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Revolutionary Hallmark

Radical cartoonist and fellow ZNetster Stephanie McMillan has created a subversive answer to the manufactured holidays promoted by the greeting card industry (like "Sweetest Day"? I mean, glagh!) with her own line, The Greeting Card Liberation Front. Naturally there is a manifesto:

There are many holidays, anniversaries and days of commemoration for the socially conscious, but they are largely unknown and ignored in today's America. Instead we are spoon-fed commercially driven and religious holidays, or tepid ones such as "Labor Day" as a substitution for those with a bit more fire, such as May Day.

Let's reclaim and celebrate, or mourn as the case may be, the holidays that matter. Let's use our good cheer and somber rituals to encourage a new world where justice and peace aren't just nice ideas.

Stephanie is taking suggestions, yet already she has compiled a fine list of alternative holidays and days of remembrance: Earth Day, of course, but National Day of Appreciation for Abortion Providers, Remembrance Day for Women Raped in All Wars, and observation of Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzettis' executions make for more historically meaningful calendar entries. For a sample of what she's getting at, check out her illustration for May 1: International Workers Day. So if you have suggestions, or if you're an artist who wants to contribute a greeting card of your own design, contact her at steph@minimumsecurity.net. Mind you, there ain't no moolah in this venture, so consider a labor of love.

Posted by kevinmoore at April 29, 2004 08:15 AM | TrackBack