Poster of the Week & 2 Mysteries

I Believe That There Will Ultimately be a Clash
Northern Sun Merchandising
Offset, 1980s
Minneapolis, MN
4216

Text:
I believe that there will ultimately be a clash between the oppressed and those who do the oppressing.  I believe that there will be a clash between those who want freedom, justice and equality for everyone and those who want to continue the system of exploitation. I believe that there will be that kind of clash, but I don't think it will be based on the colour of the skin... Malcolm X

CSPG’s Poster of the Week commemorates the 50th anniversary of the assassination of Malcolm X.  On February 21, 1965, he was murdered at the Audubon Ballroom in Harlem, while giving a talk before 400 people.  The Nation of Islam and the FBI’s Counter Intelligence Program (Cointelpro), are generally held as responsible.  Cointelpro infiltrated many oppositional movements, including the Civil Rights Movement, Black Panther Party, American Indian Movement, and the Nation of Islam to which Malcolm X belonged for 12 years.  Malcolm X rejected the separation of blacks and whites preached by the Nation of Islam after taking a pilgrimage to Mecca in April 1964, where he saw Muslims of "all colors, from blue-eyed blonds to black-skinned Africans" interacting as equals.  The statement on this poster came after that transformative experience.

Over the years this poster has been reproduced by different groups.  It was first produced in the 1970s as a black and white litho by the Poster-Film Collective in London (thus the poster has the British spelling of colour), and then by the Black Liberation Press.  In the 1980s, it was produced by Northland Sun Merchandising, in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

2 MYSTERY QUESTIONS

1.  When did Malcolm X say this?  In Malcolm x Speaks: Selected Speeches and Statements. Edited by George Breitman, Merit Publishers, NY, 1965, pg 232, it states that Malcolm said this during an interview on Pierre Berton’s radio show, “The Front Page Challenge,” January 19, 1965, recorded in Toronto, Canada.  At least part of this interview can be seen on https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lOQzvrgYgCE.  During the interview, Malcolm X talks about similar things, and says “By Any Means Necessary,” but the statement on the poster is not included. A transcript of the same interview can be found on http://www.malcolm-x.org/docs/int_pbert.htm  but it contains things not on the youtube interview—and some things in the interview are not in the transcript.  Malcolm X was assassinated one month after the interview.

Thank you to Walter Lippmann for finding the Youtube interview and transcripts.

2.  We are looking for any information about Black Liberation Press.  CSPG has just two posters by them, a version of the Malcolm X poster featured above, and “From Sharpeville to Soweto” circa 1980s. We have no idea who started it, when, where they were located, how long they lasted or if they produced other posters.

Alexandra Kollontai
Red Pepper Posters
Silkscreen, 1985
San Francisco, CA
27684

Poster Text:  “For it is not her specific feminine virtue that gives woman a place of honor in human society, but the worth of her useful work accomplished for society, the worth of her personality as human being, as creative worker, as citizen, thinker, or fighter.”
Alexandra Kollontai (1872-1952) Russian revolutionary, feminist writer
© Red Pepper Posters, P.O. Box 11308, San Francisco, CA 94101

Poster of the Week:  The Valentine Weekend blockbuster, “50 Shades of Grey,” is raising many questions about identity, sexuality, liberation and exploitation.  CSPG’s Poster-of-the-Week offers an alternative view of a sexually liberated woman, along with a couple of feminist critiques of the film.

Alexandra Mikhaylovna Kollontai 1872 - 1952) was a Russian Communist revolutionary who became People's Commissar for Social Welfare, after the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917. She was the most prominent woman in the Soviet administration and was best known for founding the Zhenotdel or "Women's Department" in 1919 . This organization worked to improve the conditions of women's lives in the Soviet Union, fighting illiteracy and educating women about the new marriage, education, and working laws put in place by the Revolution. She was well recognized later for socialist feminism. The Zhenotdel was eventually closed in 1930.

Alexandra Kollontai is a profoundly unusual figure in the history of the Soviet Union, as she was an "Old Bolshevik" and a major public critic of the Communist Party who was neither purged nor executed by the Stalin regime, though as a diplomat serving abroad, she had little or no influence in government policy or operations and so was effectively exiled.

Kollontai's views on the role of marriage and the family under Communism were arguably more subversive and more influential on today's society than her advocacy of "free love." Kollontai believed that, like the state, the family unit would wither away once the second stage of communism became a reality. She viewed marriage and traditional families as legacies of the oppressive, property-rights-based, egoist past. Under Communism, both men and women would work for, and be supported by, society, not their families. Similarly, their children would be wards of, and reared basically by society. Kollontai admonished men and women to discard their nostalgia for traditional family life.

Sources:
Thank you Sarah Mason and Joan Sekler for sending the following Feminist Critiques:

http://laurie-penny.com/fifty-shades-of-socialist-feminism/

http://www.sabinabecker.com/2015/02/fifty-shades-of-shit-a-german-feminists-heretical-thoughts.html

When will we ever learn?

