We Go Where They Go: The Story of Anti-Racist Action

On Thursday, March 9 at 6pm PST, join Massy Arts Society, Massy Books and University of Regina Press for the unapologetically voice-giving launch of We Go Where They Go: The Story of Anti-Racist Action. Recounting the thrilling story of a massive forgotten youth movement that set the stage for today’s anti-fascist organizing in North America, it features extensive interviews with dozens of dedicated activists in hundreds of chapters who joined the Anti-Racist Action fight.

In a conversation with authors Gord Hill and Shannon Clay—this evening invites us to ask the revolutionary questions of risk-taking and what we owe anti-fascist movements of the past.

This project has been made possible by the Government of Canada. Ce projet a été rendu possible grâce au gouvernement du Canada.

This project is supported by the British Columbia Arts Council.

Registration is free/by-donation, open to all, and required for entrance. 
Purchase We Go Where They Go: The Story of Anti-Racist Action at the event.

Venue & Accessibility
The event will be hosted at the Massy Arts Gallery, at 23 East Pender Street in Chinatown, Vancouver. 

The gallery is wheelchair accessible and a gender-neutral washroom is on-site. Please refrain from wearing scents or heavy perfumes. 

For more on accessibility including parking, seating, venue measurements and floor plan, and how to request ASL interpretation please visit: massyarts.com/accessibility

Covid Protocols: Masks keep our community safe and are mandatory (N95 masks are recommended as they offer the best protection). We ask if you are showing symptoms, that you stay home. Thank you kindly.

About The Book

We Go Where They Go: The Story of Anti-Racist Action  (University of Regina Press)

We Go Where They Go recounts the thrilling story of a massive forgotten youth movement that set the stage for today’s anti-fascist organizing in North America. When skinheads and punks in the late 1980s found their communities invaded by white supremacists and neo-nazis, they fought back. Influenced by anarchism, feminism, Black liberation, and Indigenous sovereignty, they created Anti-Racist Action. At ARA’s height in the 1990s, thousands of dedicated activists in hundreds of chapters joined the fights—political and sometimes physical—against nazis, the Ku Klux Klan, anti-abortion fundamentalists, and racist police. Before media pundits, cynical politicians, and your uncle discovered “antifa,” Anti-Racist Action was bringing it to the streets.

We Go Where They Go tells ARA’s story from within, giving voice to those who risked their safety in their own defence and in solidarity with others. This essential work of radical history illustrates how cultural scenes can become powerful forces for change. Here at last is the story of an organic yet highly organized movement, exploring both its triumphs and failures, and offering valuable lessons for today’s generation of activists and rabble-rousers. We Go Where They Go is a page-turning history of grassroots anti-racism. More than inspiration, it’s a roadmap.

With Authors

Gord Hill is an Indigenous writer, artist and activist of the Kwakwaka’wakw nation. He is the author and illustrator of The 500 Years of Indigenous Resistance Comic Book, The Anti-Capitalist Resistance Comic Book, and The Antifa Comic Book (all published by Arsenal Pulp Press in Vancouver, Canada), as well as the author of the book 500 Years of Indigenous Resistance, published by PM Press in Oakland, California. His art and writings have also been published in numerous periodicals, including Briarpatch, Canadian Dimension, Redwire, Red Rising Magazine, The Dominion, Recherches Amerindiennes au Quebec, Intotemak, Seattle Weekly, and Broken Pencil.

Shannon Clay is a student, historian, and community activist from the Mountain West. Coming up after ARA had largely declined, he learned of its little-known history through anarchist networks and saw the need to document and publicize its history for a new generation of activists. He has been involved in student organizing and in prison solidarity and abolition work.

Hosted by

Giles Grierson is a settler originally from Treaty 13 / Williams Treaty territory, and a founding member of ARA Toronto, Peterborough and Vancouver.