“The country needs, and unless I mistake its temper, the country demands bold, persistent experimentation. It is common sense to take a method and try: If it fails, admit it frankly and try another. But above all, try something”
- Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 1932“This is going to be the (Green) New Deal, the Great Society, the moon shot, the civil-rights movement of our generation.”
- Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, 2019
Nearly 100 years ago, staring down The Great Depression, our government put the nation’s artists to work with President Roosevelt’s New Deal. Its artists, their art, and the story of America coming together stands out in history as a model for tackling our biggest problems, and inspired us to start CAN in the first place. We even made sure our name had three letters, just like the WPA.
Today, we find ourselves in a similar position, facing down climate change, income inequality, racial injustice and more problems too big for small solutions. That’s why we’re so excited to join the movement advocating for a Green New Deal: a set of progressive legislative proposals aimed at, among other things, curbing the effects of climate change and transforming the U.S. economy and infrastructure. While the Green New Deal is still in its infancy, at CAN we’ve taken up the charge of helping the public understand and imagine what could be possible with this exciting new set of policies -- just as the artists of the original New Deal helped to inform and advocate for those innovative programs over 80 years ago.
Our Green New Deal campaign premiered on March 14, 2019 in Washington D.C., at Bold V. Old, a daylong convening where speakers including Stacey Abrams, Cory Booker and Kamala Harris discussed bold ideas for our biggest problems, including the Green New Deal. On March 16 In Oakland, CA, Creative Action Network joined artists and activists at the Green New Deal Create-A-Thon, where youth artists from the Sunrise Movement and others worked on new designs for the collection. Youth activist Rio says that after seeing videos of Greta Thunberg leading student climate strikes in Europe, “me and my sister were empowered to make some sort of difference.” Rio and his sister Maddy recently rose to internet stardom when their student group confronted Senator Feinstein about the Green New Deal a few weeks ago. Maddy says she is now “trying to make my voice be more heard, go to marches, and more creative stuff, definitely!”
 |
 |
| Youth climate activist and new CAN artist Maddy working on a onesie design at the Green New Deal Create-A-Thon in Oakland, CA. | CAN artist Ginnie McKnight being interviewed at Bold V. Old in Washington D.C. |
Our Green New Deal campaign is now open for anyone and everyone to contribute their own design. As contributing artist Sayada Ramdial puts it, “Broad changes meant to better society and the environment we occupy are imperative, and with many different industries and people working together, hopefully we can make this bright future a reality!”
All posters are available for sale, with proceeds supporting the artists and Sunrise Movement, a coalition of young people uniting to stop the climate crisis. Select designs are also available as buttons, apparel, and print-at-home poster packs.