OFF/ON
Leon Kuhn
Digital Print
London, UK, 2008
31376

President Obama has sent Congress a formal request to authorize military force against the Islamic State six months after the U.S. began bombing Iraq and Syria. The resolution imposes a three-year limit on U.S. operations, but does not put any geographic constraints. It also opens the door for ground combat operations in limited circumstances. The resolution’s broad language covers military action against the Islamic State as well as "individuals and organizations fighting for, on behalf of, or alongside [ISIS] or any closely-related successor entity in hostilities against the United States or its coalition partners." The resolution also leaves in place the open-ended Authorization for Use of Military Force Congress enacted one week after the Sept. 11, 2001, which has been used to justify U.S. action in Afghanistan, Somalia, Pakistan, Yemen and beyond, and which Obama had previously called for repealing.

When will we ever learn?

Source:
http://www.democracynow.org/2015/2/12/endless_war_obama_sends_congress_expansive?autostart=true

This Democracynow.org link also contains an interview with Norman Solomon, executive director of the Institute for Public Accuracy and author of many books, including "War Made Easy: How Presidents and Pundits Keep Spinning Us to Death."

Poster of the Week

 

San Romero De America

ETPAV
Offset, 1980s
Nicaragua
42220

CSPG’s Poster of the week celebrates Salvadoran Archbishop Oscar Romero, and the declaration this week by Pope Francis that Romero was a martyr.  This moves him closer to being declared a Saint, something many throughout the Americas already believe.

Romero was a conservative priest, and his appointment as Archbishop of San Salvador in 1977 was welcomed by the right wing Salvadoran government.    It was simultaneously a big disappointment to many progressive priests who supported liberation theology, a religious movement which seeks to end economic and political injustice.

His change of consciousness perhaps began the same year, when Rutilio Grande, a progressive Jesuit priest and personal friend of Romero’s was assassinated for organizing the poor.  The Salvadoran government ignored Romero’s requests to investigate the murder—probably because government supported death squads were behind it.

Romero began speaking out against poverty, social injustice, assassinations and torture. Violence and repression continued to escalate, and led to the Salvadoran Civil War (1979-1992) which was fueled by U.S. aid to the Salvadoran military. Romero criticized U.S. for giving military aid to the right-wing government, and in February 1980, Romero wrote to President Jimmy Carter, warning that increased US military aid would "undoubtedly sharpen the injustice and the political repression inflicted on the organized people, whose struggle has often been for their most basic human rights." Carter, concerned that El Salvador would become "another Nicaragua", ignored Romero's pleas and continued military aid to the Salvadoran government. U.S. aid to the Salvadoran government and death squads was increased under President Ronald Reagan.

On March 23, 1980, Romero delivered a now famous homily in which he urged soldiers to turn to their consciences and disregard orders to kill fellow Salvadorans.

"Brothers, you are all killing your fellow countrymen. No soldier has to obey an order to kill," he said. "It is time to regain your conscience. In the name of God and in the name of the suffering people I implore you, I beg you, I order you, stop the repression."

That sermon drew sharp rebuke from government officials, who said Romero was committing a crime in inciting rebellion. A day later, a gunman shot Romero through the heart as he celebrated Mass.

Romero’s Funeral Mass in San Salvador on March 30, 1980 was attended by more than 250,000 mourners from all over the world. During the ceremony, smoke bombs exploded on the streets near the cathedral and subsequently there were rifle shots that came from surrounding buildings, including the National Palace. Many people were killed by gunfire and in the stampede of people running away from the explosions and gunfire; between 30-50 died. Some witnesses claimed it was government security forces that threw bombs into the crowd, and army sharpshooters, dressed as civilians, that fired into the chaos from the balcony or roof of the National Palace.

Years later, a U.N. Truth Commission said the assassination was planned by Roberto D'Abuisson, notorious founder of the ARENA party and paramilitary death squads.  D’Abuisson and the ARENA party had close ties with U.S.


Sources:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2015/02/05/why-its-such-a-big-deal-that-oscar-romero-was-declared-a-martyr-by-pope-francis/

http://latinola.com/story.php?story=9393

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2015/02/03/us/ap-us-ap-was-there-archbishop-slain.html?_r=0

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%93scar_Romero

http://fusion.net/story/43362/will-romeros-road-to-sainthood-shake-up-the-vatican/

film:  Romero (1989) starring Raul Julia as Archbishop Oscar Romero and Richard Jordan as Fr. Rutilio Grande.

Saint Romero of America  March 24 Day of Peace in Central America

He was a conservative  priest.  His appointment in 1977 as Archbishop of San Salvador, was welcomed by the government, but was a disappointment to many priests, especially supporters of Liberation Theology. 

While this appointment was welcomed by the government, many priests were disappointed, especially those openly aligning with Marxism. The progressive priests feared that his conservative reputation would negatively affect liberation theology's commitment to the poor.

