The Red And Black Book

The Selected Works of Eugene V. Debs, known colloquially as The Red And Black Book, is a book that collects essays, speeches and abridged versions of longer works, that were written by the American socialist activist Eugene V. Debs. It is typically of pocket-size, and bound with leather (or leather-equivalent substitutes). The cover of the book, which mimics the national flag of the UASR, is what gives the volume its common nick-name. Although it was a moderate success in the United Republics at first, it would not become a global icon until it's publication and spread in the FBU (and subsequently the broader AFS) during the 1960s.

Origins
The origins of the book are traced back to the 1937 events known as the Revolt of the Cadres. According to scholars, a group of student activists in the city of Metropolis (called the Metropolitan Student Committee) were the ones responsible for collecting and editing the book for the purpose of putting forth ideological justification for the activists in Detroit. Although there were originally plans to also include selected pieces by Daniel DeLeon, the students determined that his work was perhaps too dense for the book's purposes.

According to later interviews given by members of the Committee at the time, the book was specifically edited to be as straightforward as possible. It is for this reason that the book is not an exhaustive collection of Debs's works, but rather collects his more straight-forward writings (and abridged the ones they deemed more complicated). Furthermore, later editions of the book would include items not selected by the Committee, such as the biographical sketch by American revolutionary Harry Haywood and the anniversary introduction by Chinese poet Mao Zedong (written in the 1950s and 1970s, respectively).

Spread
Exactly when or how the book entered into the FBU is still up to debate. The most common theory is that the book was first obtained and then distributed in the late 1950s by members of the Entente Section of the Communist International, more than likely by members of it's Youth League, who would have possibly obtained copies of the book during a conference of the TCI. Since this edition of the book (which would later be reprinted by FBU publishers) would have contained the biographical sketch by Haywood, this makes the timeline less ambiguous.

By the 1960s, however, the book was no longer an obscurity and had become a cult item among youth in the FBU. Copies were purchased, traded and re-traded by members of the Entente Section (as well as the left flank of the Labour Party). Conservative politicians railed against the book, calling it "a dangerous instrument of communist subversion". One Conservative PM on the floor of parliament even declared that the publishers of "this illicit rag" should be charged with treason and imprisoned.

By the early 70s, the book had become a common feature of Entente and Labour gatherings, with young activists carrying the book and waving it in the air as a sign of solidarity.