Atalanta, anarkafeminist printing and publishing house

Around 1980, Rymke Wiersma, Weia Reinboud and other women started the Atalanta printing and publishing company in Utrecht. They thus created a platform for spreading “aardige (nice) philosophy”, which includes feminism, anarchism, veganism, anti-capitalism and anti-racism. All this is presented in the form of books, posters, a magazine, games, music and much more.

Atalanta started as an unnamed initiative of four Utrecht women, including Rymke Wiersma. The four wanted to start the first women’s press in Utrecht at the end of 1979 to print and distribute their own work. The women had bad experiences with other media. Their submitted pieces were not published by newspapers or heavily edited, such as their report on a large anti-porn demonstration in Utrecht (1980).

The four already had experience with writing, but not with printing. They therefore asked Weia Reinboud for advice. She had learned the technique at a left-wing press, was active for Virginia a women’s press in Amsterdam and was involved in Tangenland; a plan for technical vocational training for women.

In May 1980 Reinboud joined the Utrecht collective. The group went to work in a squat on the Ridderhofstad. When the renovation was almost complete, they had to leave the building and start again on Jeremiestraat. The Vrouwenklussencollectief (Handywomancollective) was also located there, which made this second renovation go more smoothly. The group had now shrunk to two people: Rymke Wiersma and Weia Reinboud.

In the early years, Rymke and Weia were mainly found in the (radical) feminist and lesbian Utrecht circuit. They regularly visited café De Heksenketel and bookstore De Heksenkelder, and the Utrechtse Vrouwenhuis (located in the Twijnstraat). In addition, they participated – among other things – in activities such as the lesbian music group Ulukhamba (consisting of 8-12 women) with which they also performed. Weia was also active in the Women in Steungroep Vrouwen in Techniese Beroepen (Technical Professions Support Group) and a women’s acrobatics group. Rymke was also active in a theatre group with women, in feminist action groups and a group with “unemployed scum” in the Women’s House. They also joined actions against the widening of the highway at Utrecht city forest Amelisweerd. Outside Utrecht they regularly joined other radical women’s or anarchist groups.

Queerness

In December 1982, the first printed matter rolled off Atalanta’s press: a poem by Sapfo of Lesbos or Sappho (ca 630-570 BC), translated by Weia Reinboud. Many booklets and other works would follow. Women, girls or (female) animals often play the leading role in Atalanta stories. Some books are also specifically about lesbianism and relationships with other women. Such as Potten verhalen gedichten (Dykes Stories Poems) (1984), a collection of stories by radical lesbian women from Utrecht and Amsterdam. In it, Rymke and Weia also write a story about their history together, in the form of two stories in columns next to each other. In Hondje of: de reisverhalen van Zoa en Welmoed (Doggie or: the travel stories of Zoa and Welmoed) (1984), Rymke Wiersma had the main characters discuss, among other things, being queer, relationships and gender norms.

In their publications, Weia and Rymke ‘feminized’ animal names, objects or professions, such as ‘konijninnetjes’ (female version of rabbit) en ‘druksterij’ (female version of press). These words were an alternative to words with an emphasis on the ‘masculine’. The word ‘iemand’ (someone), of which ‘man’ is a part, was changed to ‘iemens’ (with human instead of man) or ‘iemeid (with girl instead of man). Instead of she or he, the word ‘zhij’ was often used combining the Dutch for she (zij) and he (hij). In Radi Radika Radka (1997), references to gender and sex were consciously avoided.

The Atalanta women were radical feminists. They strove to create a culture in which women were central and printed stickers for, among others, Utrecht’s women’s eatery Eucalypta, Utrecht’s Women’s Radio Het Wijff van Groll and a poster and stickers for Utrecht’s Lesbies Festival Pottenpracht (Utrecht lesbian festival Dyke magnificence). As a rule, Atalanta accepted printing orders that could be carried out technically and which they supported in terms of content. After a number of years of printing work for others, Atalanta focused even more on publishing its own work.