On 12 March 1977, Rutilio Grande, a progressive Jesuit priest and personal friend of Romero who had been creating self-reliance groups among the poor, was assassinated. His death had a profound impact on Romero, who later stated, "When I looked at Rutilio lying there dead I thought, 'If they have killed him for doing what he did, then I too have to walk the same path'".^[13] Romero urged the government to investigate, but they ignored his request. Furthermore, the censored press remained silent.^[14]

Tension was noted by the closure of schools and the lack of Catholic priests invited to participate in government. In response to Fr. Rutilio's murder, Romero revealed a radicalism that had not been evident earlier, speaking out against poverty, social injustice, assassinations and torture.^[2]

In 1979, the Revolutionary Government Junta came to power amidst a wave of human rights abuses by paramilitary right-wing groups and the government in an escalation of violence that would become the Salvadoran Civil War. Romero criticized the United States for giving military aid to the new government and wrote to President Jimmy Carter in February 1980, warning that increased US military aid would "undoubtedly sharpen the injustice and the political repression inflicted on the organized people, whose struggle has often been for their most basic human rights." Carter, concerned that El Salvador would become "another Nicaragua", ignored Romero's pleas and continued military aid to the Salvadoran government.

As a result of his humanitarian efforts, Romero began to be noticed internationally. In February 1980, he was given an honorary doctorate by the University of Louvain. On his visit to Europe to receive this honor, he met Pope John Paul II and expressed his concerns at what was happening in his country. Romero argued that it was problematic to support the Salvadoran government because it legitimized terror and assassinations.^[14]

Statements on persecution of the Church

Óscar Romero (pastel)

Archbishop Romero denounced the persecution of members of the Catholic Church who had worked on behalf of the poor:^[15]

“In less than three years, more than fifty priests have been attacked, threatened, calumniated. Six are already martyrs--they were murdered. Some have been tortured and others expelled [from the country]. Nuns have also been persecuted. The archdiocesan radio station and educational institutions that are Catholic or of a Christian inspiration have been attacked, threatened, intimidated, even bombed. Several parish communities have been raided. If all this has happened to persons who are the most evident representatives of the Church, you can guess what has happened to ordinary Christians, to the campesinos, catechists, lay ministers, and to the ecclesial base communities. There have been threats, arrests, tortures, murders, numbering in the hundreds and thousands....

But it is important to note why [the Church] has been persecuted. Not any and every priest has been persecuted, not any and every institution has been attacked. That part of the church has been attacked and persecuted that put itself on the side of the people and went to the people's defense. Here again we find the same key to understanding the persecution of the church: the poor.”

—Óscar Romero, Speech at the Université catholique de Louvain, Belgium, Feb. 2, 1980.

Óscar Arnulfo Romero (1917 – 1980) was a bishop of the Catholic Church in El Salvador. He became the fourth Archbishop of San Salvador, succeeding Luis Chávez, and spoke out against poverty, social injustice, assassinations and torture.^[2] In 1980, Romero was assassinated while offering Mass.

In 1997, Pope John Paul II bestowed upon Romero the title of Servant of God, and a cause for beatification and canonization was opened for him. As the canonization process continues, some^[who?] consider Romero an unofficial patron saint of the Americas and/or El Salvador; Catholics in El Salvador often refer to him as "San Romero". Even outside of Catholicism, Romero is honored by other Christian denominations, including the Church of England and Anglican Communion through the Calendar in Common Worship, as well as in at least one Lutheran liturgical calendar. Archbishop Romero is also one of the ten 20th-century martyrs depicted in statues above the Great West Door of Westminster Abbey in London.^[3] In 2008, Europe-based magazine A Different View included Romero among its 15 Champions of World Democracy.^[4]

In 1974, he was appointed Bishop of the Diocese of Santiago de María, a poor, rural region.^[12]

Archbishop

A mural of Óscar Romero

On 23 February 1977, Romero was appointed Archbishop of San Salvador. While this appointment was welcomed by the government, many priests were disappointed, especially those openly aligning with Marxism. The progressive priests feared that his conservative reputation would negatively affect liberation theology's commitment to the poor.

On 12 March 1977, Rutilio Grande, a progressive Jesuit priest and personal friend of Romero who had been creating self-reliance groups among the poor, was assassinated. His death had a profound impact on Romero, who later stated, "When I looked at Rutilio lying there dead I thought, 'If they have killed him for doing what he did, then I too have to walk the same path'".^[13] Romero urged the government to investigate, but they ignored his request. Furthermore, the censored press remained silent.^[14]

Tension was noted by the closure of schools and the lack of Catholic priests invited to participate in government. In response to Fr. Rutilio's murder, Romero revealed a radicalism that had not been evident earlier, speaking out against poverty, social injustice, assassinations and torture.^[2]

In 1979, the Revolutionary Government Junta came to power amidst a wave of human rights abuses by paramilitary right-wing groups and the government in an escalation of violence that would become the Salvadoran Civil War. Romero criticized the United States for giving military aid to the new government and wrote to President Jimmy Carter in February 1980, warning that increased US military aid would "undoubtedly sharpen the injustice and the political repression inflicted on the organized people, whose struggle has often been for their most basic human rights." Carter, concerned that El Salvador would become "another Nicaragua", ignored Romero's pleas and continued military aid to the Salvadoran government.

