Gloria Steinem was the star speaker at an October Get-out-the-Vote event at the Showbox Theater in Seattle. I expected lots of Boomers like me, but the audience was about 75% young people.
Steinem said that what "The Powers That Be" don't want you to know is that political activism is FUN! Camaraderie, excitement, suspense, strategizing, community, adventure....the thrill-of-victory, agony-of-defeat [my words]. She said music, art, theater, any creative activity, even romance & sex, can be part of these political events! Way to get the Gen-Y-ers to prick up their ears, Gloria!
Since then, I've been chewing on this idea of politics and fun. It isn't a frivolous topic, because it could be the difference between getting or NOT getting the attention of the public and the media. Getting or NOT getting participants to persevere during the stressful or discouraging times.
Many Americans avoid politics because they think of political activism as a thankless, onerous, and tedious pursuit that only the fanatical or power-hungry would devote much time to. (That was once the case with me!)
If Gloria is right, "fun" political activism could potentially be as popular and habit-forming as other absorbing, entertaining or challenging activities, like sports, concerts, computer games, collecting, etc. And far more meaningful, of course. But the American public has a short and fickle attention span, and we political activists have the above-mentioned competition to deal with.
Gloria Steinam seemed somewhat amused by my GOTV costume. "We have a suffragette!" she exclaimed, eyeing me up and down.
I got the idea when I read about a Portland Summer Solstice parade, which featured a whole contingent of such WWI-era suffragettes, like those featured in the historical drama "Iron-jawed Angels." It gets a lot of attention; many of people have asked to take my picture or asked for my business card. I was interviewed by a radio station.
I've also seen the"Billionaires for Bush"group, who demonstrate wearing kitschy formalwear.
The "Raging Grannies" wear gaudy glad-rags and sing protest songs."
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INAUGURAL DAY (or any other) PROTEST RALLIES
The mainstream media look for colorful and unique photo and video ops. What's more likely to be covered by the press: a bunch of grim anti-Bush Seattleites in earth-colored parkas and blue jeans, chanting slogans from the 60's and waving hastily scrawled, corrugated sign boards--or street theater: BolDLy LeTTereD, multi-colored graphics, costumes, props, music, drama? Think about how just one guy on a pair of stilts stops traffic! (Speaking of costumes, if it were not January, those of us in non-Sunbelt states would have a lot more leeway in costuming!)
If the photo-op is people of all ages and colors dressed in novelty costumes to dramatize a political point, that's the image they'll present. If the photo-op is a clutch of purple-tufted anarchist punks with profane signs and hardware hanging out of their lips, that's the image they'll present. The first is more likely to have the effect we want.
ABOUT THE MESSAGES
I'm depressed thinking of the tragedy our world is suffering. Each day the difficulty of seeing anything BUT tragedy increases. Still, we can employ black humor, absurdist humor, satirical humor, visual humor--with determination and defiance. That makes better street theater than bitterness, fury, and nihilism, which are painful to behold, no matter how justified.
One goal is to win over the percentage of Bush voters who are having doubts, and apolitical types, while energizing ourselves as well.
The messages should be fairly self-explanatory. Think of "Billionaires for Bush": everyone knows what a billionaire is; the very name is absurdist, because no one refers to themselves that way, even if they are, in fact, worth a billion. The message: the extremely privileged, affluent and powerful few support Bush because it benefits them--at the expense of the majority.
If the message employs less-than-obvious references, many spectators may not `get it". For instance, I'm told a sign that referred to "No Habeus Corpus" got mostly puzzled looks. Although I recognize the phrase as a legal term, I had to look it up, myself.
"The Habeas Corpus act was created in 1679 to prevent people from being unlawfully detained, to prevent long periods of detention and also to give people the belongings that had been confiscated from them. As well, it forces bailable crimes to be given bail, as the oft-practiced option was to not grant the legal right to bail at all. It also guarantees the return of property to the wrongfully convicted."
"No Habeus Corpus" is clear to those familiar with legalese, or who remember it from high school or college classes. But almost all people would understand "Held Without Just Cause" or "Held Without Charges" or "Unlawful Detention".
