The Pop Culture Salvage Expeditions: Recent Episodes
The Center for Artistic Activism
The Center for Artistic Activism digs deep into pop culture to recover lessons, insights, and inspiration for artistic activism.
In 2022 we helped more people bring more creativity, innovation, and impact to their pro-voter work than ever before
Read on to learn about what we accomplished!
This year, we set out to make civic engagement as joyful, vibrant, safe, powerful, accessible, inspiring, and irresistible as possible.
In the face of some of the most serious attacks on fundamental freedoms our country has seen in decades, we were able to accomplish truly extraordinary feats.
We helped turn out voters in record numbers, mobilized communities that have faced the highest barriers to voting, and used the full powers of art and culture to make a real difference.
Below we’ve collected highlights from our new Fellowship, workshops we led across the country, and creative campaigns we can’t stop thinking about.
2022 By the Numberssupported over 200 actions across 23 creative campaigns reaching nearly 1 million people
led 15 workshops training 348 people in pro-voter artistic activism
worked with 34 organizations and 5 colleges and universities across 26 states
2022 By the Peoplehttps://youtu.be/MYI-8X630uQFeaturing members of our Fellowship and Action Accelerator: Céshia Elmore (New Voices for Reproductive Justice); Jerry Millan (Alianza); Steve Alfaro (Poder Latinx); Aileen Loy (Fair Count); Lisa Jo Epstein (Just Act); Miguel Monzon, Sabrina Apostol, Claire Walgren, Hector Carranza, Rapheal Begay (#ArtistsWhoVote at Arizona State University); Alannah Ray (Panthers Vote at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee); Brenden Rearick and Steph Sorenson (Pittsburgh DSA); Becky Bullard and Andrew Dinwiddie (Democrasexy); Annie Bailey (The Ally Coalition); Jenny Gottstein (Vote With Us); Abdul Dosunmu (Young Black Lawyers’ Organizing Coalition)2022 HighlightsUnstoppable Voters FellowshipThis year we launched a new program: the Unstoppable Voters Fellowship. For our inaugural cohort, we selected 5 fellows: Steve Alfaro with Poder Latinx, Andrew Dinwiddie with Democrasexy, Céshia Elmore with New Voices for Reproductive Justice, Aileen Loy with Fair Count, and Alannah Ray with the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s Panthers Vote.
Our 5 Unstoppable Voters Fellows brought big, bold ideas to help their communities around the country vote during the election season: with huge whale kites across Georgia, mystery bags that took the mystery out of voting in Wisconsin, witchy rituals and Texorcisms in Austin, poetic protests in Pennsylvania, and votaco pledges in Atlanta.
Learn more about the Unstoppable Voters 2022 FellowsWe’ll be offering more Fellowships in 2023 — sign up for our newsletter to hear about your next chance to join us!
The Unstoppable Voters 2022 cohort along with C4AA trainers Keyti, Krystal, Rachel, and Stevehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BULIt57AazU&feature=emb_imp_woythttps://youtu.be/lqFtkQeLBaQhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HbCcNjueXKc&feature=emb_imp_woytPhoto and videos by Good For You ProductionsUnstoppable Voters WorkshopsOne of our major focuses this year has been leading trainings and workshops to support voting champions’ vital work and push the boundaries of what pro-voter activism can be.
In 2022, we held 15 workshops, training 348 people across 38 organizations in 26 states. We were able to conduct many of these trainings in-person — for the first time in the program’s history! — enabling us to travel the country and get on the ground to help voting champions, young and old, novices and veterans, working on a wide range of pro-voter issues.
Learn more about Unstoppable Voters trainingshttps://youtu.be/3rABzoWbu7gA video about our Unstoppable Voters workshop at the Ohio State University. Video by Top5ive Photography.https://youtu.be/bIXzwe7d62YA case study about how groups we worked with in a training in Kansas applied our lessons to a successful, pro-abortion voting campaign.Unstoppable Voters ActionsHere are just a few of our favorites from the past year!
Apollo 51We started the year off by leading a workshop with friends For Freedoms for leaders fighting to bring fair representation to DC’s 700,000+ residents by making our capital a state. We worked with the League of Women Voters of DC, DC Vote, 51 for 51, Statehood4DC, Long Live Go-Go, and inspired and inspiring folks from across the country who understand the need to make DC a state as the social justice issue it is.