As a result of his humanitarian efforts, Romero began to be noticed internationally. In February 1980, he was given an honorary doctorate by the University of Louvain. On his visit to Europe to receive this honor, he met Pope John Paul II and expressed his concerns at what was happening in his c

Assassination

Romero spent the day of 24 March 1980 in a recollection organized by Opus Dei,^[25] a monthly gathering of priest friends led by Msgr. Fernando Sáenz Lacalle. On that day they reflected on the priesthood.^[26] That evening, Romero was fatally shot while celebrating Mass.^[27][28] at a small chapel located in a hospital called "La Divina Providencia",^[29] one day after a sermon in which he had called on Salvadoran soldiers, as Christians, to obey God's higher order and to stop carrying out the government's repression and violations of basic human rights. As soon as he finished his sermon, Romero proceeded to the middle of the altar and at that moment was shot.^[30]

Funeral

Romero was buried in the Metropolitan Cathedral of San Salvador (Catedral Metropolitana de San Salvador). The Funeral Mass on 30 March 1980 in San Salvador was attended by more than 250,000 mourners from all over the world. Viewing this attendance as a protest, Jesuit priest John Dear has said, "Romero's funeral was the largest demonstration in Salvadoran history, some say in the history of Latin America."

At the funeral, Cardinal Corripio Ahumada, speaking as the personal delegate of Pope John Paul II, eulogized Romero as a "beloved, peacemaking man of God", and stated that "his blood will give fruit to brotherhood, love and peace."^[31]

During the ceremony, smoke bombs exploded on the streets near the cathedral and subsequently there were rifle shots that came from surrounding buildings, including the National Palace. Many people were killed by gunfire and in the stampede of people running away from the explosions and gunfire; official sources talk of 31 overall casualties, while journalists indicated between 30 and 50 died.^[32] Some witnesses claimed it was government security forces that threw bombs into the crowd, and army sharpshooters, dressed as civilians, that fired into the chaos from the balcony or roof of the National Palace. However, there are contradictory accounts as to the course of the events and "probably, one will never know the truth about the interrupted funeral."^[32]

As the gunfire continued, Romero's body was buried in a crypt beneath the sanctuary. Even after the burial, people continued to line up to pay homage to their martyred prelate.^{[1][33][34][35][36]}

International reaction

Archbishop Romero's assassination received considerable attention across the world.

Ireland

All sections of Irish political and religious life condemned his assassination, with the Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs Brian Lenihan 'expressing shock and revulsion at the murder of Dr Romero',^[37] while the leader of the Trócaire charity, Eamon Casey, revealing that he had received a letter from Romero that very day.^[38] The previous October parliamentarians had given their support to the nomination that Archbishop Romero receive the Nobel Prize for Peace.^[38] In March each year since the 1980s, the Irish-El Salvador Support Committee holds a mass in honour of Archbishop Romero.^[39]

United Kingdom

In October 1978, 119 British parliamentarians nominated Romero for the Nobel Prize for Peace. In this they were supported by 26 members of the United States Congress.^[16] When news of his assassination was reported, the new head of the Church of England, Robert Runcie, was about to be enthroned in Canterbury Cathedral. On hearing of Romero's death, one writer observed that Runcie "departed from the ancient traditions to decry the murder of Archbishop Oscar Romero in El Salvador".^[40]

Investigations into the assassination

To date, no one has ever been prosecuted for the assassination, or confessed to it, or took credit for it. In 2010, Alvaro Saravia named Roberto D'Aubuisson as giving the assassination order to him over the phone. Saravia said that he drove the assassin to the cathedral and paid him 1,000 Salvadoran colons after the event. The assassin has not been identified.^[41]

It is widely believed that the assassins were members of a death squad led by former Major Roberto D'Aubuisson. This view was supported by ex-US ambassador Robert White, who in 1986 reported to the United States Congress that "there was sufficient evidence" to convict D'Aubuisson of planning and ordering Archbishop Romero's assassination.^[42] It was also supported in 1993 by an official United Nations report which identified D'Aubuisson as the man who ordered the killing.^[32] It is believed that D'aubisson had strong connections to the Nicaraguan National Guard and to its offshoot the Fifteenth of September Legion^[43] and had also planned to overthrow the government in a coup. Later he founded the political party Nationalist Republican Alliance (ARENA), and organized death squads that systematically carried out politically motivated assassinations and other human rights abuses in El Salvador. Álvaro Rafael Saravia, a former captain in the Salvadoran Air Force, was chief of security for D'Aubuisson and an active member of these death squads. In 2003, a United States human rights organization, the Center for Justice and Accountability, filed a civil action against Saravia. In 2004, he was found liable by a US District Court under the Alien Tort Claims Act (ATCA) (28 U.S.C. § 1350) for aiding, conspiring, and participating in the assassination of Romero. Saravia was ordered to pay $10 million for extrajudicial killing and crimes against humanity pursuant to the ATCA.^[44] On 24 March 2010—the thirtieth anniversary of Romero's death—Salvadoran president Mauricio Funes offered an official state apology for Romero's assassination. Speaking before Romero's family, representatives of the Catholic Church, diplomats, and government officials, Funes said those involved in the assassination "…unfortunately acted with the protection, collaboration or participation of state agents."^[45]

