Hip-Hop Gives Back to Skid Row

-Shepard

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10 YEARS OF SHAME IN GUANTANAMO BAY

Back in 2007, as the 6th anniversary of Guantanamo accepting prisoners approached, Shepard created the iconic POW-USA image for Witness Against Torture.  Activists immediately found that the new image attracted important press attention, and thanks to Shepard’s donation of posters and stickers, the image soon became well-known.  When Shepard donated the image, he quoted George Orwell: “Sometimes the first duty of intelligent men is the restatement of the obvious.”

Here we are in 2012, and January 11th is the 10th anniversary of Guantanamo functioning as a prison, so this is an important moment for the country and for President Obama.  Although he pledged to close Guantanamo, it is, obviously, still open, and still holding more than 170 men indefinitely – despite Supreme Court rulings that they be given due process and despite dozens of them being cleared of wrongdoing by the Bush administration.  We, in Witness Against Torture, will be fasting for ten days from January 2 to 12 – one day for each year that Guantanamo has been open – and will be bringing thousands of people to Washington – traveling on buses from all over the country – to form a human chain of more than 2,000 jump suited “detainees” from the White House to the Capitol, in protest of all those men held indefinitely and without the right of habeas corpus in both Guantanamo and Bagram.

The POW-USA image has been updated with a new tag-line to reflect the 10th anniversary. Witness Against Torture is raising funds to continue the campaign to shut down Guantanamo and end the illegal and immoral detention and torture practices that have been carried out by the US government over the last decade.  The money goes directly toward helping us to organize future events and to pay lawyers who work with us when we get arrested for direct action protests.  In fact, the jury trial of 14 of our activists is scheduled this week, in Washington, for an action in which they stood, one by one, in the Gallery of the US House of Representatives this past June; they were petitioning lawmakers to uphold the Constitution by not making funding for Guantanamo permanent.  Support Witness Against Torture by purchasing a POW-USA 10th Anniversary shirt TODAY!

Click here for more information on the Witness Against Torture organization.

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Casino Jack

I saw a movie recently called Casino Jack. The film is the story of lobbyist Jack Abramoff powerfully played by Kevin Spacey. If you have ever wondered why getting money out of politics and limiting the role of lobbyists is essential, you need look no further than the story of Jack Abramoff. Read up on him or check out the movie. Thanks for caring.
-Shepard Fairey

Check Out “Live Suburbia”

I picked up this book at Skylight Books in my neighborhood because I liked the punk movie “Suburbia” in the 80′s and I was curious. It’s an awesome book with stories about everything that mattered to me growing up. Kiss, Skateboarding, punk rock, hip hop, and graffiti are all talked about and illustrated with scrapbook style photos. I even found a shot of me in there from late ’95 or early ’96 in front of one of my first OBEY posters. I love the stories because they remind me of how excited I was by the process of discovering things. Road trios to skate spots, trading tapes of new music, making home-made tee shirts, ‘zines,  and stickers with friends. If any of that mattered to you, you should check out Live Suburbia.
Speaking of all that stuff, my friend Al who I used to skate with in R.I. just sent me a photo of me printing in the RISD screen print studio in the fall of ’89. Check out the paper cut stencil Johnny Rotten tee I made the same summer ’89 period when I made to original Andre sticker. I’m not sure what I was thinking with that hippie bracelet, except that it was rude to turn down a gift from a lady friend. Ohhh… the things we do for love.
-Shepard Fairey

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Holidaze

I’m a bit conflicted about a lot of things, so why should the holidays be any different? The holidays are very commercial, with a barrage of sentimental, emotionally manipulative ads trying to sell you crap you don’t need. A girl I loved once broke up with me right around Christmas and it tainted the whole time of year for me for a while. Now that I am married with my own young kids, I am grateful all year, but I especially get to see how much of a difference love and generosity make to my family around Christmas. I guess it is a reminder that love and generosity make a big difference in all people’s lives all year long. I think that is an idea to remember and live by in 2012 and beyond. I am extremely grateful to a all of you whose support enables me to make art for a living. Thank you and have a happy and peaceful holiday season. (Feel no pressure to buy anything from this site because I delivered you a sentimental holiday message)
-Shepard Fairey

BNE Water Foundation

If you have walked the streets of any major city in the world, then you know BNE’s graffiti and stickers.

As BNE’s recognition grew, so did offers from corporations hoping to use BNE’s talents for their advertising campaigns. BNE said, “I realized that with my art I had a global voice and not to use it for good would be a waste. I needed to use this brand that I created to make some sort of positive social change.” Rather than cash in, BNE chose to use his voice to create a charity called the BNE Water Foundation which aims to bring clean water and sanitation to people living in poverty and in developing countries. Please take a moment to visit BNE’s site and make a donation. $20 can provide one person with access to clean water for 10-20 years depending on the location.

It’s very important that all of us get involved. Read BNE’s call to action here.

Thank you for caring,
Shepard

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