Resistance to heteronormativity and participation in a lesbian or ‘dyke culture’ was part of Atalanta’s radical feminism. In the beginning they called themselves a women’s press, and sometimes also a ‘lesbian press’. But Rymke and Weia soon called themselves ‘anarkafeminists’ (their own word for anarchafeminism) and certainly did not limit their texts and publications to the themes of sexuality and gender. Atalanta’s philosophy is comprehensive and intersectional, after all, forms of oppression are connected.

Anarkafeminisme

The scope of the Atalanta philosophy is already in the name. It not only refers to the butterfly species, but also to an – for the group – inspiring fable about a Greek king’s daughter who grew up among animals in a mountain range. Moreover, the A’s in Atalanta could easily be replaced by the logo of anarchism, which opposes all power relations and has guided the group from the start. The font “Atalanta” developed by Weia also contains an anarchism logo.

As anarchists, the women of Atalanta resist any form of oppression. They also figured anarchism fitted them because they wanted to approach activism from a cheerful perspective, they call anarchism “the most cheerful ‘ism’ that exists”. They committed themselves early on to action against racial discrimination. In a piece for the Vrouwenkrant (Women’s Newspaper) in 1984, Rymke called on white women to step out of their passivity and stand up against racism within the women’s movement. In 1985 Atalanta printed the Zwarte Vrouwenkrant (Black Women’s Newspaper) from Stichting Zwarte vrouwen & racisme (Black Women & Racism Foundation) from Arnhem. During that period Atalanta also made stickers for an action against Zwarte Piet (Black Pete), a racially stereotyped figure that is present during the celebration of ‘Sinterklaas’ in the Netherlands.

In the early 1980s, Rymke and Weia became vegan. When they wrote an article with a friend about the connection between feminism and veganism, they were criticized. But for them, veganism remained a core theme: countering the oppression of both humans and animals is important. Rymke and Weia started eating vegan and organic, but did not limit their veganism just to food. They also started working in an animal and environmentally friendly way and used grey recycled paper for their publications. They now run a small shop with organic products at home in the eco-neighbourhood Het Groene Dak.

Women in Print

Atalanta wanted to counterbalance mainstream media by spreading radical, anarchist and feminist viewpoints in its own way. The Utrecht printer and publisher therefore belongs to the Women in Print Movement, an international movement of women’s printing initiatives, publishers and bookstores that was part of the second feminist wave.

Many Women in Print initiatives worked in a different way than was usual in the book trade. Anti-hierarchical and anti-capitalist methods were common, including at Atalanta. The founders did not want to make money with their printing and publishing company. The prices of publications were only compensation for material and production costs.

The women distributed publications themselves, through the mail and stands at ideologically related events or book fairs. Attempts to get Atalanta’s books, pamphlets, posters and games into bookstores were not very successful in the early years. According to the women of Atalanta, (women’s) bookstores found it difficult to place their publications in the early 1980s:

If you write something that discusses feminist and environmental issues, you run the risk of people in women’s bookstores saying “that seems more like something for environmental stores to me”, while of course they claim “that it is something for women’s bookstores”.

In Utrecht, editions of Atalanta were sold in De Rooie Rat (The Red Rat) – the left-wing bookstore that existed until 2015 – and De Heksenkelder/Savannah Bay, a feminist/queer bookstore. This former women’s bookstore still offers space for Atalanta, which continues to expand its list of publications after more than forty years. The games, such as the Groene Voeten Spel (Green Feet game), can also still be found in book and game stores.

Atalanta is still writing and publishing its own work. This can take the form of publications or blogs, for example for the digital magazine Konfrontatie (Confrontation). The publications include novels, a photo book, but also studies; of insects or about Weia’s own world map, the Cupola. Atalanta also still makes music and performs. Atalanta can be found at book fairs and festivals with its publications.

Inge Frank van Vught