PA Youth Art Protest
Donation protected
We are the organizers of the Youth Art Protest that you see on University Avenue in Palo Alto near Lytton Plaza. This protest was designed, organized, and executed by youth members from the Palo Alto community. The art was made by young People of Color who sent in their artistic creations speaking on the Black Lives Matter movement that has rallied the nation. The collection of informational posters decoding statistics and facts were thoughtfully researched by a team of high school and college students.
However, at 11 am today in plain daylight a white male with a can of gold spray paint defaced almost every poster with “MAGA” and other racist commentary. Some people called it “vandalism on vandalism” but we call it disfiguring of art and erasure of history. At the same time what occurred today shown a light on how unprogressive Palo Alto is despite the image it likes to uphold.
He blocked every source and covered important and informative content as well as art. We do not believe that our protest was heard, or seen the way it deserved to be.
So now we are thinking bigger and better. And we need your support, and we need it now! This can not be how it goes down. Help each artists answer to this vandalism with art.
Printing is expensive and we could use some funds. Any left over money raised will be given to local nonprofits, the list includes but is not limited:
- Thahoodsquad art collective
- Black Organizing Project
- The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay Area
- People’s Kitchen Collective
- OCCUR
- La Cocina
We hoped that as people walked down University Avenue and saw this installation, they would be left with new thoughts, new information, and new ideas on how to enact change in their own daily lives to combat the systemic inequities that exist here in Palo Alto.
Instead, a protest exhibiting the racism in Palo Alto is defaced by a racist in Palo Alto and people’s reaction is “how can this happen here”. The irony is unbelievable, the youth sees it, what do you see?
As comedian and political commentator Trevor Noah said, “There is no right way to protest. Because that’s what protest is. It can’t be considered ‘right’ by the system that it is protesting.”
STAY TUNED. Spread the word.
However, at 11 am today in plain daylight a white male with a can of gold spray paint defaced almost every poster with “MAGA” and other racist commentary. Some people called it “vandalism on vandalism” but we call it disfiguring of art and erasure of history. At the same time what occurred today shown a light on how unprogressive Palo Alto is despite the image it likes to uphold.
He blocked every source and covered important and informative content as well as art. We do not believe that our protest was heard, or seen the way it deserved to be.
So now we are thinking bigger and better. And we need your support, and we need it now! This can not be how it goes down. Help each artists answer to this vandalism with art.
Printing is expensive and we could use some funds. Any left over money raised will be given to local nonprofits, the list includes but is not limited:
- Thahoodsquad art collective
- Black Organizing Project
- The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay Area
- People’s Kitchen Collective
- OCCUR
- La Cocina
We hoped that as people walked down University Avenue and saw this installation, they would be left with new thoughts, new information, and new ideas on how to enact change in their own daily lives to combat the systemic inequities that exist here in Palo Alto.
Instead, a protest exhibiting the racism in Palo Alto is defaced by a racist in Palo Alto and people’s reaction is “how can this happen here”. The irony is unbelievable, the youth sees it, what do you see?
As comedian and political commentator Trevor Noah said, “There is no right way to protest. Because that’s what protest is. It can’t be considered ‘right’ by the system that it is protesting.”
STAY TUNED. Spread the word.
Organizer
Palo Alto Youth Art Protest
Organizer
Palo Alto, CA
