Through a volunteer-focused business model and commitment to leftist principles, Riot Act Books has persisted as a fixture in Binghamton’s literary and political scenes since October 2020.

At the heart of this bookstore is community and all the ways in which people are often stronger when they band together. The Riot Act, from which the store gained its name, was passed in 1714 in the United Kingdom to ban gatherings of more than 12 people. In the same way that the Riot Act was decreed in response to “rebellious riots and tumults,” the bookstore was opened after the “summer rebellions” in 2020.

“Riot Act is a place for people to access books, find community, take action, discuss, and organize,” Andy Pragacz, a founding member of the store, wrote in a statement to Pipe Dream. “We felt, in order for the social justice community to grow, we needed a book store to help people access the rich literature of the left — that’s missing in big box bookstores — a space that was public facing, and one that could be self-sustaining. That is, we needed a bookstore.”

Harkening to its namesake, the bookstore’s collection features works connected to its commitment to anticapitalism and antifascism. By featuring books grappling with these topics, Pragacz said that the store allows these ideas to be “debated and discussed in a non-sectarian space.”

These ideas bleed over into the store’s antiprofit business model. Citing other independent bookstores that have had to close in the Binghamton area due to declining sales — like RiverRead Books, which closed in 2016 — Riot Act Books prides its model on being a cheaper, more efficient alternative.

“Our store could not operate if it wasn’t fully staffed by volunteers, we simply don’t make enough money,” Shams Harper, another founding member of the store, wrote. “Also, the way things are right now, I think it is questionable if Binghamton can support a bookstore that has to pay rent, employees, and turn a profit — if the city could, RiverRead would still be around for example.”

Using volunteers helps bolster Riot Act Book’s founding principle of community, allowing people to come together to keep the store running whenever possible. Those who choose to give their time are dedicated to the store’s mission, rather than a paycheck. All revenue the store receives is used to purchase books and pay overhead fees, which keep the business running.

Along with providing literature, Riot Act Books also hosts a plethora of community events, including the annual Upstate Anarchist Bookfair it co-organizes with PM Press. These events bring together similar stores in celebration of May Day, a workers’ holiday that commemorates May 1, 1886, where police officers in Chicago shot at striking workers. This led to the Haymarket affair, where violence erupted between law enforcement and protestors, culminating in the death of one police officer and a major shift in the workers’ rights movement.

“The Upstate Anarchist Bookfair brings together dozens of radical publishers from all over the country to sell, share and trade books, zines, art and propaganda, and volunteers host activities, skillshares, discussions open to all,” Harper wrote. “Fun to be had, and a great opportunity to connect with people from all over.”

Riot Act Books offers a variety of reading on topics, including indigenous lives and liberation, economics and class, gender and sexuality and politics and current affairs. One book Harper recommended was “The Black Jacobins: Toussaint L’Ouverture and the San Domingo Revolution” by C.L.R James, which details the Haitian Revolution and its connection to spirituality and global worker and slave rebellions.

Engaging in larger conversations and movements is all Riot Act Books hopes to foster within Binghamton. Its presence in the city centers around in-person communication and togetherness, whether through volunteering or community events.

“I think a fundamental part of any socialist political project is encouraging people to be pro-social, and that is one way Riot Act Books plays a role in that bigger project,” Harper wrote. “Plus, Riot Act is currently the only book store operating in Binghamton, and we think a book store is an important thing for any town or city to have.”