GATS & Graffiti as a form of activism in public space

Reflecting on this semester's materials, Shabazz's (2016) speech about how place, space, and mobility matters in the fight for social justice stood out to me. Throughout his speech Shabazz (2016) traces the proliferation policy and laws of confinement throughout the history of the Black liberation movement. What stood out to me the most in this speech was that he highlighted Hip Hop's role in creating space for Black civic engagement, despite redlining practices that left school art programs underfunded. Accordingly, during the rest of the semester, I couldn't help but think of how graffiti (one of the four elements of hip hop), as a tool for civic engagement and it's relationship to geography and social justice. In this post, I discuss how graffiti makes meaningful contributions to other material we discussed throughout the semester. Specifically, graffiti writers like GATS are deeply interwoven into spacial memory, and visually represent resistance to hegemonic oppressors through art and space. 

"Welcome to West Oakland" iconic sign painted by GATS

GATS, (graffiti against the system), is a graffiti writer from Oakland who is a part of the group PTV (punks, thugs, and vandals). GATS is famous for the mask seen above, which takes on a lot of different variations. I have not only seen GATS' work up and down the west coast, but in almost every state I've visited. While GATS' political involvement is evident in the acronym, you do not need insider knowledge to be able to identify that graffiti engages people politically. Specifically, the act of directly reclaiming space (e.g., painting it) is a more active form of engaging in politics in that there is no waiting around for bureaucrats to make the wrong decision, there's no research to build a case for more grass or playgrounds, it spits in the face of the whole process of democratic decision making. "I can't think of a way that is a more direct way of speaking to people than writing it on a wall" (I am Other). 

          

        "I am Other" (part 1, 2, & 3) takes place during the height of the Occupy Wall Street movement             and detail GATS' graffiti philosophy while he works alongside other artists in the community. 

It comes as no surprise that graffiti art decorates protest routes as it is a symbol for unrest. Throughout the semester, we talked in-depth about social inequities that do not get adequate attention and go unresolved for decades. While I can not say graffiti is a solution for any of these (e.g., homelessness, ableism or racism in public space), I can say that it draws the attention of policy makers and provides us the opportunity to engage in unbridled freedom of speech. The video "I am Other" is a great example of how space, art, and activism coalesce and can be voiced through graffiti. Unlike traditional ways of engaging in politics, like attending town hall meetings or voting, graffiti is a direct way to engage in public discourse by reclaiming shared and private space. 

Graffiti is not intended to include everyone, and my point is that neither are the built spaces and places throughout the US. The bureaucratic machine is one that is slow turning, and my question is why not transform space ourselves? If the government does not take us into account, if the accommodations created simply further the colonial project and do not make housing more affordable or accessible, if the design of our environment locks kids indoors or makes them fearful of being outside, then why not paint over it? Why not make their idea of what we need from public space more "unattractive"? The visual landscapes that we walk through, in public and in private, are dominated by corporations, advertisements, and otherwise ugly, meaningless material. What makes monuments to capitalism worth our compliance? Graffiti artists take agency in these spaces and create something that is representative of themselves and their community; regardless of what anyone else might think of it.