Wikipedia 

http://latinola.com/story.php?story=9393

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2015/02/03/us/ap-us-ap-was-there-archbishop-slain.html?_r=0

Poster of the Week

Pro Choice
Medusa
Offset, 1989
United States
3910

The new GOP-controlled Congress is trying to pass a national abortion bill so extreme that even some Republican congresswomen oppose it, out of concern that it will alienate young voters and women.

On Thursday, January 22, 2015—the 42nd anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion across the country—the House Republicans will vote on a bill to ban abortions after 20 weeks.  The bill will also narrow the definition of rape.
To read more:

http://wwww.alternet.org/civil-liberties/republican-abortion-bill-so-extreme-even-gop-congresswomen-balk

Poster of the Week

Living the Dream
Earl Newman
Silkscreen, circa 1974
Summit, Oregon
12148

Text:
"Sooner Or Later, All The People Of The World Will Have To Discover A Way To Live Together In Peace."  Living the Dream  Martin Luther King, Jr. 1929-1968

Poster of the Week

Break one, thousand will rise
Lucille Clerc
London
2015

Artists around the world have responded to the tragic murder this week of 12 people at the offices of Charlie Hebdo, a French satirical magazine, with powerful graphics expressing grief and renewed commitment to defend free speech.  Four of the magazine's well-known cartoonists, including its editor, were among those killed, as well as two police officers.

Charlie Hebdo is a publication that has always courted controversy with satirical attacks on political and religious leaders. It published cartoons of Muhammad in 2012, forcing France to temporarily close embassies and schools in more than 20 countries amid fears of reprisals. Its offices were also firebombed in November 2011 after publishing a caricature of Muhammad on its cover.

CSPG’s Poster of the Week features a powerful graphic by Lucille Clerc, a freelance graphic designer and illustrator living in London.  To see more graphics and more information, please visit the sites below.
 
Sources (including many graphics):

http://www.lucilleclerc.com/

http://www.buzzfeed.com/ryanhatesthis/heartbreaking-cartoons-from-artists-in-response-to-the-ch?bftw&utm_term=4ldqpfp#.et5qbYQgb

http://www.democracynow.org/2015/1/8/scholar_tariq_ramadan_harpers_rick_macarthur

http://www.democracynow.org/topics/charlie_hebdo_attack

http://www.democracynow.org/blog/2015/1/8/cartoonists_lives_matter_art_spiegelman_responds

http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/paris-magazine-attack/charlie-hebdo-shooting-12-killed-muhammad-cartoons-magazine-paris-n281266

http://abcnews.go.com/International/cartoonists-react-charlie-hebdo-shooting/story?id=28065848

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-30710883

Poster of the Week

El Futuro es la Paz/
The Future is Peace
Asela Pérez
Comisión Permanente
Offset, 1978
Havana, Cuba
XI Festival Mundial De La Juventud Y Los Estudiantes
33422

El Futuro Es La Paz/The Future is Peace

Many Cuban posters are multilingual, especially those intended for export. Spanish, English, Arabic and French are used the most frequently. This stunning poster contains six languages (Spanish, English, Russian, Arabic, French), and was designed by Asela Pérez Bolado (1931-2001). She received a degree in journalism from the University of Havana, won first prize in major Cuban exhibitions, including the National Poster Salon in 1978. She also served as staff graphic artist for Editora Politica, a department of the Central Committee of the Cuban Communist Party, which is responsible for disseminating the policy of the Cuban government. 

The poster was produced for the 11th World Festival of Youth and Students, an international event organized jointly since 1947 by the World Federation of Democratic Youth and the International Union of Students. The event is held in different countries, generally every two, three or four years, and in 1978 it was held in Havana, Cuba. The primary themes are anti-imperialism and peace.

Sources:
http://www.cubaencuentro.com/directorios/casas-editoriales/editora-politica
http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Festival_Mundial_de_la_Juventud_y_los_Estudiantes
Lincoln Cushing: Revolucion! Cuban Poster Art, Chronicle Books, 2003

Poster of the Week

Obama...Give Me Five!
Jorge Martell, design
Gonzalo Canetti, photo
Digital Print, 2012
Oakland, CA

CSPG's Poster of the Week celebrates the release of the Cuban 5 and Obama's move towards normalizing relations with Cuba.

