đ¨ When gun violence murals have to be updated because of more gun violence
This weekendâs shootings in El Paso and Dayton have now claimed at least 31 lives and reoriented the presidential campaign around topics like gun violence, extremism, and white supremacy. In this weekâs issue, I look at how some artists and musicians responded to the tragedies and the politics of labeling terrorisms, from âradical Islamicâ to âwhite supremacist.â
While shootings are inevitably bumped from the headlines with the latest news cycle, it doesnât seem El Paso or Dayton will soon fade from memory. We could very well see these issues become major themes of the 2020 campaign.
Yours,
đ¨ When gun violence murals have to be updated before theyâre unveiled because of more gun violence
Parkland father and artist Manuel Oliver was in El Paso this weekend working on his latest mural when the Walmart attack occurred. The mural paid tribute to Oliverâs son Joaquin, who was killed in the Parkland shooting, for what would have been his 19th birthday, but it took on additional meaning after the El Paso shooting.
Oliver added the words âEl Paso is not aloneâ in Spanish, and the site of the mural, on the side of the Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center, became a stop on a silent march that Democrats Beto OâRourke and Rep. Veronica Escobar of Texas took part in.
Oliver said he wasnât surprised by the recent shooting. âIâve been fighting the last two years telling people it could happen anywhere, anytime,â he told the Sun Sentinel.
đ How one artist illustrated Republican inaction
Artist Edel Rodriguez, known for his Time magazine covers of an orange, melting Trump, illustrated an op-ed in todayâs Washington Post by Catherine Rampell in which she wrote the Republican Party selectively fearmongers and ignores issues like gun violence and climate change. Rodriguez drew an elephant-ostrich with its trunk/head in the sand.
đ
ââď¸ Celebrities speak out following shootings
Among the celebrities who spoke out following this weekendâs shootings were Kris Jenner, who posted the above âEnoughâ graphic. Lizzo tweeted, âvote.. donât normalize this.â Rihanna wrote, âUm... Donald, you spelt âterrorismâ wrong!â under a screenshot of a Trump tweet. Dan Reynolds of Imagine Dragons posted the Senate switchboard number and told his followers to contact their lawmakers and âdemand they take action.â Cardi B responded on Twitter to someone who said she should stick to music by tweeting, âthis is my country and Iâm tired.â Kacey Musgraves, who performed at Lollapalooza Sunday, dedicated her performance of âRainbowâ to âeveryone who has the bravery to even show up to a music festivalâ and got the crowd to chant, âsomebody f---ing do something,â per the Chicago Sun Times.
đą How the Trump campaign advertised an âinvasionâ on Facebook
The Trump campaign has posted more than 2,000 ads on Facebook using the word âinvasionâ since January, according to a New York Times analysis. Among the ads were those that used the above graphics. Some showed people rushing a border wall while others invited users to take surveys or otherwise add their name to a campaign mailing list. These ads mostly ran from January to March, and havenât been used since May. Trumpâs use of the word âinvasionâ has come under closer scrutiny since it was used in what was believed to be the El Paso shooterâs manifesto. As the Times notes, there is no evidence these ads directly influenced the manifestoâs author.
đźď¸ George W. Bush is getting his own exhibition in Washington
The Kennedy Center announced former President George W. Bush will have the first exhibition at their new Reach expansion. Titled âPortraits of Courage,â the exhibition will include 66 paintings made by Bush of military veterans whoâve served since the September 11 attacks. It will be on display from October 7 to November 15. Ken Cen President Deborah F. Rutter called it âpoignant and a fitting first exhibition.â
đď¸ The Baltimore Museum of Art is dedicating its 2020 programming to female artists
The Baltimore Museum of Art announced its 2020 Vision initiative last week to mark 100 years of womenâs suffrage. The initiative will celebrate female artists with 13 solo exhibitions and seven thematic shows beginning this fall and running through next year.
đŚ The Sanders campaign teamed up with Ben & Jerry co-founder for limited-edition Bernie ice cream
Ben & Jerryâs co-founder Ben Cohen announced a limited-edition âBernieâs Backâ ice cream last week in support of Sen. Bernie Sandersâ (I-Vt.) presidential campaign. Limited-edition pints signed by the Ben and Jerry are available through the campaign through Friday. The flavor is hot cinnamon ice cream topped with a chocolate disc meant to represent âall the wealth that has risen to the top 1%â and butter toffee core to symbolize âBernieâs steadfast determination to un-rig our economy,â the campaign site explains.
đ¤ This font is made out of gerrymandered congressional districts
Ugly Gerry is a font made out of gerrymandered congressional districts by a Chicago creative advertising team. Co-creator Ben Doessel said it was inspired by Illinois 4th district, which includes parts of Chicago. The district has been described as looking like a pair of earmuffs, but turn it on its side, and it becomes a letter U.
âWe saw a couple other letters,â Doessel said, and they decided to put a font together. After Ugly Gerry was released last week, it âstarted blowing up organically,â including attention on Twitter from a member of Congress, Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.).
The letters A,B,R, X, and Z include two districts, which Doessel said some people thought was cheating, but he was happy to even see people discussing gerrymandering.
Yello Field Guide:
How can we defeat white-nationalist terrorism if we donât call it what it is?: The politics of labelling terrorisms
For paid subscribers: Trumpâs insistence to label terrorism by its ideology set an unintended standard for how he talks about white supremacy. Read more.
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