Popular Philly Brunch Spot Teams Up with Street Artist Duo to Take Aim at Betsy DeVos

(Photos by Streets Dept Contributor Eric Dale)

Perhaps you’ve noticed that one of Philly’s most popular brunch spots has been getting political lately. Over the last year, Sam’s Morning Glory Diner at 10th and Fitzwater streets in Bella Vista has been hanging signs in their windows and rotating banners from their roof that criticize President Trump’s policies and administration.

The banners are the collaborative effort of Philly-based street artists YOMI and DENIED, and their latest takes aim at Trump’s widely criticized Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos.

I chatted with YOMI and DENIED about their installation over email:

“The inspiration for this piece comes from our belief that a country like the U.S. (and the world for that matter) can be full of intelligent, healthy, and free people provided that they receive sufficient education and equal opportunities regardless of their skin color, nationality, or economic status.”

“The birth of such a world of intelligence and innovation is possible but not out of capital, property, or special interests that serve only the rich.”

“We knew Secretary DeVos’s nomination hearing made it clear she does not have the experience or expertise to run the Department of Education in a way that will help students. Following the Trump administration’s model, instead of surrounding herself with advocates and experts she left many key positions unfilled and allowed controversial and unfit individuals to serve without undergoing Senate vetting process.”

“At a time when teachers, students, and public life in general are under assault by the juggernaut of commodification and capital accumulation, we think it’s crucial that educators, parents, and youth be offered a language in which politics, power, justice, and social change become central to any notion of educational reform.”