Gamma Acosta has been making Artwork in Denver and Colorado for over 10 years now.
I have been following Gamma’s artwork for the last 3 of those years. So when I was driving through downtown and saw this Mural, I recognized his style and noticed people coming up to take pictures and ‘selfies' with the Bernie Mural.
And while he gets positive press for popular artwork in news outlets like our local NPR affiliate and the Denver Post
Gamma is much more than a Graffiti artist, he uses his artwork and talent to communicate political messages as well.
I saw his Bernie mural a few days ago and asked if he’d like to do an interview about it.
Not only was I blown away by his response, but I was in for a treat to hear from the team of people he brought to the interview to discuss the state of our Democracy and the need for Bernie Sanders for President.
Below is my interview of he and his friends, fellow political and community activists at the Bella Vista restaurant which has allowed Gamma to place murals on their Wall in Downtown Denver.
Bret Mielke, Flor Marquez, and Gamma Acosta of Gamma Gallery
(Note: Gamma donated his time and efforts for this mural and was
neither asked to do this or paid by the Sanders campaign)
First up Gamma of Gamma Gallery:
Q What was your inspiration for this?
A As soon as I found out he was running I knew I was going to do something like this to help support him.
Q And you donated the time and costs out of pocket to do that?
A Right, that was my contribution to his campaign.
Q Why did you choose to have the U.S. Constitution in the background? A Just the phrase, We the People.
Flor
Q What got you involved?
A (Bernie) was talking a lot about the Environment which is something we are almost at a State of Emergency in our World, the way that we are living. That’s something that I think is really crucial for politicians to be talking about. The way Bernie talks he’s addressing all of us, not just Democrats, not just poor people, he’s talking about things that impacting everybody, and there’s no segregation — We are all a part of it.
Q What is the biggest challenge that you think you people are facing today?
A (Gamma) Debt.
(Bret) Definitely Debt.
(Flor) I had to stop going to school because I couldn’t afford it, and this is an obstacle that stands in the way of me furthering my career and being a community member and supporting the community.
(Bret) I’m 33 years old. I had countless people when I graduated High School go straight to War.
Some them now are probably out there holding those (homeless) signs on the side of the street. They definitely don’t get the mental health care or things like that which they deserve.
And you hear someone like Bernie come along who has been working for Veterans for quite some time. The other candidates are not even addressing these concerns. (They think) the Status Quo is just fine. But the average person realizes the Status Quo is not fine — It’s leaving so many people by the way side.
Flor also added this for our Spanish speaking listeners:
Nosotros tenemos que tomar responsabilidad para nuestra comunidad. Es importante que no nos miremos solamente como un individuo pero que pensemos en las personas que están en la comunidad, los que cuidan a nuestros niños, las personas que nos conocen, que nosotros conocemos, los que trabajan en restaurant, los que trabajan en los hoteles, también los que nos representan a nosotros, tenemos que contribuir al sistema político, porque si nosotros no contribuimos, nuestra voz no existe, y nuestra voz es muy importante. Siento que somos la minoría más grande de los Estados Unidos y que los hijos de los inmigrantes ahora están en la edad que pueden votar, es muy importante que usemos ese derecho, porque si no lo usamos entonces nuestros derechos como humanos están siendo anulados y no podemos aceptar eso. Tenemos que participar y usar nuestra voz lo más que podamos.
Translation:
We have to take responsibility for our community. It is important not to look only as an individual, but to think of the people who are in the community, those who care for our children; people who know us. We know, those working in the restaurant, those who work in the hotels, also those who represent us. We have to contribute to the political system, because if we don't contribute, our voice does not exist and our voice is very important. I feel that we are the largest minority in the United States and that the children of immigrants are now at the age that they can vote. It is very important that we use that right, because if not then use of our rights as humans are being cancelled and we cannot accept that. We have to participate and use our voice as much as we can.
Another interesting comment from Gamma:
He (Bernie) is not running to gain control. All the other candidates are like “I need to be President”
(Bernie) is saying “We have a chance to fix this, We can do better”
Yes We Can Do Better
We won the Super Bowl, now let’s win the Caucus!
Make sure to Caucus for Bernie in Colorado on March 1st!