Frequently asked questions for “Upping the Anti” Version 3.0

January 22, 2006

1. Q: When is the deadline for the third issue?

The deadline for submissions is March 15, 2006.

2. Q: What kinds of articles is “Upping the Anti” looking to publish?

We are interested in publishing articles discussing and critiquing various aspects of revolutionary politics concerning the various anti-capitalist, anti-oppressive, and anti-imperialist practices and politics occurring within the Canadian state today. In the editorial of our first issue we outlined the general purposes of the journal, and identified a number of questions and issues we are interested in further examining and discussing in journal. (Such questions and issues include the following taken from our editorial "What do we mean by terms such as oppression, capitalism, imperialism and revolution? How can we build and connect labour, anti-racist, feminist, queer, and anti-capitalist movements and perspectives? What can we learn from the successes and failures of anti-capitalist activists in the anti-war and anti-globalization movements? How do we understand capitalist social relations, and what social forces might give rise to real alternatives to capitalism? How should anti-capitalist activists connect with working class struggles both within and outside the labour movement? How can revolutionaries organize in ways that maximize our effectiveness but that don’t replicate old patterns of elitism, domination and sectarianism? What can we learn from different strands of Marxist and anarchist theory as we grapple with these questions?”) The editorial committee will prioritize publication of articles that address these questions and build on them.

3. Q: What is the process for submitting an article idea for publication?

If you have an article that you would like to write for the journal, we request that you send us an abstract of a couple hundred words describing what the article is about, the main arguments that you will raise in the article, and how your article will be an important contribution to the work we are trying to accomplish with this journal. The editorial board will review your abstract and provide feedback to you about your suggestions. Once the article idea has been approved by the editorial committee, we expect that you submit the article by the agreed upon deadline.

4. Q: How are articles submitted to the journal edited?

a.) While many articles will come to us in the form of initial proposals and abstracts, we also welcome unsolicited articles which you have already written. In either case, the final version of all articles are to be submitted to the editorial committee who determine the suitability of the article for the journal. If the article is suitable for publication but still needs a lot of work, the editorial board will contact the author and explain what needs to be done to improve the article. If the article is not suitable for publication, the editorial committee will promptly contact the author and inform them of this fact.

b.) Once an article is deemed suitable for publication and is ready for editing, the editorial committee will email the article to the advisory board email list for reading and comment. In consultation with the advisory board, the editorial committee will determine a member of the advisory board or editorial committee to be the primary editor for the article.

c.) The primary editor of the article is encouraged to take the feedback and comments of the advisory board into consideration when editing the article and working with the writer.

d.) Once the primary editor and the writer have gone over the article together and come up with a final version, the primary editor sends this version of the article back to the editorial board.

e.) The editorial board reads over the article, and if it deems that any further changes to the article are needed it will contact both the writer and the primary editor outlining the further changes the editors recommend. All final versions of the articles published in the journal must be cleared with their writers and the editorial committee. Final version of the article are printed out and sent to copy editors who will make final grammatical, spelling and technical changes as well as any last minute fact checking that is necessary. Every article will be proof read by at least three different copy editors drawn from the ranks of the advisory board.

f.) Final proofread articles will be uploaded to the A&S website where they will be posted under the journal section of the site. They will also be sent to the production manager of the journal who will organize the layout and design of the print version of the journal in conjunction with the editorial committee. The final copies of the print journal will be proof read again and then sent to the printer, and then distributed by the circulation manager of the journal. (The production manager and the circulation manager are designated by the editorial committee and will be members of the advisory board.)

5. Q: What kind of audience is the journal aimed at?

The journal is aimed at people who would already define themselves as activists or oppositional to the current system. The level of writing is somewhere between a radical magazine like Canadian Dimension or Left Turn and that of a popular academic journal like Monthly Review. The publication will have the look and feel of a journal, as opposed to a magazine or newspaper, but we will make every effort to avoid using overly specialist or academic jargon. Footnotes and glossaries of words and terms will accompany those articles which need them. We are intending the publication to be primarily directed towards people that consider themselves to be active in the movements and supportive of the politics that we have outlined in our editorial. It is not our intention to make an entry-level publication for people who are only just becoming politically involved, although it is hoped that they too would find this publication useful. The primary goal of the publication is to clarify and define the politics of those of us already active on the anti-capitalist, anti-oppressive, and anti-imperialist left.

6. Q: What is the Editorial Committee?

The editorial committee is responsible for bottom-lining the production of the journal. It is responsible for the content of the journal (through the editing of articles and by determining editorial policies) as well as by ensuring the financing, production and distribution of the journal. The editorial committee works by consensus. The editorial committee functions autonomously, and may increase its size as it wishes by bringing new members to the editorial committee and the advisory board. If an editor is not doing their share of the work on the editorial committee, they may be removed by the consensus of the other editors. The editors will have ongoing check-ins over email, a weekly phone conference, and as many face to face meetings as possible.

