Inkworks Press building. Berkeley, California – 2015

Ranil Abeysekera

Ranil is from Sri Lanka where in the 80’s his work focused on Human Rights and the defence of Democracy in a highly volatile political arena. He arrived as a political refugee in San Francisco in 1989 and was granted refugee status in Toronto Canada. There, he worked with the independent labor magazine publisher, Our Times and later met with other members of The Progressive Printers Network of North America. In 1998 he returned to the Bay Area as a member of Inkworks Press.

Workplace Democracy – Bay Area Organizations

Ranil’s transition to Community Printers has strengthened our mission and expanded our reach to progressive and Grassroots organizations of the San Francisco Bay Area. We partner with Design Action, a graphic Arts worker collective in Oakland, a key contributor in building alliances with this community. Some of the noteworthy organizations we work with include: Latino Community Foundation (LCF), Center for Story Based Strategy (CSS),Center for Political Education (CPE), Chinese for Affirmative Action (CAA), Asian Paccific Environmental Network (APEN),California Environmental Justice Alliance (CALEJA) and California Pan Ethnic Health Network (CPEHN). The Social, Environmental and Policy development work these organizations engage in keeps Community Printers informed at a level otherwise unheard of in a strictly commercial operation.

Workplace Democracy – National Organizations

Our model of worker ownership and the practice of workplace democracy, means being involved in the cooperative movement, thereby we are members of the Network of Bay Area Worker Cooperatives (NOBAWC – pronounced No Boss) and the US Federation of Worker Cooperatives. (USFWC) Our active participation connects us to a future alternative economy within a framework of interdependence and equity.

Nationwide

At a National level, we have gained opportunities to better serve Unions such as SEIU, NNU, ILWU, Unite HERE! and International organizations like GreenPeace and Amnesty International. At a local level among many others we print for well known artists such as Innosanto Nagara, Faviana Rodriguez and Dignidad Rebelde. The Bay Area Nonprofit sector is a vibrant community of its own, we are proud to be the go to printer for many.

 Our innovative approach to engineering and prototype making have expanded the array of manufacturing tools related to complex demands. We produce board games with TESA (Tools for Education and Social Action) and are sought after by customers looking for a Union shop that can handle more than printing. Whether it be manufacturing boxes for chocolatiers, or printing civic art displays on recycled plastic and paper boards, or packaging for the cannabis industry. We can do it all and then some. 

We welcome you to join us in our journey!