Filipe Bergson is trying to get their attention.<\/p>\n
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Filipe Bergeson<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019d just turned 30 and was like, \u201cWhat do I want to do with my life?\u2019\u2019 Bergson explained. \u201cI didn\u2019t know. So I asked instead, \u2018Okay, what\u2019s the most fun I can have right now?\u2019 Well, try to reopen Haslam\u2019s, but with the caveat that I\u2019d be totally cool just galvanizing an effort to open up like a comic book \u2018zine store separate from Haslam\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI started doing markets around town to raise money and introduce people to \u2018zines and comic books, and then decided to pop up in front of Haslam\u2019s. Because the coolest place to do this would be Haslam\u2019s, to reopen the shop, and integrate a comic book zine program into what\u2019s already going on there. This is obviously wishful thinking, but my favorite thing to do is to create a bit and see how far we can take it.\u201d<\/p>\n
And he\u2019s taking it far.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Bergeson is also crowdsourcing content for a Haslam\u2019s zine that he plans to self-publish in May. The \u2018zine offers the community a space to express their love, appreciation, sorrow and grief for the store. \u201cI want to send it to the owners to show them how much this meant to everybody,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Bergson smiled as he recalled the numerous conversations he\u2019s had with people who have been indelibly impacted by Haslam\u2019s and its closing.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was a woman who stopped by to tell me and said, \u2018I get sad every time I pass this building \u2013 there\u2019s a place in my heart for it. I want to see it reopen.\u2019 This other person passed by and was like, \u2018Yeah, my deceased husband and I, we used to visit here from Michigan all the time, and his first stop was to go to Haslam\u2019s. He\u2019d get a book, just walk around.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was a tradition, you know, and a lot of people have those stories.\u201d<\/p>\n
While the dream is to land back at Haslam\u2019s, Bergson admits that it\u2019s a long shot. He\u2019s not deterred.\u00a0 He\u2019s happy just to be publishing \u2018zines while he waits for that dream to come true.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI love zines. I love the idea that I can make something, print it that day, and distribute it, and just be like, there it is. It\u2019s out in the world. I don\u2019t have to get anyone\u2019s permission. Do I have to talk to a publisher? No, I just do it. And I love encouraging the younger generation to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n
For him, \u2018zines are more than just an alternative literary format. They\u2019re an opportunity to effect change in your community.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI want to show people that we can make these community zines about things we love. And in a way, this is what galvanizes the political ammunition for future endeavors.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI think if you can get enough people to galvanize around Haslam\u2019s, what else can you use to get those people together to change something else in your community?\u201d<\/p>\n
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