The Cuban 5, Gerardo Hernández, Ramón Labañino, Antonio Guerrero, Fernando González and René González, were arrested by the FBI in 1998. All were convicted in 2001 of conspiracy to commit espionage against the United States. The trial was held in Miami, Florida, a center of Cuban exile hostility to the Cuban revolution, where no fair trial was possible.

The Cuban 5 neither committed nor intended to commit espionage against the U.S. They were sent to the U.S. to monitor anti-Cuban terrorist organizations in Miami responsible for bombings and deaths in Cuba.  Since the triumph of the Cuban revolution in 1959, Cuba had been the victim of more terrorist attacks than any other country in the world, killing 3,478 and injuring 2,099. The vastly majority of those attacks originated in southern Florida, by groups tolerated and partly financed by the US government.

The U.S. Supreme Court refused to review their case in 2009. Fernando González has been on parole since October, 2011 after serving every single day of his 13 year term. René González was released from prison earlier this year, but remained on parole.  To avoid being forced to remain IN MIAMI ON PAROLE, Rene, a natural-born US citizen, had to give up his US citizenship. As of December 17, 2014, after more than 16 years, the 3 remaining members of the Cuban 5 were finally freed and all are now home in Cuba.

Next wish for the New Year:  End the Blockade!

For more information on the Cuban 5:
http://www.thecuban5.org/the-case/

POSTER OF THE WEEK:

 

 
Torturing Detainees Off of U.S. Soil Since December 2001
Mike Gavayan
Digital Print, 2005
Frostburg, MD
24908

The nation is currently shocked by the grisly revelations contained in a Senate report released this week of the torture carried out by the CIA. Yet CSPG's Poster of the Week was made nearly a decade ago. The awareness that the U.S. has long been torturing people is known to the world. To be outraged now is not due to historical amnesia, but due to purposeful obfuscation by politicians and the corporate media.

The Guardian (London) commented, "While parts of the programme had been known - and much more will never be revealed - the catalogue of abuse is nightmarish and reads like something invented by the Marquis de Sade or Hieronymous Bosch." Although the report is highly redacted, the tortures it lists include waterboarding, rectal feeding, sleep deprivation for up to 180 hours, mock executions and Russian roulette, sexual abuse, threatening detainees' parents and children, and more. The report also describes how the CIA gave inaccurate information to Congress, to journalists, and that White House wanted to ensure that Secretary of State Colin Powell be "kept in the dark."

In spite of escalating calls to punish the perpetrators, the Obama administration continues to wage what journalist Glenn Greenwald called, "aggressive, full-scale whitewashing of the war on terror crimes committed by Bush officials."

When will we demand justice!

CSPG's Poster of the Week was made by Mike Gavayan, at the time a student in Fereshteh Toosi's Introduction to Graphic Design class at Frostburg State University, Maryland. Gavayan places the horrific photo of the hooded man, the most iconic of the photos of U.S. torture victims from Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq, in front of red, white, and blue, to refer to torture as an American tradition. The only thing missing are the electric wires dangling from the victims fingers, featured in the original photo.

To read more about how this poster came about, read Fereshteh Toosi's letter below, in which she describes the assignment and the students' reactions.

Sources:
http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2014/dec/09/cia-torture-report-worst-findings-waterboard-rectal

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2012/aug/31/obama-justice-department-immunity-bush-cia-torturer   [Glenn Greenwald]

Fereshteh Toosi is an interdisciplinary, Chicago-based artist.  In 2005/6  she taught a Graphic Design class in Maryland.  Her students were asked to create posters for CSPG's Prison Nation exhibition.

Asking my students to create posters for the Center for the Study of Political Graphics' "Prison Nation" exhibit was one of the most valuable teaching moments from my first semester as instructor of ART 207: Introduction to Graphic Design at Frostburg State University. Located in a small rural town in western Maryland, students in the 2 sections of this class were a mix of art and communications majors at different stages in their academic careers. In terms of my pedagogical goals, it was important to provide them with a real-world design problem that was not directed towards a commercial end. The CSPG's call for entries seemed an ideal opportunity to direct the students in the importance of developing process, research methods, and techniques for idea-generation.

My own awareness about the prison industrial complex came about during my time as a student at Oberlin College, but it happened outside of the classroom. In the mid 1990s the Mumia Abu Jamal case was a popular cause on college campuses and I learned about the larger problems of prisons and prisoners' rights through friends who were well-informed and passionate about activism around this issue. I was lucky in this regard. Most young people in this country do not gain knowledge about the severity of prison issues through formal college education or mass media. It continues to be something many Americans choose to ignore. As an educator I was excited by the prospect of asking students to develop their design skills while addressing such a topic. 

