Graphic Designers Guild of America

The graphic design industry in America has taken a huge hit due to freelance design sites and the “do-it-yourself” generation of software and mobile applications that allow user to create their own simplistic designs based on simple design criteria. In fact, if attention isn;t given to this rapidly growing problem, the design industry will become extinct in the next ten years, leaving anyone with a degree in graphic design in a state of limbo with overwhelming debt from college tuitions and overhead.


Hundreds of thousands, perhaps tens of millions of men and women in the profession of graphic design are discovering there is no place for them in the real world once they have earned their college degree. Many designers instantly become “starving artists” fighting for scraps on various freelance design sites and platforms to no avail, as cost and demand decrease with the rising influx of “starving-designers”. As a result, designers are paid less than they are worth by allowing the consumer to dictate what he/she will be for a service rather than adhering to any industry standard for competitive rates being there is NO industry regulatory figure to oversee these standards.


This common proactive of undervaluing the graphic designer has devalued the graphic design industry on a whole right under America’s nose, as hundreds of thousands (perhaps millions) of artists struggle to make a living or develop a career doing what they love and were created for.


As an artists since birth and freelance design business owner for more than 18 years, I have witnessed and lived the ear of the “starving artist” to which the rise of the graphic design industry sparked new life into American businesses. Being that NO business can exist without graphic design, many naturally gifted artists; including myself, jumped on board the graphic design train the moment there was an opening in the late 80’s to early 90’s. I have also personally felt the impact of this mass capitalization of consumer ignorance by foreign entities such as Fiverr and do-it-yourself design platforms. My personal income has dropped $3,000 per month due to the consumer believing thy can have the same success designing  their own advertisements as a professional designer, or advertising specialist with a bachelors, or masters degree.


Being the average business owner has little to NO knowledge of graphic design, advertising , OR marketing; many businesses are being led into the trap of failure within the first 3 years of business because they “thought” they could “do-it-themselves”, only to find there’s a whole lot more that goes into graphic design than the design itself.


This is why I propose, and will institute with your help, a graphic design guild and union that will not only protect the wages of designers in America, but ensure secure job placement and promote for new laws that prohibit foreign countries and business from capitalizing on the American worker and job market which destroys our industry and the lives of American designers more and more each day.


Graphic design is the backbone of American business. Without it no business can survive.  Every business needs a brand and needs to promote. As we stand for the motto “America first”, we intend to keep this industry American. While other forms of artistic expression are legally protected in our land; being the writers association, the actors guild, and various recording artists associations that protect their members wages and  offer other forms of legal help, graphic designer have NO protection to ensure their wages are protected, leaving them vulnerable to consumers who would rather pay less; therefore, causing them to accept any wage for survival. This a;terminatively makes it harder for up and coming designers to claim their relevance and received a fair compensation for their time and creativity.


Furthermore; this organized union will not only protect employed designers wages, and freelance designers from not receiving payments in a timely manner, but also to protect the consumer from fraudulent designers as we hold each of our members to higher standards that anyone who would label themselves as “graphic designers” who have no background or education in their respective profession.  For this, we need working capitol to handle legalities and arbitration through a law firm partner/relationship; as well as, distributing our model across the country making our union not only available, but ultimately desired by each and every designer in America.


Our union will save to boost the American Economy by keeping graphic design services at home rather than abroad, decreasing our national debt through the American courthouse by serving in litigations and a legal protection to each of our members. 

Lamonte  Jordan - Founder