We were thrilled to support many of the creative campaigns that came out of our workshop, including the Apollo 51 Mission to Land a New Star on the Flag. Developed by janet e. dandridge, Mike Litt, and Anne Stauffer, with design by @csrmxt, we’ll continue supporting the project into 2023. Look out for it when you’re in DC!
A DC resident joins the MissionTeens March on the Ballot BoxTeens parade to the polls in PhiladelphiaOn Vote Early Day, October 28, 2022, hundreds of high school students gathered at Philadelphia’s City Hall for a Teens March on the Ballot Box civic extravaganza. As conceived by Unstoppable Voters Action Accelerator participant Lisa Jo Epstein of Just Act, teens paraded with pride, voted en masse, were cheered on by their peers, and spoke beautifully about why voting was so important to them.
Teens vote at a special spot inside City Hall, set up to help them cast their ballotsThe event was a huge civic success, and students are already planning their voting parades for next year.
Teens are cheered on by their classmates after voting. Photos by Cain Images.WHYlie the WhaleWho knew whales were the key to getting out the vote in Georgia?
Unstoppable Voters Fellow Aileen Loy!
Working with her organization Fair Count, Aileen added whimsy and wonder to voting events across Georgia by flying giant whale kites and leading kid-friendly whale activities.
Kids make their own whale kites at a Fair Count event.With the help of these whales, Aileen and Fair Count worked to collect 40,000 Commit To Vote cards in the 40 Georgia counties where there are many people who are registered to vote, but they don’t vote either at all or often.
Want to supercharge your pro-voter work in 2023?Reach out to us — we’d love to hear from you! We offer trainings, fellowships, research, resources, and so much more.
You can also sign up for our newsletter to stay up-to-date with open calls, upcoming workshops, and lots of other exciting Unstoppable Voters news.
What is Unstoppable Voters?Through the Center for Artistic Activism’s expansive Unstoppable Voters program, we support creatively risk-taking, strategic, ambitious organizations, people, and projects that address urgent and specific anti-voter attacks. We provide training and community building for individuals and groups who are passionate about protecting the freedom to vote and bringing the needed innovation to that fight. And we provide funding and support to help manifest that innovation and bring real, measurable impact. To date, we’ve helped over 80 organizations and over 900 individual activists, artists, and everyone in between make voting accessible, safe, joyful, powerful, and irresistible.
https://youtu.be/1nkC-ZbmrJsLearn more about Unstoppable Voters
The Lost Episode! We recorded this episode over 2 years ago and dug it out of the vaults for you! We left off at episode 12 – The Chevy Suburban. Superstores, supercenters, megastores! These aren’t big boxes, they are GIANT boxes and inside are not only swaths products, but on-brand restaurants or services like opticians …
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“It’s a brand new car!” The gang hit the road in a 2018 Chevrolet Suburban SUV. Rugged, automation, comfort, and luxury – how can we use these lessons in our activism? Sound Note: This show was recorded in a moving car. Thanks to Jimmy Bigbee Garver who recorded, edited, and mixed this episode. The Chevy …
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Creative Resistance is a special edition podcast mini-series in affiliation with the Center for Artistic Activism and is hosted by Research Fellow, Sarah J Halford. EPISODE 5 — SUCCESS & FAILURE Creative Resistance is a special edition podcast mini-series in affiliation with the Center for Artistic Activism and is hosted by Research Fellow, Sarah J …
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Creative Resistance is a special edition podcast mini-series in affiliation with the Center for Artistic Activism and is hosted by Research Fellow, Sarah J Halford. EPISODE 4 — CONTEXT In this episode, we heard from art activists: Ron Goldberg, Elliot Crown, Avram Finkelstein From Avram (on the context of the early days of the HIV/AIDS …
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Creative Resistance is a special edition podcast mini-series in affiliation with the Center for Artistic Activism and is hosted by Research Fellow, Sarah J Halford. Tactics & Strategies In this episode, we hear from art activists Ron Goldberg, Joey Juschka, Diana Arce, André Leipold (Center for Political Beauty). From Ron: “You have to get into …
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Creative Resistance is a special edition podcast mini-series in affiliation with the Center for Artistic Activism and is hosted by Research Fellow, Sarah J Halford. Episode 2: Audience! In this episode, we heard from art activists Avram Finkelstein, Mark Read and Rachel Brown of The Illuminator, Diana Arce, and Beatrice Glow. From Avram: “First of …
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Creative Resistance is a special edition podcast mini-series in affiliation with the Center for Artistic Activism and is hosted by Research Fellow, Sarah J Halford. In this episode, we meet Diana Arce, who is an artist, researcher, and activist based in Berlin. Diana’s also the creator of Politaoke, a karaoke-style participatory performance in which audience …
Continue reading "Creative Resistance 1: What is Artistic Activism?"