When I initially announced the premise for the project, many students were disappointed and annoyed. Several dismissed it quickly, joking about the need to "lock criminals up and throw away the key". "Just kill 'em all!" or "I don't give a damn about these people" were common remarks. I had left the topic open to interpretation, but I was concerned that too many students had already made up their minds that it was not worth further investigation. I knew I needed something that would make an impact. In our small university video library I found only two videos with any mention of prison issues. The Eyes on the Prize documentary series addresses the 1971 rebellion in New York's Attica prison, which I chose to screen along with footage from the Stanford prison psychology experiment of that same year. My lessons included information on the parallels between then and now, as well examples of political posters from the last century. To this end we were very fortunate to have access to the art in the CSPG's on-line collection.

Students became more motivated to investigate the topic further, and this is when the real discoveries began. Comments changed in tone: "This is too depressing" was the new complaint. I'm not sure if anyone radically changed their viewpoint on any particular issue, but I was pleased to see them embrace the challenge to find compelling creative solutions to expose a very complex social cause. Also important was the way in which creating a poster for the CSPG expanded students' notions of the purpose of design. I am grateful for the teaching opportunity that this exhibit provided, and my students are proud to be involved. Thank you for including us.

Fereshteh Toosi
March 2006
 

2nd Featured Poster of the Week 

The struggle for justice continues to be stymied.  Last week a Missouri grand jury declined to indict the white police officer who killed Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager.  This week a New York grand jury cleared an NYPD cop in the chokehold death of Eric Garner, also unarmed and black. Garner's death was caught-on-video and the only people arrested were the videographer and his wife.  As 1000s continue to demonstrate across the country against this blatant impunity, we must recognize that these events are not isolated incidents, but a consistent part of U.S. government policy, at home and abroad.  45 years ago today, Fred Hampton, head of the Chicago chapter of the Black Panther Party, was assassinated by the FBI.  His poster and story are below.

POSTER OF THE WEEK

  

Fred Hampton - We, the People

          Artist Unknown

          Offset, 1970

          United States

          6225

Fred Hampton (1948 -1969)  Born in Illinois, Hampton was a student leader in high school and an activist with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). In 1968, he joined the Chicago chapter of the Black Panther Party, and quickly became the Illinois State Chair of the organization. Hampton organized weekly rallies, taught political education classes, attended the Breakfast for Children program daily, and helped establish the Free People's Clinic on Chicago's West Side. A powerful and eloquent speaker, he was set to be appointed the Party's Central Committee as Chief of Staff in November 1970. Fearing Hampton's ability to spread the Panther's message, the FBI, through an informant, obtained a floorplan of his apartment. The same informant gave Hampton a drugged hot chocolate before he went to bed on December 3 to ensure he wouldn't wake up. At 4:30 a.m. on December 3, 1969, the FBI raided the apartment, killing Hampton and Panther Mark Clark, and wounding several others.

This poster merges the assassination of Fred Hampton with images of the My Lai Massacre. On March 16th, 1968, U.S. troops arrived in the village of My Lai in the northern province of South Viet Nam. The soldiers opened fire even though they had not come under attack. The violence quickly escalated into an orgy of killing. More than 500 villagers were murdered, most of them women, children and the elderly. The massacre was kept secret from the U.S. public for over a year, until investigative journalist Seymour Hersh broke the story about the massacre and its cover-up on November 12th, 1969. When the massacre was uncovered, it proved to be a turning point for American public opinion about the war. Hersh was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for his expose. Fortyfive years later, Hersh is still breaking stories about war. In 2004, he exposed the Abu Ghraib scandal in The New Yorker magazine, also a turning point for U.S. public opinion about the current wars.

  

When will we ever learn? 

Poster of the Week

The Real Face of Globalisation
Raghu Rai
Bhopal Group for Information and Action
Offset, 1983
India
17152

Continuing the theme of the Good, the Bad & the Ugly, CSPG's Poster of the Week commemorates the 30th anniversary of the Bhopal tragedy, the worst industrial disaster in history.  More than 20,000 people died from toxic gas that leaked from Union Carbide's pesticide factory on December 2& 3, 1984.   500,000 more were poisoned.  The story becomes even more profoundly Bad & Ugly as Union Carbide and its parent company, Dow Chemical, have refused to pay for cleaning the site or face charges in India's court. 

The only "Good" part of this story was the brilliant prank performed by the Yes Men, a culture jamming activist group. On the 20th anniversary of the disaster, Andy Bichlbaum, one of the leading members of the Yes Men, impersonated a Dow spokesperson and took full responsibility for it-including setting up a multi-billion dollar compensation package.  Dow was profoundly (and deservedly) embarrassed.  Although that doesn't help the victims, posters like this keep the story alive, reminding all of us and teaching new generations that we will not forget.

Poster Text:
The real face of globalisation. This child died in Bhopal, India, in 1984, killed by the greed of Union Carbide (a Fortune 500 corporation now owned by Dow Chemical) and the negligence of the Government of India. Lust for profit that ignores people, safety, health and the environment -- and the blind eyes of politicians -- this is what Globalisation really is. 20,000 people have died in Bhopal since December 1984, tens of thousands are still seriously ill, and the killers are still absconding from justice. Contact the nearest Dow Chemical office and your nearest Indian Embassy or Consulate and ask them what they propose to do about it. Please act now. Bhopal Group For Information And Action justiceinbhopal@yahoo.co.in www.bhopal.net, www.bhopal.org, www.bhopalexpress.com Bh?pal 1984 Till When?

