Craftivism for People Without Kids

I've been inspired and maybe you will too

A week or so ago I attended a fantastic webinar about activism for crafty people who like making things. It was led by Shannon Downey, of Badass Cross Stitch, who could ring a bell if you’ve heard of Rita’s Quilt (which makes me sob when I think of it) or this 2017 article in Vogue about her “Boys will be Boys held accountable for their f*cking actions” embroidery. Her new book Let’s Move the Needle is a clear and motivating read for how to get moving on your own actions through creation, craft, and art. I got a LOT out of her activities to reflect and hone your mission and vision and plan, check it out!

I initially joined the webinar hoping to find a bunch of ideas for how to attack this mountain of oppression we continue to face. I learned that we can be the most effective and efficient if we just pick one issue and make it our driving force. (And also pause to contribute to other actions when there is a call for our direct help) Like most of us, and by its design, the shock-and-awe news cycle makes me feel overwhelmed and then I detach and numb out.

I’ve already picked a professional passion and am now realizing that adding creative projects to the mix is a natural Katie thing to do.

So, introducing a new name:

Respect to the cat ladies/people out there but I have pet allergies. I don’t know if we’re still riffing on that slogan from the hateful rhetoric, and I know many people prefer childfree, but I’ll keep the “childless lady” for recognition’s sake. I was trying to fit in KnITTY somewhere but it didn’t flow.

What is craftivism? I’ll defer to Wikipedia for the synopsis:

“Craftivism is a social process of collective empowerment, action, expression and negotiation. In craftivism, engaging in the social and critical discourse around the work is central to its production and dissemination. … Although the term craftivism is a recent addition to crafting lexicon, the use of craft as a subversive tactic can be found throughout history. In the novel A Tale of Two Cities, the character Madame Defarge, a worker for the French Revolution, secretly encodes the names of those soon to be executed in her knitting.”

You’ve probably already heard or seen it but not realized it had a name. The AIDS quilt is a famous example. Think about art that you’ve seen that’s changed your own views about the world or challenged a dominant harmful narrative.

Does one need to be an expert to participate? Of course not. Until childless craft lady, I often called myself a half-assed crafter. I’m good at fixing mistakes and I can solidly say that none of my projects have ever been precise or polished. But, who cares?

Here are some of my initial ideas! What if….

• Therapists crafted a badge to wear at events and conferences? A tiny couch and therapist chair with words above:

  • “Ask me about my childfree/less clients”

  • “Childfree/less therapist”

  • “Which of your classes included people without kids?”

• We coordinated a postcard-making campaign for awareness to send to therapy offices

• We led workshops for clients to make zines or tiny books about their experiences and feelings

If this isn’t a fit for you, we will also need allies-in-craft who perhaps don’t engage with this but spread the word, cheer it on, and generally appreciate the efforts.

I’d love to hear your ideas! I’ll be posting and creating more content about this for sure.

It was a wise choice to spend my morning writing this instead of watching an inauguration. I’ve kept our community in my heart and mind instead!