CHICAGO (WBBMNEWSRADIO) -- An effort by Mayor Lori Lightfoot to encourage participation in the 2020 census is going to be a lot more than that.
The effort is called “Boards of Change", art pieces designed to get people to be counted by filling out the US Census forms. The artwork for the project will be managed by the group, “Paint the City”, whose artists produced much of the message art that adorned the plywood used to board up looted and damaged stores - the kind artists from the group “Paint the City” used to display messages of love, hope and peace.
FILL OUT YOUR CENSUS: Mayor Lightfoot announces a new campaign to encourage participation in the 2020 U.S. Census. https://t.co/tt2S9ojTmW https://t.co/VvFqPcvW87
— Mayor Lori Lightfoot (@chicagosmayor)
July 29, 2020 "To this day, we have managed to work with over 50 artist from all of the Chicago area, and we began to see the powerful impact that they their messages had on every community that we have touched," said Missy Perkins, co-founder of the group “Paint the City”.
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The group’s other co-founder Barrett Keithley—an artist himself—said art can make people feel the world through others eyes.
"When there's a baby shot on the South Side or West Side of Chicago, that rage and anger should be felt in all of Chicago. When our homeless, when our vulnerable are being victimized, then that's a disrespect to our strong as well. As a city, we must own that," he said.
When you don't fill out the Census, you give your voice to someone else. Get counted today at https://t.co/tt2S9o2ivo. pic.twitter.com/Uy4iRc16qy
— Mayor Lori Lightfoot (@chicagosmayor)
July 29, 2020 Mayor Lightfoot wants to inspire people to be counted in the 2020 US Census and the November elections, as well.
"Over the past few months, we have done everything under the sun to make sure that that happens; and these boards represent voices in communities who for too long have been undercounted or not counted at all," Lightfoot said.
She said our democracy is under siege.
Those messages will be all over the city.
When we think of the levers of our Democracy, we think of the vote, free speech, organizing and equal protection under law. This year, we also have the unique opportunity to have our voices heard in the Census. If you don’t fill it out, you get left out. https://t.co/tt2S9ojTmW pic.twitter.com/fcx2ikFK38
— Mayor Lori Lightfoot (@chicagosmayor)
July 29, 2020
