The radical "Red Brick" newspaper is now available online

Mon, 19 Sep 2011 16:05:21 -0400
archives, special-collections

“Revolution is coming; in what form no one knows, but it is coming.”

So states John J. Walsh ’70 in the third issue of The Red Brick, UMBC’s short lived radical paper. During the late 1960s and early 1970s, UMBC witnessed the civil unrest that permeated college campuses across the country. Although tensions never escalated to the point that the university had to cease its activities, UMBC student radicalism successfully stirred up controversy in the local community. At the heart of this radicalism was The Red Brick, a student-run news and arts publication. While consisting of just three issues, the increasingly provocative nature of the magazine provides insight into the desires and values of UMBC’s radical element during the 1969-70 school year.

Published in September and October 1969, the first two issues of The Red Brick focus on both internal concerns and larger cultural trends. The September paper (called The Red Bricks) begins with an open letter from the Student Government Association which highlights a variety of student grievances, from the limited influence of the student government to the classic college complaint about the food services.

The Red Bricks, September 1969 (view full issue)

In addition to discussing campus issues, the second issue (also labeled as the first volume, first issue) discusses the musical groups the Chicago Transit Authority and the Beatles; social injustice; Jerry Rubin; women’s liberation; Nixon; and black power.

The Red Brick October 1969 (view full issue)

In the third issue, which was published in May 1970, The Red Brick escalates in its radical language and focus on national controversies. The cover, which features the subtitled “Towards the Revolution,” sets the tone for the entire publication.

The Red Brick May 1970 (view full issue)

Sections of the paper relate to Black resistance, gay liberation, women’s liberation, birth control, sex, and politics. Unlike the earlier issues, the language of the paper is increasingly fiery and passionate, and the use of profanities is constant. Interspersed throughout these issues are poems, comics, and a number of illustrations that are indicative of their time. While UMBC students wrote some of the articles, the paper borrows heavily from other national publications.

Records found in UMBC’s University Archives shed light on the reception of The Red Brick. From the printing of the first issue onwards, Dr. Albin Kuhn, UMBC's first chancellor, received a number of letters in protest from students, community members, and even politicians. According to an October 30, 1969 article in the Catonsville Times, the paper so outraged the local community that a number of social organizations joined together to examine and protest the “radical, un-American and often obscene writings.” Dr. Kuhn, although criticized in The Red Brick itself, was quick to defend the rights of the students to free speech. He insisted that the publication was not funded by the State and that the students were not advocating for the downfall of the country. As he states in a response letter to one of The Red Brick critics, “while there are obviously many things with which I would take issue in the sense of the validity of the items expressed, I would find it difficult to see how anyone could take issue with the rights of individuals to free expression” (Letter from Kuhn to George E. Burnett, September 19, 1969. President’s Office Series I, Box 6, Folder 1).

Despite Kuhn’s public approval of free speech, the magazine faced an uphill battle against the administration. Controversy, coupled with blatant financial mismanagement of the magazine, led to the demise of The Red Brick. No new issues were published after the 1969-70 school year. Still, thanks to the preservation, and recent digitization, of this publication by UMBC’s Special Collections, the words of the radical element of the UMBC campus can now be read by a new set of readers.

Want to read The Red Brick for yourself? You can now browse all three issues of the journal in the UMBC Digital Collections.

Written by Johanna Schein, Special Collections Graduate Assistant.