sidelo>ded

A reading, thinking and being with group

With the batshit-high intensity level of the politics unfolding in the early months of 2026, a small group of researchers held a number of discussions across timezones around the urgent need for forms, forums and formats they felt were needed to provide even the smallest opening for thought and ideas under these conditions.

These discussions coalesced as sidelo>ded. A monthly online reading group born out of a desire to sit together, share texts and read them with friends. The texts are those we want to read with others, texts friends want to read with us, or difficult texts that are hard to read alone, using them as a space to try out ideas, forms of reading and methods of being together.

The group meets once a month, at 7pm (CET) on a Monday evening for two hours.

Texts are chosen by participants, who then lead the session.

The term sideloaded was coined in the late 1990s to refer to the transfer and storage of computer files in the virtual environment instead of by physical means. Sideloaded is the process of transferring files between two local devices, in particular between a personal computer and a mobile device such as a mobile phone, smartphone, PDA, tablet, portable media player or e-reader. Sideloading typically refers to media file transfer to a mobile device via USB, Bluetooth, WiFi or by writing to a memory card for insertion into a mobile device, but also applies to the transfer of apps from web sources that are not vendor-approved.

In a similar spirit, the intention for sidelo>ded is to share texts between members, especially those which aren't necessarily in the mainstream of critical thought, or texts which might happen to have percolated up as a result of current events or even readings, texts which are a challenge to read alone, or simply texts enjoyed by a member who wants to share it with the group.