Conditions (magazine)

Conditions
The Black Women's Issue, November 1979
FrequencyBiannual (1976 - 1980)
Annual (1980 - 1990)
FounderElly Bulkin
Jan Clausen
Irena Klepfisz
Rima Shore
First issue1976
Final issue1990
CountryUnited States
Based inBrooklyn, New York
LanguageEnglish
ISSN2381-5620
OCLC646884046

Conditions (full title: Conditions: a feminist magazine of writing by women with a particular emphasis on writing by lesbians) was a lesbian feminist literary magazine that came out biannually from 1976 to 1980 and annually from 1980 until 1990, and included poetry, prose, essays, book reviews, and interviews.[1] It was founded in Brooklyn, New York, by Elly Bulkin, Jan Clausen, Irena Klepfisz and Rima Shore.[2]

Publishing collective

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Conditions was a magazine that emphasized the lives and writings of lesbians, and, throughout its history, maintained an all-lesbian collective.[3] This collective expressed a "long standing commitment to diversity; of writing style and content and of background of contributors", within the lesbian and feminist communities.[4] Conditions was especially dedicated to publishing the work of lesbians, in particular working-class lesbians and lesbians of color.[3][4] While the founders were all white, Conditions was committed to promoting multiracial, multicultural, and multiethnic voices from its inception. By the early 1980s, the magazine had a diverse group of editors, especially under the leadership of Cheryl L. Clarke.[1]

The Black Women's Issue

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The journal's fifth issue, published in November 1979, was edited by Barbara Smith and Lorraine Bethel. Conditions 5 was "the first widely distributed collection of Black feminist writing in the U.S.",[2] and was later to be the basis for the anthology Home Girls: A Black Feminist Anthology (1983), one of the first books released by Kitchen Table: Women of Color Press.[5] Conditions 5: The Black Women's Issue was hugely popular, and set a record in feminist publishing by selling 3,000 copies in the first three weeks it was available.[6]

Publication ceases

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Conditions ceased publication in 1990.[3][7] It ended because the existing collective members were focusing on other projects and they were unable to find new members.[1]

Editors

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Selected contributors

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c Enszer, Julie R. (2015). "'Fighting to create and maintain our own Black women's culture': Conditions Magazine, 1977–1990". American Periodicals: A Journal of History & Criticism. 25 (2): 160–176. doi:10.1353/amp.2015.0025. S2CID 110217804. Retrieved March 5, 2017.
  2. ^ a b Smith, Barbara. The Truth That Never Hurts: Writings on Race, Gender, and Freedom, Rutgers University Press 1998, ISBN 0-8135-2761-9, p. ix.
  3. ^ a b c Busia, Abena P. A. Theorizing Black Feminisms: The Visionary Pragmatism of Black Women, Routledge, 1993, ISBN 0-415-07336-7, p. 225n.
  4. ^ a b Allison, Clarke, Schaubman editorial. Conditions 11/12, p. 3.
  5. ^ Munro, C. Lynn (1984). "Review: Home Girls: A Black Feminist Anthology. By Barbara Smith". Black American Literature Forum. 8 (4): 175. doi:10.2307/2904298. JSTOR 2904298.
  6. ^ Smith, Barbara. Home Girls: A Black Feminist Anthology, Kitchen Table: Women of Color Press, 1983, p. 1.
  7. ^ Armstrong, David. Trumpet to Arms: Alternative Media in America, South End Press, 1985, ISBN 0-89608-193-1, p. 240.
  8. ^ "English.asu.edu" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on October 22, 2013. Retrieved December 4, 2013.
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