To inspire a revolution in the hearts of its reader by Be Oakley

Be Oakley

GenderFail

"In between some major projects, I made this small but powerful zine. To inspire a revolution in the hearts of its reader, it is a new graphic zine by GenderFail founder Be Oakley. There is only an edition of 100!

Looking at the graphics I made during the last ten years, I am reminded of some urgent moments that took over social media. Unfortunately, Instagram is among the few free forms of dissemination most people have to disseminate urgent information to our communities. In compiling this archive of my work, you start to see these movements that broke through the social fabric of society such as: Movements for black and trans lives, for the need for social distancing and care in times of COVID-19, the awakening of the white supremacists, and now the urgency of the plate of the Palestinian. These movements require our attention, care, and action, especially as they fade away from the public eye. In this, I call out myself for riding waves of resistance to then fall off for the never-ending new urgent need for information to circulate. As an artist deeply invested in dissemination, what is my role in continuing to care for the movements I’ve once campaigned for and then seemingly forgotten? What do we owe the movement we once campaigned for that hasn’t been even whispered of since its cultural prominence? What are the power dynamics between those making graphics in the safety of our homes and those directly affected by the images and words we are dissiminating3? Lastly, does our inability to be a “perfect” activist stop us from even trying when these liberation movements feel so seemingly impossible?"