Fifth Estate Archives: Preserving History

We need reader help

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Fifth Estate # 413, Spring, 2023

Photo shows a stern-faced young woman holding a copy of Fifth Estate newspaper. The headline reads, "Republicans: get out of town."
From the Fifth Estate photo archives. A reader holding a Fifth Estate extra prepared for the 1980 Republican National Convention. The article archive is available at fifthestate.org/archive/

Readers of the Fifth Estate know how much we value the history of opposition to oppression. Accounts of resistance have always filled numerous pages in the 413 issues we’ve published since 1965.

The archive at FiftheEstate.org is a repository of articles that chronicle anti-authoritarian ideas and action from more than half a century that will not be lost from public memory.

The early staffs paid little attention to the notion that someday a history of the times would be of interest to future generations of rebels or historians. Revolution was in the air in the 1960s and ’70s as was the Age of Aquarius.

The staff was then publishing a weekly Fifth Estate and either had no time or saw no need to retain what would be a proper archive of issues, correspondence, and images. Some remain, but it is only the online archive that has proper coherence.

But, even what most publications take for granted, the retention of all issues printed, is incomplete. We are missing several issues from the 1960s and early 1970s to complete our series, and are asking for reader assistance. If you have any of the needed issues, we would be grateful if you would fill the gaps in our collection.

Here are the ones for which we are looking:

#104 Vol. 4, 1970

#109 Vol. 5, 1970

#126 Vol. 5, 1971

#129 Vol. 5, 1971

#130 Vol. 5, 1971

#147 Vol. 6, 1971

#180 Vol. 7, 1972

#181 Vol. 7, 1972

#182 Vol. 7, 1972

#185 Vol. 8, 1973

#187 Vol. 8, 1973

If you have issues other than these particular ones, we can use those published prior to 1975. We are creating a second set. If we have duplicates, they can be traded for ones we are missing.

Mail issues you wish to donate for the maintenance of memory to

Fifth Estate, POB 201016, Ferndale MI 48220. Mark the envelope with “Please Do Not Bend.” Thank you.

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