On display in the Library Rotunda June 7 – August 7, 2024
Curated by Riya Suthar ‘24, Psychology and Gender, Women’s, and Sexuality Studies, and Lindsey Loeper, Reference and Instruction Archivist.
The Alternative Press Center (APC), a resource library for non-mainstream and independent journals, magazines, newspapers, newsletters, and other periodical publications, was founded in 1969 – the same year as the Stonewall riots in New York City. Since its founding the APC has collected, indexed, and made accessible hundreds of publications produced by LGTBQ+ authors, activists, organizations, and communities.
Researchers can trace the continued growth, support, conflict, and language from within, and without, the queer community from 1969 to the present day. What rights and freedoms were they fighting for, how were they describing themselves and their communities, and what push back and violence did they experience from adversaries, politicians, or even their own friends and families? The publications in the APC show first hand how LGBTQ+ activists, authors, and artists wrote about themselves and how their priorities have developed over time. These publications also show the vocal history of a community that is often silenced.
View historical LGBTQ+ selections from the Alternative Press Center Collection all summer in the Library Rotunda or request specific titles in the Special Collections reading room.
It may seem odd to relate the satirical and often raunchy style of Underground Comics with Alternative Press and Radical Literature publications that tackle serious social and political issues. However, comics often served as a stepping stone into the world of politics for many young readers. Just as musical genres like punk rock or hip-hop have brought political awareness to its listeners, comics allowed individuals the chance to dip their toes into more tumultuous waters through a medium that they were attracted to and identified with. Complexity was always an asset to alternative publications that defined youth culture.
More sub-genres emerged, some more radical than others. And comics continued to tackle social and political problems that became pressing issues by the end of the 20th century. The environmental movement fought against industrial pollution and promoted a healthier and more sustainable lifestyle. They critiqued capitalism, claiming that it encouraged pollution and deforestation by cutting corners to increase profit margins.
Green Social Thought # 63 (Winter 2014) Published by Institute for Social Ecology.
Anarchist and socialist movements often grouped together to produce comics from a variety of artists due to their mutual rejection of the capitalist governmental structure. Many of these comics influenced and inspired local activism, and began circulating on college campuses. UMBC had its own, The Red Brick, a socialist student run newspaper running from 1969-1970. All three issues are scanned and available online through our digital collection.
Green Anarchy # 21 (Fall/Winter 2005-06).
UMBC’s Alternative Press Center Collection, located within the Special Collections department, holds the back issues of the titles collected by the Alternative Press Center (APC) from its beginning to five years prior to the current year. The APC is a non-profit collective, located in Baltimore, dedicated to providing access to and increasing public awareness of the alternative press. Founded in 1969, it remains one of the oldest self-sustaining alternative media institutions in the United States. UMBC’s APC collection houses numerous non-mainstream media that address topics such as: capitalism, LGBTQ+, feminism, world politics, Marxism, Socialism, Africana studies, and environmentalism, among numerous others.
Rachel Carson, Silent Spring (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1962).
The environmental movement of the late 20th century was reinvigorated with the publication of Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring (1962). Her book sought to educate the public about humanity’s attempt to control nature through the use of pesticides and pollutants, leading to an ecosystem in crisis that we have now inherited. Prior to the internet, much of the materials surrounding the environmental movement’s cause was written, distributed, and published through non-mainstream newspapers and magazines. In like manner, the grassroots quality of the eco-movement similarly matched the DIY attitude of the underground comic scene—especially when political worlds collided.
Swamp Thing Vol. 3 No. 8 (1974) Published by National Periodical Publications.
There are an abundance of comics dealing with the implications of nuclear fallout and chemical/biological warfare, seen in series’ like Toxic Avenger and Swamp Thing. These comics often touch on the conflicted relationship between humanity and the environment. However, many artists chose the comic medium as a way to tell more tangible stories of environmental hazards that educated its readers in an attempt to reach a wider audience.
Net Profit (1974) Ecomix Publications
Net Profit was a non-profit comic book that explored the life of porpoises, dolphins, and whales through the lens of the commercial fishing industry. It was a collaborative effort of activist writers, artists and ex-tuna fisherman dedicated to bringing awareness and stopping the needless killing of sea mammals in fishing commercial nets.
Food First Comics (1982) Published by Institute for Food and Development Policy.
Food First Comics was an Underground Comic that challenged the Malthusian notion of food shortage as a population problem and rather argued that it was a reflection of capitalist manipulation of land, agriculture, and food production. Likewise in Conservation, an APC title, writers tackle the sustainability of organic farming and eating locally.
