My Poster for the Women's March On Washington
Last edited Thu Jan 19, 2017, 02:21 AM - Edit history (1)
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Looking back... I had already done a few things to express my feelings on Donald Trump.
...and got one of them published by The Nation magazine:
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I was fooling around with ideas for a Hillary Clinton victory and I was looking for a positive message... and decided to revisit my earlier cover for The Nation magazine which featured an imagined scene of Barack Obama being sworn in President of the United States by Thurgood Marshall and surrounded by Civil Rights figures who paved the way for such a moment.
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I thought the election of the first woman President warranted the same kind of treatment.
I had sent the Obama image to The New Yorker (with whom I've worked with on other covers), but they passed. I was fortunate that The Nation really liked the cover as much as I did and they ran with it. I thought I would try The New Yorker again with this attempt...
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I didn't hear back. After thinking about it some more, I decided that it made me a bit uncomfortable to include President Bill Clinton in such a cover. I fooled around with a few other options before going back to The New Yorker with Chelsea Clinton holding the bible. This felt right to me... Chelsea would represent the hopes and aspirations of a new generation of women that would feel that nothing was beyond them.
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The magazine got back to me and said they were interested... and asked me how long it would take to turn it around. I was elated. After many attempts (and three cover ideas drawn by others) I would finally get a cover.
...we all know how that turned out. Obviously, losing a cover was the least of a nation's worries after the rolling circus shitshow comes to DC.
But I still wondered if perhaps the cover could be remade to reflect the election... I decided to move Hillary into the gallery and leave the space open... I changed everyone's expressions slightly to reflect the disappointment of having the majority of Americans wait even longer for representation in the highest office in the land... even worse... having to wait for an out and out misogynistic sociopath before getting the chance.
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I decided to submit to both The Nation and The New Yorker... but that didn't pass muster...
Reflecting on the latest image, I decided that it lacked focus and was too dour. I needed something that would reflect a movement that was not going to be broken by this con-man's election.
I thought about how I could turn this around... and then thought... why not the anti-Trump? Why not Lady Liberty. She opens her arms to the same immigrants that Trump would not have. She's a strong figure who embodies the true spirit of what this country should be about. Make her the rallying cry. I decided that having her swear an oath on our Constitution, instead of the bible... hoping in our laws and system of government to contain a sociopath like Trump. (one always has hope.)
I changed some figures around... dropped one (Carrie Chapman Catt, after reading about her racist quotes) and replaced with another feminist icon, Betty Friedan. (not a tough call)
A few additional notes
... with the removal of Chelsea, I wanted to have a figure represent younger women... but also people from all over the world, who look to the United States as a beacon of hope. A lot of that felt like shattered glass (in the wrong sense) after this travesty of an election... but we can still be an inspiration by what we do, united, going forward to defeat Trumpism. With that in mind, I thought Malala Yousafzai's courage in the face of personal and very real threats was the perfect person to add to the mix. The fact that she is Muslim is a perfect response to those that slander over a billion people for the actions of the few.
I completed the background by adding the Constitution with its prominent We The People...
We The People are going to be the ones to keep this country safe through this outhouse of an administration.
There's also some hope added (on my part) with the emoluments clause of the Constitution which I added to the bottom of the stands... and a reminder in the Presidential seal about who the majority in this election was for. 2,864,974. I needed that to be in there.
I got a note back from someone who (probably reflecting the majority of people who see this) wondered why XX was left out. I really didn't think in those terms. With LITERALLY a cast of thousands to pick from, I had to think in terms of representation. I'm sure I missed some completely obvious calls, (I personally wanted to put Barbara Jordan, one of my personal heroes, in there... there was an obvious miss on Michelle Obama... who I'd love to get in there, as well... Geraldine Ferraro... Marin Alsop, Marian Anderson, Maya Angelou, Clara Barton, Regina Benjamin, Sally Ride, Grace Lee Boggs, Brooksley Born, Margaret Bourke-White, Eileen Collins, Emily Dickinson, Babe Didrikson, Dorothea Lynde Dix, Isadora Duncan, Marian Wright Edelman, Gertrude Ederle, Gertrude Belle Elion, Billie Holiday, Dian Fossey, Matilda Joslyn Gage, Ruth Bader Ginsburg (Ruth Bader Ginsburg!!!!), Martha Graham, Dorothy Height, Bell Hooks, Grace Hopper... how much time and space do we have?... You get the point. You could make 1,000 different versions of this and be correct. So... with that in mind... Here's the key to figures:
LIBERTY’S ALTERNATIVE INAUGURAL
1. Susan B. Anthony
2. Hillary Clinton
3. Sandra Day Oconner
4. Julia Ward Howe
5. Shirley Chisholm
6. Eleanor Roosevelt
7. Abigail Kelly Foster
8. Sojourner Truth
9. Lydia Maria Child
10. Nancy Pelosi
11. Betty Friedan
12. Ida B. Wells
13. Dolores Huerta
14. Lucretia Mott
15. Gloria Steinem
16. Marie Curie
17. Nelly Bly
18. Septima Clark
19. Rachel Carson
20. Amelia Earhart
21. Bella Abzug
22. Louisa May Alcott
23. Mary White Ovington
24. Fannie Lou Hamer
25. Patsy Mink
26. Malala Yousafzai
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These are bleak times. But no more so than what the Civil Rights movement faced down over the years. We need to stay strong and remember that WE are in the majority. This is not time to crawl into the fetal position. This is no time to cover our eyes. This is the time to raise our voices, stay strong, hold up our flag, and oppose this racist, sexist, xenophobic, misogynistic, blowhard of a sociopath and let him know we're not going gently into that good night.
- cross posted at DailyKos -
= new reply since forum marked as read
and welcome to DU 
All of these are fantastic. Thank you for sharing them here and welcome to DU.
Love these all! Your cover of The Nation really struck me when saw it on the newsstand; very well done.
Welcome to DU. 
May we have more contributions from you. 
I vividly recall your Trump cover for The Nation. The Obama swearing-in is also a brilliant idea, and executed in a very moving realization.
Visiting your web site, I see a whole lot more beautiful and thought-provoking art. Very pleased you posted here! I hope you'll want to add your voice to this community as you have time and the inclination -- we can sure use your outlook. You don't have to post brilliant artwork to participate, either. 
Pleased to "meet" you and learn more about your fantastic work. Thank you, and welcome to DU!
should be, for a loving, caring, compassionate Nation, ZenPop.
Your work is brilliant, encouraging, and inspiring.
They put lump in my throat...THANK YOU!
RESIST! 