7. Q: What is the Advisory Board ?

The advisory board provides advice and assistance to the editorial committee. Articles submitted for publication are circulated to the members of the advisory board who are encouraged to read and comment on the articles. Wherever possible, specific individuals of the advisory board are encouraged to take on specific tasks for the publication (ie. Editing articles, handling subscriptions, distribution, layout and design, mail outs, website design, cover art, proofreading and copy editing, graphic searches, helping to organize a launch party for the journal, etc.) which will be organized in conjunction with the editorial committee. Members of the advisory board are expected to assist in the distribution of the journal within their own networks and locales.

8. Q: What are the responsibilities of the advisory board?

People wishing to become members of the advisory board must write a letter of introduction explaining who they are and why they are interested in being part of the project. This letter is passed on to other members of the advisory board. The responsibilities of members of the advisory board are as follows:
- When an issue of the journal is completed they are to write an e-mail to the advisory board list providing feedback and comments about the issue
- As we begin work on a new issue of the journal, a phone meeting will be held to brainstorm ideas for the next issue. Advisory board members are expected to either attend the phone meeting or write an e-mail with suggestions for content of the journal. This e-mail could be the same one they write reviewing the previous issue as long as they also include ideas about the next one.
- Advisory board members are encouraged to participate in the process of coming up with an editorial for the journal which will be drafted by the editorial committee and sent out to the advisory Board e-mail list.
- Advisory board members are expected to aid in distribution of the journal.
- Advisory board members may take on other administrative or editorial tasks in collaboration with the editorial committee (such as proofreading, copy editing, following up with writers, helping to coordinate distribution in their region, organizing public events, etc.) but this is not required.

If over the course of several months of work on the journal, a member of the advisory board has made no input to the project on any of these levels, they may be removed from their position by the editorial committee so that we may invite other people to the advisory board who would have more time or energy to contribute to the project.

9. Q: What is the Toronto organizational committee?

Because the editorial committee is swamped with administrative and organizational work concerning the journal (organizing distribution, launch parties, finances, fundraising, getting libraries to carry the journal, organizing a subscription drive, liaising with international contacts, etc.) in addition to editorial work and because advisory board members have varying amounts of time and energy to devote to the journal, we have decided to create a new body within the journal project -- the Toronto organizational committee.

The Toronto organizational committee is to be made up of members of the advisory board and editorial committee in Toronto who have the time and energy to assist in the organizational and administrative work that is needed in to make the journal grow and be successful. The mandate of this committee is to carry out all organizational and administrative (but not editorial) work required for the journal project. (This would include organizing distribution, planning launch parties, organizing finances, fundraising, getting libraries to carry the journal, organizing a subscription drive, liaising with international contacts, holding public events etc.)

This committee will meet once every two weeks and members of the committee will take on specific organizational tasks for the journal. For the time being the committee will be made up solely of advisory board members and editorial committee members in and around Toronto so that we may meet in person on a regular basis. Other advisory board members in specific regional areas are encouraged to form their own local committees to carry out organizational and administrative tasks in their area if they feel that this is appropriate for them. The Toronto organizational committee will come up with its own structure and process for getting its work done.

10. Q: What is the format of the journal?

The journal will be published three times a year (Winter, Summer, and Fall). The publication will be put up on the A&S website and be available as a PDF file to be printed out and distributed. We are aiming for a size of about 120 pages per issue, professionally printed and bound.

11. Q: Is there an editorial standpoint of the journal?

There is a jointly written editorial for every issue of the journal, reflecting a commonly worked out position of the editors written with the input and advice of the advisory board. In terms of the rest of the publication, we want to encourage debate and discussion on the radical left within the pages of this publication. That means that we are very happy to have various rival points of view arguing and debating about key issues within the same issue of the journal. We will encourage our readers and writers to respond to the various points made in the articles and interviews we print. Because there is not a great culture of writing and publishing on the radical left in English speaking Canada, we will often run the transcripts of interviews with various activists who aren't able or willing to write articles for us but whose point of view we think is important.

12. Q: What is the relationship between the journal and the Autonomy & Solidarity network?

The journal is the autonomous project of the editors who are members of Autonomy & Solidarity. We adhere to the politics of A&S about which more information can be found at http://auto_sol.tao.ca/node/view/2 and are a project within the A&S network. A&S does not exist to build a party and does not "recruit" but seeks rather to set an example through our own activity of how to organize in radical and effective ways. The articles and editorials published in the journal reflect the political perspectives and priorities of members of the editorial board and while input on the articles comes from a wide cross section of activists on the journal’s advisory board, the journal does not speak for all A&S members.

13. Q: How it is the journal funded?

Nobody working on editing, producing or writing for the journal is being paid. All funding for the journal is coming from individuals who are connected to the project, and if you can help us financially, we would greatly appreciate it.

14. Q: Is there a style guide for the journal?

We are in the process of developing a style guide, but as of yet we do not have anything formally decided. This should be coming in the next several weeks.