Conservation Vol. 9 No. 3 (July-September 2008) Published by Society for Conservation Biology.
In Slow Death no. 8, artists comment on the issue of animal extinction with stories of endangered species and inhumane hunting practices like seal clubbing. APC titles like Green Mountain Quarterly frequently cover topics like deforestation’s impact on humans, animal extinction, and the ecosystem using comic style art to attract readers.
Slow Death No. 8 (1977) Last Gasp Publishing.
Underground Comix and The Alternative Press follow a DIY ethic that serves to inform and entertain the public through creative collectivity. The evolution of the comic book can be seen through titles that highlight contemporary issues like environmentalism, the effects of industrial capitalism on the environment, and ways that individuals can make a difference toward a healthier and more sustainable ecosystem.
Green Mountain Quarterly #3 (May 1976) Published by Green Mountain Editions.
The Underground Comix Collection Exhibit can be seen in the Albin O. Kuhn Library Rotunda from April 10–May 20, 2024. All comics featured are available for research use in the UMBC Special Collections Underground Comix collection. Alternative Press Center publications are available through Special Collections. Special Collections is open M-W 12-4pm and Thursday 12-7pm. The exhibit was curated by Special Collections graduate assistants Mark Breeding, M.A. ’24, History and Finny Rocca, M.A. ‘20, History. This blog post was written by Mark Breeding.
The Underground Comix scene was born out of the 1960’s counterculture movement amid the anti-establishment feeling of the day. Political scandal, the Vietnam war, drugs and psychedelic music all played a part in bringing together a collection of avant-garde artists to redefine what the comic book was. The initial cartoonists who began this venture, did it without funding and without approval, skirting the restrictive censorship of the Comic Code Authority. They followed, and set a precedent for, a long tradition of DIY attitude that served their own creative outlet and pushed the boundaries of good taste in the process. Some may say they even set it back irrevocably.
The Comic Code Authority is a relic of the golden era of comics in the 1950s. If the Code did not approve your comic, it would not be published or stocked in stores. It held strict rules that included: no sex, no drugs, no profanity. Underground Comix was a reactionary movement that quickly became a beacon of anti-censorship, creating a community of artists and ideas that explored topics deemed taboo or infringing on public decency.
Wertham, Fredric M.D. Seduction of the innocent. New York: Rinehart & Company, 1954.
Artists like Robert Crumb and S. Clay Wilson defined the anarchist nature of the Underground Comix scene. Crumb and Wilson were prolific artists who produced numerous comics and influential characters. These artists defended their explicit, often racist and sexist imagery as satire that others sometimes failed to see.
Crumb, Robert. Hup no. 1. San Francisco: Last Gasp, 1986.
Wilson, S. Clay. The Checkered Demon no. 2. San Francisco: Last Gasp, 1977.
While some thought that Underground Comix were meant to explore and exaggerate controversial topics, other artists saw an opportunity to have their voices heard, often for the first time. Feminist and LGBTQ+ artists tackled subjects like abortion, lesbianism, menstruation, AIDS, and childhood sexual abuse.
Gebbie, Melinda. Wimmen’s Comix no. 7. San Francisco: Last Gasp, 1976.
The 1970s were a time of tremendous outlet for African American creativity, freedom, and agency through the Underground Comix scene. Black artists created superheroes and characters that wrestled with socio-political issues while entertaining readers with violence, humor, and sex appeal.
Green, Richard “Grass.” Super Soul Comix no. 1. Princeton: Kitchen Sink Press, 1972.
The Underground Comix remain a tour de force of counterculture artistic expression. Not only were the artists and writers successful in rebelling against what they perceived to be an outdated and repressive authority mandate, but they managed to challenge societal standards and acceptance of decency and get away with it, allowing for more inclusivity and freedom of expression.
The Underground Comix Collection Exhibit can be seen in the Albin O. Kuhn Library Rotunda from April 10 to May 20, 2024. All comics featured are available for research use in the UMBC Special Collections Underground Comix collection. Special Collections is open M-W 12-4pm and Thursday 12-7pm. The exhibit was curated by Special Collections graduate assistants Mark Breeding, M.A. ’24, history and Finny Rocca, M.A. ’20, history, and this blog post was written by Mark Breeding.
Struggling to find a topic to research for upcoming papers? Maybe you just have a curiosity for military history in Asia, or early photographs depicting trans-Pacific exchanges that took place throughout the late 19th and early 20th centuries? In any case, the newly described Jerry Lee Harlowe collection housed in Special Collections is a must see!
