I am a poster screen printer and for many years I've used my resources to design and screen print posters to give away at marches/protests. My hope is people will like them enough to keep and put on their walls as a reminder as to why they were there that day. In 2020, shortly after George Floyd was murdered, a bunch of us handed out 1,000's of prints at protests over several weeks.
But in the middle of the night (Tuesday, June 2) I woke up with the idea that the designs should go on shirts as then people could be wearing the messages out in public to support the community. That same morning I scrambled to get information on the website, posted on social media letting people know they could walk up, hand me a shirt, and I would print them a shirt for free. Exactly 2 people showed up...
I wasn't too discouraged as I believed in the idea. So I took the photo of the 2 that showed up and scheduled another event for the the upcoming Saturday and promoted all week. 60+ people showed up and we printed around 100 shirts. It gave me hope and I called the events LiberTees and hosted twice a month leading up to the 2020 election. It continued once a month for the next 2 years including a design that went viral in 2022 and raised $14,500 to support abortion rights.
2023 was less frequent with only 2 events, so for 2024 I committed to refocusing and relaunched in January and February. But in March a new studio opportunity came and Ink Lounge relocated a few miles south to Englewood. I love the new studio for so many reasons including it's only 12 blocks from home, but It is smaller requiring me to reconsider how to go about running the events if at all.
So in moving ahead for 2024, the mission was renamed CommuniTees and along with studio events, I reached out to community focused organizations to host the printing at their location. Also new for 2024 I used the fees from a specific poster project that allowed me to donate 200-300 shirts.
I continue to be optimistic with the mission and hope to see you at an upcoming event.
Many thanks for your support. Please share and follow along on Instagram.
#privilegewithpurpose
2023 Event Photos: only 2 in 2023 to support Black History Month in February and Pride in June.
2022 Event Photos: more than 800 shirts printed in 2022. / 35+ LiberTee Events Since June 2020
Play Video: 2020 Pre-Election Events to Support Voting
June 2020 to October 2020, 12 events, 23 designs, 600+ shirts screen printed
Slideshow: Post-Election Events
December 2020 to December 2021
2024 Event Photos: Voting / Peace in Palestine / Chinese NY / Pride is a Protest / How Watermelon Became a Symbol of Palestinian Resistance READ ARTICLE