Hello!
April was a time-lapse of greenery. The small shoots and tiny leaves that felt like individual miracles urgently needing to be documented four weeks ago have since unfurled into a single mass of vibrancy. Some flowers have already come and gone. It always feels as though spring will never fully arrive and then it does, it does. Every year I aim to be a sponge for it, knocked speechless by awe and attuned to the changes, but this spring feels different. It feels more. All month I have been taking heart in the actions of our youth and their protests for Palestine. When I see professors standing alongside their students and parents traveling to back up their children on campuses I feel a brightening not unlike the greening taking place all around me. Walking through the encampment here in Milwaukee I have witnessed cooperation and collaboration growing organically. I dropped of sewing supplies to squeals of absolute glee. All around me people were saying “what can I do to help?” and surrounded by such willingness I found myself tearing up, overcome by the mossy feeling of hope.
Have you had the chance to participate in a Popular University movement near you? I know that a lot of folks are afraid of these protests, and the news coverage has been… something else. I’m also aware that my own sense of safety and comfort in the environment of the encampment comes from a lifetime of research and participation in protest and protest movements. Twenty years ago I stood in the (then) largest human peace sign on the same land where the University of Michigan’s encampment currently thrives. Studying and engaging in abolition work has taught me so much about police corruption and brutality that walking through a police-free zone is a relief to me. Heck, I’d even say that my years of working and living cooperatively have made scenes of grungy youth eating rice out of plastic mugs and screenprinting patches on DIY setups a real comfort to me. You might be coming from a different place, but I want to encourage everyone to go and form their own opinions about these protests separate from the violence and sensationalism of our news system. Bring a bag of fruit and an open mind.
Growing up in Ann Arbor gave me the privilege of access to protests and to skilled organizers with decades of experience under their belts. I spent more than a few block parties seated next to Al Haber and ENACT’s Teach-In plaque hung in my biology classroom. But growing up there also gave me the brief opportunity to talk with older folks whose minds had been changed by the protests they witnessed during the Civil Rights Movement and the Vietnam War. Whenever there were big protests in the city their memories would be jogged and they would tell me about it while I bagged up their groceries at the co-op. Those folks are largely gone, and the young protestors who inspired them into support roles are also aging out of this world. It’s on us now to bring what we’ve got to support the future building of the youth. They’re building our future too.
Upcoming Events
May is gearing up to be a busy month. On the 11th I will be hosting a mending workshop with Sarah Eichhorn at Tooth & Nail Studio and Gallery, where we both also have work in a show through the end of the month. On May 22nd and 29th book binder Daniel Ehn and I will be teaching the second round of our class From Rags to Books where we will make small hardcover journals bound in reclaimed cloth. On May 31st four of the quilts from my HOMES series will be hanging in The Bindery for Bay View Gallery Night (book class participants will get a sneak preview!).
P.S. Stay tuned to
for the third and final drop of posters. Previous editions have sold out QUICK so we printed extra this time. Here’s an update on the project!Some newsletters I recently enjoyed:
I always love when Shira writes about love:
Ani and I collaborated on a quilt for our beloved Maya, and she shares it here:
Origins!!!!! Funny, I think of these as Polish laundromat bags:
We visited the cottonwood tree at the edge of the lake last week and found it dead and mostly in the water. Erosion is rampant at the beach we love and Mae writes so beautifully about a similar experience here:
I love how you start it all with the photos, it reminds me of the way I used to do some blog posts, calling them "Dear photodiary" and just finding fun shots to share on my blog.
Yours are great photos, just wanted to say that.
The ladybird is beautiful!
"It does, it does." It does indeed. We have that same pear baggu bag :) & I saw Alan at the UM encampment a few days ago :)