Democracy in Action, in Community - July News
Happy 4th of July. As we celebrate our democracy’s birth, we wonder, what are we celebrating at this time we are living through?
Here in Los Angeles, the National Guard, the Marines, and ICE invaded our city without an invitation. Our streets were primarily peaceful, yet helicopters hovered and sirens blared while fear was manufactured and amplified. Our US Senator was thrown to the ground and handcuffed for asking a question at a press conference. Elected representatives in Minneapolis were assassinated and shot in their own homes. The US entered into the Iran/Israel discord. The world is in a heightened state of conflict and reacting with heavy handed force.
How do we respond, rather than react to or ignore this bombardment of occurrences? How do we play offense rather than defense and elevate the vision of democracy that includes, supports and celebrates ALL? How can we activate joy as resistance?
We’d like to focus this newsletter on efforts that celebrate the local weavers who strengthen, invigorate, and activate our communities. Here are the stories of the good work being done by Create Protest artists Florencio Zavala, Man One, and Juliette Bellocq.
Florencio Zavala
Florencio uses design to challenge audiences to take more of an active role as CITIZEN. By mixing wordplay, symbolism and iconography, he encourages us all to be more curious, proactive and participatory. His design, "Free Citizen" is bold, yet challenging—asking the question, In our current democracy, are we (truly) free?
Check out Florencio’s new designs!
Thank you Florencio!
Man One
Man One, an artist whose style reflects the urban culture, addressing identity, community, and social issues, decided to respond to this challenging time by “choosing to his people”.
He shares in his newsletter that he has “recently dusted off our Crewest Blog and I am once again publishing stories, events, products and art from the community of artists which we’ve always supported and continue to champion."
“I ask you to join me this year in uplifting each other and help create the world we want to live in. Let’s share in the beauty and color of life even in the face of darkness.”
Let’s follow Man One’s example and uplift one another to create the world we want to live in. Subscribe to his newsletter!
Thank you Man One!
Juliette Bellocq
Juliette is a graphic designer with Handbuilt Studio and NAC Architecture. She is also on the board of directors of the Corita Art Center, a new creative space in downtown Los Angeles’ arts district. The center houses Corita’s archives, and celebrates and reflects on her work concerning poverty, racism, and war, and her messages of peace and social justice. Corita was most prolific in the 1960’s and ‘70s, and her work continues to powerfully resonate today.
Help us celebrate creative community weavers! Let us know who your community anchors are and what good work they are doing to create resilient, vibrant communities for us all.
Postcard Update
Since the inauguration of this current administration, our postcard sales have surged. That gives us a surge of joy, knowing that so many of you all are mobilized and making your voices heard.
Over 75,000 have been mailed to voters across the US!
Thank you for writing postcards!
"They can cut down the flowers but they can't stop the spring. Be seeds, be the spring. Be the insurrection. Be civil society. Be what happens."
- Rebecca Solnit
California Governor Gavin Newsom recently said, “The most important office in a democracy is not President or Governor — it’s citizen.”
Here are a few organizations and people with great ways to “citizen."
Citizen University: Equipping you with the tools to build a stronger civic culture.
How to Citizen: A podcast hosted by Barathunde Thurston.
Braver Angels: Leading the nation’s largest cross-partisan, volunteer-led movement to bridge the partisan divide and strengthen our democratic republic.
Made By Us: Using history to inform and inspire civic participation – powered by 400+ museums nationwide.
As we celebrate our Nation’s birthday, let’s each activate our role as Citizen!
Julie and Cynthia
PS: if you have 10 minutes, take a look at Chromophobia.