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Enjoy C4AA’s podcasts? Donate now! Pat and the Steve’s have been doing C4AA work around the world, so we haven’t seen new Pop Culture Salvage Expeditions episodes in some months. However, we have good news. C4AA Research Fellow Sarah J. Halford has delivered Creative Resistance – a podcast mini-series on the basics of artistic activism, …
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We’re back! Stephen Duncombe arranges a Sunday Brunch at Jane Restaurant in NYC. Steve Lambert brings a long his mom as the expert, a former Domincan nun with a masters degree in Theology. Booze and gossip in the daylight For many people Brunch is a socially acceptable excuse to get drunk before noon and talk …
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Episode 10: Professional Wrestling! This time the gang heads to Newark to see WWE Smackdown live! This is the first time any of them have seen professional wrestling live, and the most wrestling any of them had ever seen in their lives. Why? Professional wrestling, love it or hate it, is massively poplular. With over …
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Episode 9: Zumba! We took a Zumba class with Laci Chisolm of Fit 4 Dance and learn about real leadership. Have you donated to the Center for Artistic Activism yet? We need money for lasers! Show Notes: “Hard work can be fun!” This episode builds on our Mani-Pedi episode about self care and our TGI …
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Episode 8: The Rock and Roll Megachurch We went to the rock and roll megachurch, Hillsong Church, in NYC. Topics: Shapeshifting vs. Speaking in the language of your audience Documentation and telling your own story Showmanship Run your meeting on time Sorting it out yourself vs. being given answers The Apostle Paul in Corinthians Though …
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…with our experts Sydney and Sebastian Railla-Duncombe. Stephen Duncombe’s kids: Sydney and Sebastian Show Notes Part 1 – we read and respond to your letters! A letter from the famous and acclaimed writer, Mr. Jason Grote about our TGI Fridays episode. Greensboro sit-ins happened at Woolworth’s – Wikipedia – The Greensboro sit-ins were a series …
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We get manicures and pedicures at a Brooklyn Nail Salon. What Pat calls “the definition of comfort” makes Steve Lambert very uncomfortable. Show notes below… Linda Sarsour! 3 sides of Linda Sarsour Our guest: Linda Sarsour, is the Executive Director of the Arab American Association of New York, a White House recognized “Champion of Change”, …
Continue reading "6: Mani Pedi Day!"
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For our latest expedition we went out for a night of live stand up comedy. Combining local clubs, touring acts, cable networks, netflix, and the White House correspondents dinner, the American art form of stand up is far reaching and growing. We headed to the The Comedy Cellar in New York City with our special …
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“People in the art world, in general, are afraid of popular… it’s the fear that if you like what everyone else likes, then you’re no different than them, you might just be like them. And people are quite frightened of that.” – Brian Eno This episode we had author, philosopher, and punk rock drummer Max …
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50 Shades of Grey, a series of books and a movie dealing with “deviant” or non-normative sex. And yet, also an internationally top selling book and motion picture box office sensation! We took a group of 23 sex work activists to see 50 Shades of Grey in Cape Town, South Africa. Steve and Steve give …
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This month we get a meal at the TGI Friday’s in New York’s Union Square. Started as a single restaurant near the Queensboro Bridge in Manhattan, TGI Friday’s now has over 900 restaurants in 61 countries. Known for kitchy decor, potato skins, and alchohol – but what makes this restaurant so popular? And what can …
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In our first expedition we will watch the highest grossing worldwide movie of 2014, and one of the worst. Not to make fun of it (though that can not be helped) but to learn. This was the most popular movie last year and Patricia, Steve, and Steve try to parse out why people saw it …
Continue reading "1: Transformers: Age of Extinction"
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