Additional Reference:
http://www.democracynow.org/2004/12/6/yes_men_hoax_on_bbc_reminds

Poster of the Week for Nov. 25

"I Don't See an American Dream, 
I See an American Nightmare"
                                   Malcolm X
Scott Braley
Fireworks Graphics
Prairie Fire Organizing Committee
Offset, 1992
Berkeley, CA
9482

Ferguson, Missouri continues to burn after a grand jury decided not to indict police Officer Darren Wilson who killed Michael Brown, an unarmed African American teenager last August 9. CSPG's Poster of the Week reminds us of another act of police violence 22 years ago, when rioting and burning took place throughout Los Angeles and other cities after an all-white jury acquitted the four police officers on trial for brutally beating Rodney King, an unarmed African American motorist. But at least there was a subsequent federal trial about the police actions regarding Rodney King. In Ferguson, following a highly criticized grand jury process, no charges were filed.

This poster was produced in Berkeley, California and shipped down to Los Angeles, while Los Angeles was under curfew during the 1992 uprising. It was going to be distributed at a demonstration held in front of LAPD headquarters at Parker Center, downtown L.A. As hundreds of protesters arrived, the LAPD rescinded the permit and declared the demonstration to be an illegal assembly.

Rodney King background:
Glen 'Rodney' King, an African American motorist, was beaten repeatedly by Los Angeles Police officers on March 3, 1991. Unbeknownst to the police, a bystander, George Holliday, videotaped the beating and it aired on television throughout the world. The incident raised an outcry, as many people, both within and outside the African American community, believed that the beating was racially motivated, excessive and an example of police brutality. Although 27 officers were witnesses and/or participants, only 4 were brought to trial. The trial was moved from Los Angeles to Simi Valley, because the defense argued that it was not possible to have a fair trial in Los Angeles. The defense team also preferred Simi Valley because its population is more affluent, contains a much smaller proportion of African Americans, and contains a disproportionately large number of law-enforcement officers.

The April 1992 acquittals in a state court of the four officers triggered massive rioting in Los Angeles, which left hundreds of buildings severely damaged or destroyed and dozens dead. Smaller riots occurred in other U.S. cities. King made an appearance before television news cameras to plead for peace, saying, "Can't we get along here? Can't we all just get along?"

On May 1, 1992 as the unrest continued, President G. H. W. Bush announced that he would most likely charge the officers with violating King's civil rights. King testified in this Federal trial on March 9, 1993. Then on August 4, a federal judge sentenced LAPD officers Stacey Koon and Laurence Powell to 30 months in prison on this charge. The other officers were not convicted, and there was no rioting.

Poster of the Week

33% of The Homeless Are Veterans
San Francisco Print Collective
The National War Tax Resistance Coordinating Committee
Silkscreen, 2006
San Francisco, California

November 11th is Veterans' Day, when too many politicians give lip service to Veterans, while the statistics reveal a reality of obscene neglect. In 2009, the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans estimated that between 130,000 and 200,000 veterans are homeless on any given night.

America's homeless veterans have served in World War II, Korean War, Cold War, Vietnam War, Grenada, Panama, Lebanon, Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan), Operation Iraqi Freedom, or the military's anti-drug cultivation efforts in South America. 47 per cent of homeless veterans served during the Vietnam Era. More than 67 per cent served our country for at least three years and 33 per cent were stationed in a war zone.

As this poster asks: Why do our taxes support war but not the people who fight it?  When will we ever learn?

For More Information:

http://www.nationalhomeless.org/factsheets/veterans.html

Poster of the Week

N.E.W.S.
Lex Drewinski
Silkscreen, 1990
Berlin, Germany

The Berlin Wall--which had divided East and West Berlin for nearly 30 years--fell on November 9, 1989, 25 years ago this weekend. The German Democratic Republic (East Germany) began construction of the fortified barrier in 1961 to prevent East German citizens from defecting.   

There are many dramatic photos of West Germans pulling parts of the wall down with hammers and machinery, but the wall's actual demolition by the East German military didn't begin until June 13, 1990 and was not completed until 1992. The fall of the Berlin Wall paved the way for German reunification which was formally concluded on October 3, 1990.

As the world commemorates the destruction of one wall, other walls continue to be erected: The Separation Wall (also known as the Apartheid Wall) being built by Israel in the Occupied West Bank, and the border wall being erected between the U.S. and Mexico. When will we ever learn. 

CSPG's Poster of the Week by Lex Drewinski plays on both the headline N.E.W.S. made when the Wall fell, and the East-West divide.  It shows how after the Fall of the Berlin Wall, there was no longer an "East" as the majority of people living in East Germany wanted the freedom and lifestyles symbolized  by the West.