sell jewellery or others prints, but everywhere I looked, organizers and vendors were handing out something I’d never heard of before: zines. It’s pronounced “zeens” by the way— I won’t let you embarrass yourself like I have been for the past year! Carefully curated, small-batch, mini booklets depicting anything and everything, from interviews, educational media and local resources, to simple expressions of artistic creativity and passion. In this article, we’ll go over what zines are and their history, the modern portrayal and usage of zines in our community, and how to make one at home!
So, what are zines? Turns out, there is no concrete definition for what zines are, which also perfectly describes them at the same time. Derived from the word “fanzine,”— a combination of the terms fan and magazine a— zine is more of a philosophy rather than a format. It is a self-publicized, (usually) non-commercialized way of sharing art, stories, educational or political information (and more) to the larger community, usually of populations whose voices have been traditionally silenced from publishing. Zines are thought to have come from its earliest historical form called chapbooks. These tiny books emerged in 16th century Europe as a form of accessible literature to the average labourer. Being unbound 12 to 24 page booklets, their cheaper price compared to regular books was appealing and could be more easily handled and produced by distributors called chapmen.
Originally featuring stories of adventure or romance, the chapbooks slowly grew to a global scale and started to integrate themselves in the surrounding culture, including acting as political or religious forces. They are similar to zines in the fact that they were made to be accessible to the average population, as books and other forms of education were limited to the wealthy only. The first “fanzine” was made in May of 1930 by the Science Correspondence Club of Chicago titled The Comet, with the main goal of spreading the significance of science and invention, but slowly turned into a way for science-fiction nerds to bond. Rolling into the 1960s, the fanzines would continue as a way for Star Trek fans to communicate and dabble in fantasies with each other. As zines became more accessible with the continuous innovation of printing technology, marginalized groups leaned on zines as a way of political resistance, community empowerment and a way to publicize their works without the restrictive practices of traditional publishing. The 70s and 80s is when zine-making really boomed with innovation since photocopiers were increasingly accessible in copy shops, thus being adopted into communities such as the punk rock DIY scene, as well as the queer and feminist scene. The modern punk and queer scene continue this tradition, and were the first zines that I came across at music shows, which highlight local band interviews, global political issues such as the current genocide in Palestine, and other community resources such as playlists, events, charities, informative news outlets, and more. Although my zine collection is still growing, I’d like to feature the couple zines I own from SHOUT! and Scizr, as they are group organizers in the GTA that focus on music, community empowerment, and meaningful change.
Going back to history, as capitalism grew and mainstream media took over, such marginalized communities were often left behind, needing to adopt and find their own ways of spreading their truth and their story. In the 1990s, a new feminist movement came forward of women and girls tired of the sexist punk scene, titled Riot Grrrl, composed of music and self-published zines speaking to gender inequality, domestic violence and sexual identity. Today, we have multiple independent zine libraries, community-run zinefests and zine clubs/groups dedicated to preserving the history of zines and innovating it to fit with the modern cultural and political resistance movements. Locally, we have the Zine Club hosted in Hamilton Public Library (HPC) every second Tuesday of the month hosted from 5pm to 7pm, which works collaboratively with the Hamilton Zineposium, an annual zine fair which is being hosted on November 1st at the HPC!
The GSA network provides an excellent beginner’s resource on how to make your own zine, including supplies, planning and plenty of examples. All you need is a regular piece of paper, some scissors, and a vision!– and maybe some art supplies along the way. Although McMaster doesn’t have an exclusive zine club, many clubs advocating for marginalized communities as well as art clubs do host occasional collaborative zines, including a soon-to-be announced event sometime in November open to everyone hosted by the new Queer Health Initiative from the McMaster’s University Nursing Student Society (MUNSS). As one of the directors for the new initiative, we wanted to highlight the ease and accessibility of making your own zines as well as its 2SLGBTQIA+ history, emphasizing the power of healthcare information to the queer community. I encourage anyone reading this to create a zine about a topic you’re passionate about, and who knows, maybe you’ll find your next crafty hobby to do in your free time. 🌈