I've made this mistake. One sign of mine mocked Bush by including the phrase "HARD WORK". But if someone didn't watch W's abysmal first debate performance in which he repeated that many times, the slogan would have to be explained. Like a successful joke, a sign's "punchline" should not have to be explained.
Another consideration: "America is Evil" or "Bush Voters are Stupid" framing will turn off many ordinary people whose reaction will be to deny it. Remember "Godwin's Rule": The first references to Hitler or Nazis lose. It's tempting to start the goose-stepping imagery--red meat to our choir (mixing metaphors)--but this may be counter-productive. A better sub-text: Americans are mostly good people who have been subjected to disastrously incompetent leadership, who've been deceived. Troops are mostly good people who have been subjected to disastrously bad commanders. I place the blame squarely on the Bush cabal and their corporate enablers. That's why I label them "BushCo".
SOURCES FOR THEATRICAL AND ART SUPPLIES
Goodwill and other secondhand shops are a source of cheap props and costumes.
Toy dept.: GI Joes, action figures, miniature military gear, Barbies, baby dolls, large stuffed animals, dinosaurs, monsters and robots
Men's clothing: Army surplus stuff, white T-shirts to paint on, cheap suits
Women's clothing: Anything from raggedy stuff to vintage fashions to wedding gowns
Tools: every variety of hardware, chains, wires, etc.
Cloth: Fabric remnants, tablecloths, drapes
Misc: Decorations, seasonal stuff, baskets, art supplies, kitchenware
Large drugstores and office supply stores
Colored poster board and foam-core board that is probably cheaper than an art supply store.
Jumbo markers, cheap poster paints and brushes. I use waterproof markers, and spray my finished signs with a waterproof coating. That protects them from drizzle. If it's raining, I'd wrap them in clear plastic as well, because the board would be ruined if it were soaked, even if backed with foamcore.
Discount Fabric stores often have remnants and bulk fabrics for very cheap. Solid colors, animal prints, camouflage prints, fake fur, sparkly stuff.
Costume and Party Supply Shops
Costume Accessories: Fake beards, wigs, novelty fabrics, masks, novelty hats, ball & chain, etc.
IDEAS FOR SLOGANS
I got some of the ideas below from reading Kossacks' posts and sig lines. Okay, maybe some of these ideas don't work, but you help me decide. Let's brainstorm about dramatizing I-Day protests.
In the tradition of "Billionaires for Bush":
"WEAPONS DEALERS FOR BUSH"
"FALSE PROPHETS & PHARISEES FOR BUSH"
"ROBBER BARONS FOR BUSH"
Back to the 19th Century
3-pc suit, cigar, watch chain, handlebar mustache or muttonchops
"IMPEACH CHENEY FIRST"
(Man in a suit covered with monopoly money? Toy military equipment attached? Severed GI Joe heads & limbs?)
"WHO WOULD JESUS TORTURE?"
(torture hood & wires, etc)
"BUSH BIRTH TAX:
BABY OWES $50,000
ON DEFICIT"
(dozens of baby dolls, perhaps sewn to a padded "fat suit" to symbolize the bloated deficit)
"BUSH BORROWS & SPENDS
$50 TRILLION IN DEBT"
Giant Credit Card like a sandwich board
Name on it says "U.S. Taxpayer"
"RUMSFELD SHEDS CROCODILE TEARS"
(big rubber croc, sign or mask)
"PAY NO
ATTENTION
TO THE WAR
BEHIND THE
CURTAIN"
"WHAT NEW DEAL?
PRIVATIZE SOCIAL SECURITY"
(depression-era century elderly bag lady?)
"PIRATIZE-er-PRIVATIZE SOCIAL SECURITY"
Pirate: skull & crossbones, tricorn hat or bandanna, eyepatch, puffy shirt & vest, pants tucked in boots, cutlass.
Tip for "Pirate Boot": Add "spats" of fake leather, with a foldover cuff, to a plain boot or shoe.
(in distress. Or defiant. Chains? Threatened by evil Robots?)
Please comment~