The Riot Grrrl Collection

For the past two decades, young women (and men) have found their way to feminism through Riot Grrrl. Against the backdrop of the culture wars and before the rise of the Internet or desktop publishing, the zine and music culture of the Riot Grrrl movement empowered young women across the country to speak out against sexism and oppression, creating a powerful new force of liberation and unity within and outside of the women's movement. While feminist bands like Bikini Kill and Bratmobile fought for their place in a male-dominated punk scene, their members and fans developed an extensive DIY network of activism and support.The Riot Grrrl Collection reproduces a sampling of the original zines, posters, and printed matter for the first time since their initial distribution in the 1980s and '90s, and includes an original essay by Johanna Fateman and an introduction by Lisa Darms.

Lisa Darms is Senior Archivist at the Fales Library & Special Collections at NYU, and founder of the Fales Riot Grrrl Collection. She holds an MA in History and Archival Management from NYU, an MFA in Photography from the University of Washington, and a BA from the Evergreen State College. Her writing has been published in The Believer, Women & Performance Journal, and Archivaria. Before coming to archives she taught photography, worked as a custom photo printer, and was a member of the collaborative art group Thin Ice. Darms grew up in British Columbia, CanadaJohanna Fateman is a writer, musician, record producer, and member of the post-punk band Le Tigre. She, along with Kathleen Hanna and several other key Riot Grrrls, recently donated her zines and early writings to the Fales.