Category Archives for social justice

When Adar enters, joy increases

Today and tomorrow begins the Hebrew month of Adar, of which the Talmud (Ta’anit 29a) says, “When Adar enters, joy increases.” The primary reason for this joyfulness is that it contains the holiday of Purim, when the Jews of Persia in the 5th century B.C.E. were almost destroyed by an evil prime minister manipulating a feckless king (nope, not resonant at all), but were saved by the hand of God working through a courageous young Jewish woman. For more about Adar and Purim, I commend you to one of my favorite websites, Jewish Heritage Online Magazine, a rich repository of insights on Jewish cultural themes.

For myself, I have two Purim-related art projects to share with you.

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Kamala 2024: #lotusforpotus

Tomorrow is Election Day 2024. Today, as sort of a talisman, I’m wearing the shirt I created over the summer. I’ll be voting in person around 7am tomorrow, so as I can’t wear it to the polls, today it is.

And of course I should have posted this here months ago, but here we are: Order yours on Zazzle at https://www.zazzle.com/kamala_lotus_2024_t_shirt-256793125677123295?rf=238246111243318061

One more fun thing, I finally remembered a graphic I created several years back for my BFF who is a charter member of the 47 Society, for fans of “the quintessential random number of the universe”. Let’s hope this is a good omen, too.

Tzedek, tzedek tirdof: The pursuit of justice

When I receive a request for a custom design piece, it is often a Bible verse or other Jewish text that would make a good addition to my overall portfolio. In those cases, I add a custom design charge of $20 to the regular art pricing, which entitles the client to choose their design direction and request a complimentary round of revisions (I usually throw in a second and even a third round for free). However, the alternate drafts along the way usually result in work that I can make available for general sale.

Back in July, I had a recent Etsy customer come back to me and say “Would you consider making something for Deuteronomy 16:20, ‘Justice, justice you shall pursue’?” Of course, that verse has been on my list of ideas for a long time, so I jumped at the opportunity to work something up.

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“To Bigotry No Sanction” Buttons

August 18 was the anniversary of George Washington’s “Letter to the Hebrew Congregations of Newport, Rhode Island”. The letter itself can still be seen on display at Newport’s Touro Synagogue, the oldest synagogue in the United States.

To bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance

The original square button design.

Back in 2016, shortly after the U.S. presidential election, I designed a pinback button quoting a phrase from the above letter by George Washington: “For happily the Government of the United States, which gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance, requires only that they who live under its protection, should demean themselves as good citizens.”

The typeface I chose is a font called Trattatello by James Grieshaber (then provided by Apple as a system font). I set the quote against a backdrop image of the U.S. Constitution.

The design has gained a certain following in the intervening years. It’s available in quantity from my Etsy shop (free shipping!), but also on Zazzle as individual buttons and even adapted to magnets and yard signs.

I was recently interviewed by Rabbi Mark Hurvitz as to how these buttons came into existence. For the full story, including a history of the Washington letter, please check out the blog post below.

To bigotry no sanction