Yung Hsing, Untitled [International Troops, Toasting], circa 1900. Cabinet cards, 6.5 in. x 4.25 in. Jerry Lee Harlowe Collection, P2014-11-012.
The Harlowe collection features an array of often rare cabinet cards, cartes-de-visite, and other photographs and memorabilia that acted as windows for Americans into what was then distant Asian cultures. The majority of these photographs were saved and collected as a result of the U.S. Naval operations, in both China and Japan, when servicemen sent them home, or collected them for albums. Other sources include the prominent missionaries working throughout these areas. Missions produced various images in support of their cause, and as teaching aids for conversion.
For military families, such photographs may have been their first time viewing traditional Asian clothing, modes of transportation, and cityscapes with temples, pagodas and elaborate gardens. Other photographs document the loss of family members, ship mates, and friends.
Elias G. E Dorge, Untitled [Missionary Family in China], circa 1860s – 1920s. Cabinet cards, 6.5 in. x 4.25 in. Jerry Lee Harlowe Collection, P2012-03-010.
Images of missionary workers may have been sent back to their congregations and used to document their work. Many images depicted Bible verses and allegorical scenes, as well as studio portraits showing members dressed in traditional clothing of the area.
The Harlowe collection is rich in memorabilia documenting the aspects of naval life including the Boxer Rebellion, and Naval tours in Asia and Cuba. Some of the personal items included are postcards sent home for Christmas and other cards that highlight the various ships on which sailors were stationed. There is even a rare pamphlet for the Smoker Program. A “Smoker” was an informal gathering for men, and in this situation was for the men of the U.S. Fleet at Tsingtao, China. The event offered wrestling, boxing, and music.
“Marble Boat”, circa 1930s. Color photograph, 15.25 in. x 11 in. Jerry Lee Harlowe Collection, P2012-09-093.
This is only the beginningasthe collection also includes snippets of Asian life, industry, and various methods of corporal punishment, as well as controversial racist political satire indicating the period’s instability. Even pirates make an appearance.
“Cochin Chinese Pirates”, circa 1850s. Carte-de-visite, 4 X 2.5 in. Jerry Lee Harlowe Collection, P2017-14-001.
Having spent the majority of 2020 creating metadata and description for this collection, I can attest to the ease in which I’d fall down that rabbit hole I like to call research. These images leave you with a sense of wanting to know more. For example, the photograph of the “Cochin Chinese Pirates” was my favorite photograph. Why, when the very word pirate has illegal, even violent connotations, would they pose for a photograph? As they look towards each other, is that fear in the one man’s eyes or companionship? Other compelling images are the group portraits of troop members from different countries toasting together as comrades, and those of headstones and military cemeteries that no longer exist today. Many of these short clips of memory, precious enough to be recorded, exhibit a sense of humanity we tend to forget as they help to tell a more global history through the photographic record.
“Weihaiwei Cemetery,” circa 1898 to 1930s. Gelatin silver print, 5.5 in x 3.5 in. Jerry Lee Harlowe Collection, P2012-19-109.
Jerry Lee Harlowe is a local historian, writer, and avid collector of historical photographs. He has written and edited several books and articles pertaining to his various historic and local interests including: Monitors: The Men, Machines, and Mystique, which tells the story of this innovative warship, and Vietnam Without a Dream, tales and memories of his time serving in Vietnam. Jerry Harlowe served with the U.S. Air Force at Pleiku Air Base in the Central Highlands of Vietnam. He continues to support groups for orphans of the Central Highlands, and has returned to the area numerous times over the years since in an effort to find his companion’s friends from their tour of duty. In the collection inventories, Harlowe has included brief notations for most photographs from his private research along with links for future researchers.
If this has sparked your interest, all of the photographs, records, and memorabilia in the Jerry Lee Harlowe collection can be viewed in the Special Collections reading room. The photographs can also be searched using the Special Collections Search bar on our homepage.
This post was written by Special Collections specialist Robin Martin ’08, ancient studies, and M.A. ’17, historical studies. Thank you, Robin!
Join Special Collections faculty, staff, and students on Tuesday December 12 to celebrate our 50th anniversary! Our Reading Room will be open from 1-3pm – see collection highlights, new accessions, and staff favorites. Stop in the Library Gallery to have a slice of birthday cake and pick out a commemorative button. It’s also your chance to view the current exhibition, Lost Boys: Amos Badertscher’s Baltimore, before it closes on December 15.
The Special Collections Reading Room is located on the first floor of the Library, in the back of the Library Gallery (to your left as you enter the Library). Everyone is welcome – hope to see you there!
