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M
other Kali’s Books in Eugene
turns 25 this month. This is no
small task considering the
growing domination of nation
al chains, which have caused
independent stores to close at alarming rates.
Sounds like a good excuse for a party. And
what a celebration it will be— with books, the
ater, art shows, a dance and a double concert
featuring Irene Farrera and Holly Near.
It hasn’t always been easy, but with determi
nation and a lot of support, Mother Kali’s has
survived.
The store opened in 1975 during the
women’s movement. Women presses just were
starting up, providing an outlet for feminist writ
ers. But still, the emerging literature needed a
place where readers could find it.
“We wanted a place where women’s culture
and lesbian-feminist reality could have a space
on a street,” explains Ellen Greenlaw, one of the
bookstore’s founders. “We needed a place where
people could come in and find out about social
change."
Greenlaw, Marilyn Picariello and Kathryn
Hunt found such a place in a small house they
rented on West 11th. Within a year, the owner
sold the property, and Mother Kali’s had to
move. But their time on West 11 th gave them a
good foundation.
“We opened with the idea that the entire
world is women’s concern,” Greenlaw says. “If
it would make women’s life better, we would
carry it.”
Mother Kali’s became more than a bookstore
as it grew into a community gathering place,
cultural center and referral source for a variety of
needs. Through the years, it changed locations
several times—getting a bit more upscale and
closer to the University of Oregon campus with
each move.
The second location on Blair Boulevard was
one of the most eventful, to say the least. Lor
raine Ironplow, Mother Kali’s board president,
explains that they liked the multicultural neigh
borhood hut that they were in a terrible build
ing, which they shared “with a guy and his
garage who hated us.”
“The gas heater leaked,” she remembers.
“You could see light through the walls, and the
toilet...well, you had to go outside and around
the hack to reach the toilet.
“I still remember what he wrote on the toilet
since we had to share it,” she adds with a laugh,
“because I read it— like— 2,000 times! It was so
unpleasant.”
Then there were the frequent fire inspec
tions. “Six men in big boots would stomp
around the store and write us up for some minor
violation,” Ironplow says. “When the lease was
up, it was a pretty easy decision to move.”
A N ew C hapter
Mother Kali's Books copes with change as it celebrates
25 years of independence by Pat Young
Tova Stabin (left) and Lorraine Ironplo.v are struggling to survive amid the wave of national
bookstore chains
Mother Kali’s moved to Lawrence Boulevard
and then Franklin Boulevard before landing at
its current location on East 13 th.
With every move, customers such as Linda
Frederick followed. When she discovered Moth
er Kali’s at its first location, she was deep in the
closet.
“I happened upon Mother Kali’s as a femi
nist, and it felt fairly safe—except, of course,
there was a lesbian section, which I would sort
of sidle up to and look at out of the comer of my
eye,” Frederick says. “It was the first time that I
had been in a place that was not mainstream
and really was almost a hidden place that I could
go. Finally after about six trips, I got up the
nerve to buy a hook that dealt with lesbianism.
“It’s been a transition for me. Now, I am
totally out, and they are near campus and a very
acceptable store.
“There is nothing about it that feels as if peo
ple are hidden. It is all open. It kind of mirrors
my journey to some extent.”
Despite the moves, one thing has been con
stant: Mother Kali’s has remained a not-for-prof
it organization. At first, it operated as a collec
tive, where the founders and volunteers shared
in the decision-making process.
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The women had part-time paying jobs, so
they also could volunteer at Mother Kali’s.
Tilings were going well until the recession hit
during the early 1980s.
“Most of the women had to get full-time jobs
to support themselves,” Ironplow says. “Then
they didn’t have the ability to come in and work
in the store.”
Mother Kali’s began to struggle with frequent
turnover in the volunteer help. It was in danger
of losing its infrastnicture.
However, the recession had a silver lining:
Izzie Harhaugh, who had been helping in the
store for a few years, lost her job at the universi
ty. She then decided to make Mother Kali’s her
focal point.
“It wasn’t like a change on one day to go
from a collective to a manager,” Ironplow
recalls. “It was a kind of gradual shift because of
the economic situation.”
As manager, Harhaugh strengthened the
bookstore as a community center, political
forum and resource center. She was a warm, wel
coming spirit who easily could talk to anyone.
At the same time, she had a fiery determina
tion to take on tough issues such as breast can
cer, free speech and homeless youth. Some reg
ular customers even thought of her as Mother
Kali, the fearless g xldess of India.
“The political action of the store has been
largely in the selection of stock and the person
al networking that Izzie did,” Ironplow notes.
“Izzie knew everybody in town, and they would
come in just to talk to her. And now we are try
ing to continue.”
The 71-year-old’s unexpected death in
January 1999 left a void that hasn’t been easy
to fill. The store shifted to a structure with
two co-managers, three board members and
three staff members.
And co-manager Tova Stabin cites other
challenges: who to target, what books to carry,
determining what young people want, how to
keep Harhaugh’s networks alive.
“People are still grieving, and because they
are grieving, change is difficult," she says. “Some
people have said they haven’t been in here for
six months because they couldn’t handle com
ing in with Izzie not being here.”
A tough challenge that has caused some
change at Mother Kali’s is finding a way to
survive amid the wave of national bookstore
chains.
“Forty percent of general independent book
stores have closed over the past six years," Iron-
plow notes. “In the last two years, 35 percent of
feminist bookstores have closed.”
The co-managers and board decided to sell
more university textbooks to raise money. To
do that, they needed a space, so they disman
tled the lending library set up in the back of
the store.
“The lending library had places to sit and
a few couches. Izzie died on one of them,” says
Ironplow, who was Harbaugh’s partner. “I
took that library apart with my hands, and it
was really hard to do, but I knew we needed
to do that.”
Stabin adds: “Change is really hard, and to
do it on a community basis can be difficult. But
people have been incredibly supportive.”
They hope the support continues. The
anniversary celebration’s goal is to increase
awareness of Mother Kali’s and other indepen
dent bookstores as well as to say thanks for 25
years of support.
in
The M other K ali’s Books 25 th G ala B irth
day C elebration and F und -R aiser runs noon-
midnight N ov. 11 at A gate H all on the University
o f O regon cam pus in Eugene. For tickets and infor
mation call 5 4 1 -3 4 3 -4 8 6 4 or visit the Internet site
u>wu>. m otherkalis. com .
P at Y o u n g , a Portland-hosed free-lance uniter
and gay and lesbian historian, is uniting a hook
about I9 9 2 's Ballot M easure 9 .
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