On Monday 4/16, my husband and I were on the last stage of a three-day drive from Vermont back to Wisconsin. We were already in a good mood, feeling refreshed from lunch with a friend down on State Street, and having just a couple more hours to drive. Heading north out of Madison on Hwy 14, we spotted a recall sign in a style that was new to us. White-stenciled letters on a red background spelled out "RECALL WALKER". Below that, a large white text box offered a specific reason, handwritten in black. And just below that, in a smaller rectangular text box, we read "VOTE MAY 8." Within a few miles we spotted another one in the same design, but with a new reason to recall filling the large text box. After a glance in the rear-view mirror, I saw that the signs were also two-sided, providing a good view to south-bound drivers. As we continued north, new signs appeared every few miles, so though neither of us remembered hearing any word of it (we'd been in Vermont since mid-February) we realized we must be seeing the results of a carefully organized effort. Follow me below the fold for photos and more!
We saw signs at least as far as Richland Center, maybe a bit beyond, and as far as I could tell, each sign we came across offered a new reason to recall (and replace) Walker. I began regretting that I hadn't been taking photos all along the way, but it was a chilly, very blustery day, and we were eager to get home after such a long time on the road.
Today, we stopped by the Vernon County Democratic Headquarters in Viroqua, to see if we could learn more. As we stepped through the door, we realized we'd come to the right place when we saw the familiar, distinctive signs leaning up against a wall (see images below). We learned that the plan is for the signs to continue their march from Richland Center all the way to LaCrosse, but otherwise all I could learn was that this is a grassroots project. I've done some searching on-line, but so far have not found anything on this specific campaign. If you have information or have been an active part of producing these signs, please tell us about it!
By the way, I've been at Daily Kos since October 24, 2004--and this is my FIRST DIARY. I welcome any help with tags, or links to additional/related news items.
9:46 PM PT: Thanks to ruralWIS who ID'd some of the activists involved in this beautifully conceived and well executed project. As requested by elwior, I am sending love to them and to everyone who allowed these signs to be put up on their land next to Wisconsin Hwy 14. In the comments here there are some great suggestions about following up with similar actions in other parts of the state. If contact info or other useful information is posted in the comments, I'll add an update pointing to it tomorrow morning (and if someone can tell me how to LINK to a comment from an update, that would be greatly appreciated).
Thanks, too, to all who have contributed to my diary's tip jar--I am simply overwhelmed at the response! On, Wisconsin!!!!!!!
Wed Apr 18, 2012 at 2:46 PM PT: Just got back to Eau Claire. Want to add this ID of folks involved with the signs, per ruralWIS. If anyone has or finds contact info for them, please KOSmail me. I've looked, but no luck yet.
"Timms and Crew With Assists From Richland, Vernon"
"The signs are courtesy of grassroots activists including Nate Timms and a crew from Dane Co. who teamed up with activists in Richland and Vernon to extend the campaign. In Richland local Dems, Terry and Walter, took the lead while a handful of others helped to find sites. Everyone, get out there and make your own signs and get them up along every major artery!"