Brick is an online publication based in the University of Sussex that seeks to provide an independent, anonymous platform from which to safely project marginalised and vulnerable voices, to speak out against systems of power and authority and to hold people and institutions accountable for their actions. We are not an organisation, we are just a group of students and friends who recognise the absence of and need for truly independent leftist media at Sussex.
As you will likely be aware, there are already two student publications at Sussex; so why do we feel the need to create another? Regarding the University’s unofficial student paper, while we acknowledge there are overlaps between our projects, we believe that The Badger is inherently compromised by their relationship with the Student Union and therefore university management. We admire much of the strong work that their talented writers and editors do, but believe that they are unable to adequately criticise the systems of power at Sussex because they receive their funding through them. Our sources tell us of articles repeatedly being neutered by a 'higher authority' and thus having to shift responsibility away from those in positions of power. These relationships, upon which The Badger relies, mean that they are ill-equipped to tackle the systems of neoliberalism that are currently overcrowding our campus, overworking our tutors and overpaying our Vice-Chancellor. So, while we respect and appreciate The Badger’s often excellent journalism, we can do something they cannot: truly expose the university’s management and hold them accountable for their repeated failures.
However, while we mean no disrespect to The Badger, we mean all disrespect to The Tab. The Tab is a gossip-y tabloid funded by Rupert Murdoch’s money. Money that is bloodied by the man’s feigned ignorance, his resultant escalation of the climate crisis and repeated support of bigoted, right-wing populists. Indeed, their reporting fits the interests and style of their main investor to a tee, the Sussex Tab has repeatedly demonstrated a wilful ignorance of, and reluctance to adequately report on, key issues affecting the university, especially when doing so might risk criticising its (mis)management. Take, for example, their coverage of the UCU strikes that began this morning. So far the Sussex Tab has published a handful of articles concerning the strikes, but not one properly addresses the issue from the perspective of staff. Not one explores in any depth the causes of the strikes, instead opting to focus on their immediate effects from a student perspective. I do not mean to say that the effect of striking staff on students is not an important and valid concern, only that, in this instance, viewing the issue entirely from the angle of those annoyed at missing lectures results in a contracted perspective that is blind to the systemic causes of the strikes. Even today, they published a vox-pop style piece asking seemingly random students whether it’s okay to cross the picket line and, while there is nothing wrong with this in essence, it is strange that they have shown no desire to listen to the people whose lives are being made increasingly miserable by Adam Tickell and his cohort’s management of the university. Where in The Tab are the voices of the overworked, underpaid staff, those who are being maliciously paid less than their peers because of the colour of their skin and/or their gender? Where are the students suffering from mental-health related illnesses who are not provided adequate, properly funded support? They’re not there. For all intents and purposes, The Tab couldn’t care less about them.
The Sussex Tab has shown a grim lack of awareness of their platform and the responsibility that accompanies it; they show no discretion over which voices they amplify; no will to use their influence for good. Over and over they demonstrate that all they care about is clicks. As such, we have created Brick because we believe that the students and staff at the University of Sussex deserve responsible, informative and courageous media that isn’t afraid to grip management by their gold-plated balls (5 of the 6 members of Sussex’s senior leadership are male and, on that topic, all six of them are white).
We look forward to sharing our work with you. We’ll release work every Monday, Wednesday and Friday from now until the end of term. Make sure to follow our social media and keep up to date (links exist at the bottom of this webpage).
If you have any interest in writing for us or submitting art or would just like to discuss anything related to Brick, get in touch at bricksussex@gmail.com