First 100 Days: Artist-created Posters Demanding Action from Biden/Harris

Brunofsky – Canceling student debt

Student debt should have been cancelled long ago. Impacting 1 in 5 adult Americans, student debt creates a burden and overwhelming stress that lingers long after graduation day, and in many cases lasting a lifetime. I have watched many loved ones carry this weight with them for far too long. Add in a pandemic that has caused alarmingly high unemployment rates and the incompetence of the 45th president, now is the time to cancel student debt.

Brunofsky is an anonymous artist from Philadelphia. Entrepreneur and Lead Designer at REC Philly.

Candy Alexandra González – Housing for all

Everyone is deserving of safe, accessible, and affordable housing. In the devastation caused by COVID-19, it has been our most vulnerable citizens who have been hardest hit. Too many people are currently living under the fear of eviction due to COVID-19-induced unemployment. Too many houseless folks are struggling to protect themselves from COVID-19 for lack of a place in which to quarantine. As one of the wealthiest countries in the world, the U.S. has the resources to ensure that everyone has access to safe housing. 

Candy Alexandra González is a Little Havana-born and raised, Philadelphia-based, multidisciplinary visual artist, poet, activist and trauma-informed educator.

Derick Jones – Universal healthcare

Universal healthcare is a basic right. The government and the people in charge mess with our lives on a daily basis, the least they could do is make sure we’re healthy enough to keep taking a beating haha. Keep the fight somewhat fair, you know? Fingers crossed I live to see something like this happen.

Derick Jones is a Philly transplant, specializing in Philly illustrations and sci-fi comics.

Donte Neal – $15 minimum wage

I chose to focus on this topic in light of the many people in my family and friend groups that have currently fallen on hard times. Hardworking folks across the country have found themselves unable to support themselves and/or their families on the current minimum wage of $7.25 for years now. With some paychecks adding up to a mere max of $1,160 per month (pre-tax), an alarming number of U.S. residents end up being paid just enough to be broke, hungry, and/or homeless. 

Donte Neal is a multi-disciplinary artist and culture fanatic. 

Jenny Scott – Racial economic equity

It is critical to reinforce to the Biden-Harris administration how systemic racism still affects minority communities today. We live in an economy based on private owners monetizing goods for financial stability. Given that bureaucratic structures have been historically riddled with racist intentions, Black and brown businesses are statistically afforded less financial resources such as business loans, affordable lending, and crisis protections which perpetuates a cycle of poverty.

Jenny Scott is a graphic designer from Philadelphia that is heavily inspired by hyper-pop and ‘90s nostalgia.

Jonai Gibson-Selix – Reallocating police budgets

On October 26th, 2020, Walter Wallace Jr. was murdered by Philadelphia police in front of his mother amidst a mental health crisis. What this family needed for this young, Black man was accessible mental health services, but the overinvestment in police has left minimal funding for such services. Walter’s death is not an isolated event. We must note that police abuse of power and excessive force occurs throughout the country, spanning over a century, so there is no amount of money that can be invested in police reform that will fix this broken system. Fund public services, divest from police.

Jonai Gibson-Selix is a visual designer and photographer based in Philadelphia.

Kah Yangni – $2,000 stimulus checks

We live in one of the wealthiest countries on the planet. There is no reason for people here to be suffering in the middle of this crisis. We need Biden and Harris to step in and give us the resources we need to survive.

Kah Yangni is an illustrator living in the city of Philadelphia.

Krista Dedrick-Lai – Closing immigrant camps

Of all the crimes committed by the Trump administration one of the most egregious is family separation and the detention of immigrants (many of whom are children) in prison camps. Nelson Mandela said “There can be no keener revelation of a society’s soul than the way in which it treats its children.” As a mother, I can not find words for the horror I feel about what has been done to imprisoned immigrant children and families. I have no words for the rage I feel at how little has been done by our government to right its wrongs, or even to stop them. Families belong together. Humans, especially children, do not belong in detention. Our country owes an immense debt for the harm done.

Krista Dedrick-Lai is a painter and mixed media artist living and working in Philadelphia.

Lisa Kelley – Harm reduction

Harm reduction is the practices, policies and programs aimed at reducing harm associated with drug use. It can include naloxone to reverse overdoses (and prevent death), sterile syringes to prevent the spread of HIV and other blood-borne diseases, and safe consumption sites (where people can use drugs under supervision, and access services – including treatment options). People who use drugs deserve services and resources that meet them “where they’re at,” whether that is actively using drugs or attaining abstinence.

Lisa Kelley is a trauma-informed artist who is interested in the connection between art and social change.

Marian Bailey – Reopening schools safely

Over the last year, I’ve seen countless posts about teachers that have contracted Covid-19 and lost their lives. We live in a space that treats teachers like glorified babysitters and it is horrifying. Teachers deserve more money, more support, and should be kept in mind when folks are discussing the full reopening of schools. People love to bring up how low risk children are when it comes to getting Covid-19 and having horrible symptoms. Children will not be the only ones in those rooms so teachers need to be taken into account as well. And beyond being taken into, their health and safety should be prioritized.

Marian Bailey is a self-taught visual artist located in Philadelphia, PA, USA.

Marisa Velázquez-Rivas – Environmental justice

Climate change is a racial justice problem—if you’re a person of color you’re more likely to live in locations terrorized by toxic facilities, flooding, climate-related disease, and other issues. With the Trump Administration’s continuous rollback of climate policy, Black and brown communities are hit the hardest. Biden’s plan calls for the creation of an office of environmental and climate justice at the Justice Department to empower these communities. It’s so important to expand the conversation around climate justice — ensuring that all people, regardless of race and ethnicity, get equal protection from the worst effects of climate change.

Marisa Velázquez-Rivas is a director and illustrator born in Puerto Rico, raised in Venezuela, and currently based in Philadelphia.

Melita Tirado – Abolishing I.C.E.

The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforment agency (ICE), has been used by the government as a xenophobic and racist weapon to target, terrorize and cage people of immigrant communities. Being a first-generation Peruvian-American from two immigrant parents, I resonate with the agony they have caused the Latinx/e community in it’s immoral separation and deportation of our people. The new administration needs to abolish ICE urgently because it never should have existed in the first place.

Melita Tirado is a queer Peruvian-American digital illustrator based in Philadelphia.

Natalie Hope McDonald – Vaccinating the country 

I can’t think of anything more urgent right now than getting COVID-19 vaccines to more people. If we can inoculate as many Americans as possible within the first part of this new year, we can and will save lives. We’ll also have a much better chance of getting more people back to work, putting food on tables, sending kids to school and ultimately decreasing the enormous strain this pandemic has put on our healthcare system and its workers.

Natalie Hope McDonald is a writer and artist based in Philadelphia.