twenty-five day fast: helen chavez, robert f. kennedy, cesar chavez, pete cardenas, larry itliong, andy imutan, julio hernandez

Today is Cesar Chavez Day.  If you are off today from school and work to observe this holiday- most likely you live in California (or the West Coast). Cesar Chavez is the esteemed Mexican-American Farm Labor Organizer of the 60s and 70s but most notably, the face and mouthpiece of the Delano Grape Strike of 1965.

It is too easy these days to attach a movement to one face, one voice, one personality – I mean, props to CC for getting the shine of such a monumental grassroots victory of the 1965 boycott and labor strike… BUT let’s just remember exactly how deep Cesar Chavez really rolled.

Today, I am personally honoring the bravery and swagger of these men and women farm workers, union organizers and allies alike who have banded together with agency to stand in opposition to exploitation for the fair wages and dignity owed to them.

So my day in the sun is yours as well, political ancestors like Larry Itliong and Dolores Huerta.  Although I am not off today, I tribute my labor to you and all other organizers (of the Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee and the Mexican American-led National Farmworkers Association) who don’t have their own holiday.

When Underground was asked to partner with the Center for Asian American Media (CAAM) to be a sponsor of the 29th Annual San Francisco International Asian American  Film Festival, we were like giddy kids chasing fireflies. At Underground, we seek the spark- the story that ignites a mission. Imagine how vast the task can be to find the prolific story behind a stories-teller like CAAM.

Prior to embarking on the festival campaign, we were fortunate to work with CAAM on reinvigorating their  brand identity.  In that journey, together we found “Stories To Light“-a just expression of CAAM’s purpose. The festival becomes the perfect stage to roll out the meaning of this phrase- the luminosity, intensity, directions, and colors (among all other properties) belonging to Asian American stories.

On top of the festival catalog, ads, and posters, the trailer was a wonderful way to define Stories To Light.  So many stories exist in one given space/ moment/ time… which, at point blank, is exactly what the festival is. Watch the trailer here.

March 10-20, we hope to see you at the movies!

this is the last sentence of project h design‘s mission, and it is a statement many of us, as creatives, have declared at some point of our lives {often in the same breath as “one day i will design my own font”}. project h is a non-profit organization based in the bay area that “connects the power of design to the people who need it most” and all that good stuff, including adaptive eyecare glasses and the HippoRoller. one can’t help but be inspired, especially when you share a common process + passion.

but a thought provoking article by bruce nussbaum asks, “is humanitarian design the new imperialism”? even more so, “does our desire to help do more harm than good?”

So where are we with humanitarian design? I know almost all of my Gen Y students want to do it because their value system is into doing good globally. Young designers in consultancies and corporations want to do humanitarian design for the same reason.

But should we take a moment now that the movement is gathering speed to ask whether or not American and European designers are collaborating with the right partners, learning from the best local people, and being as sensitive as they might to the colonial legacies of the countries they want to do good in. Do designers need to better see themselves through the eyes of the local professional and business classes who believe their countries are rising as the U.S. and Europe fall and wonder who, in the end, has the right answers? Might Indian, Brazilian and African designers have important design lessons to teach Western designers?

And finally, one last question: why are we only doing humanitarian design in Asia and Africa and not Native American reservations or rural areas, where standards of education, water and health match the very worst overseas?

his musings about technological colonialism are interesting and nussbaum has made a similar inquiry in the past, “is ‘green’ the ‘new imperialism’?” and this is where we catch ourselves being defensive and paralyzed at the same time. he makes a compelling argument so much so that we hesitate a moment and check our intentions, making sure our feet are still planted in the ground with enough forward momentum. we think about jiu jitsu. we ask ourselves, am i an imperialist? we wonder about that font that we still would like to design, one day. and in the meantime, the founder of project h, emily pilloton, responds to mr. nussbaum.