Dumont Press Graphix Limited

Beginning in the 1960s a group of University of Waterloo students were heavily involved in progressive politics and advocacy. This included protesting the war in Vietnam, disenfranchisement, high book prices, and a lack of funding for the library, as well as supporting striking newspaper staff of the Peterborough Examiner. During this time many of these students began living together in self-described hippie houses which served as meeting places for like-minded individuals. In 1969 fourteen of these students moved into a home at 196 King Street South in Waterloo that was dubbed the "Gabriel Dumont Memorial Co-op" and later the "Gabriel Dumont Memorial Commune". In the Spring of 1970 a group of students, former students, and student journalists began to put together a proposal for a community newspaper. When it was determined that typesetting and printing the paper would be a challenge, they also decided to establish a cooperative typesetting shop with the belief that "Freedom of the press is guaranteed only to those who own one". In June of 1971 Dumont Press Graphix was opened. The press was financed by a combination of loans, funding from friends and family, and money from the Industrial Development Bank. The press was owned be an employee's association that had decision-making control on a one member-one vote basis. Over the next few years, approximately 15 people worked at Dumont at any given time, although this number changed seasonally and with employee's other commitments. The press did take on commercial work and printed for organizations such as Amnesty International, Conestoga College, University of Waterloo Federation of Students, GLOW, Hysteria Magazine, Imprint, Panned Parenthood, and more. However, noncommercial work was central to the political philosophy of the press. Politically aligned organizations (referred to as 'New Left' in a Dumont publication from 1976) were able to use the shop on a cost recovery model. Although the organization never released a political statement outlining all of their communal beliefs, in general members were involved with labour work, anti-racism work, feminist movements, the commune movement and more. There were at time internal strife in the organization around beliefs, and around the balance between running a commune and work getting done. The press officially closed in 1989 although it had suffered through years of unrest and financial difficulties before that date. Members of the press and friends continue to meet for reunions.

Created JB 2024.

Information taken from contents of the fonds.