Backbone is filling the streets and overpasses with light, banners and a giant We the People. Want to join us?  

• Sign up for a banner action on our Calendar.  No action where you live?  Get a banner toolkit, join our next Workshop, and organize a few friends to join you at your local overpass, intersection, or other high traffic spot.

• Connect with us on our monthly Creative Activism Call - Tuesday, May 6th at 5pm Pacific/8pm Eastern.  RSVP HERE.

• Be part of our May Day Team in DC and help mobilize our 210+ We the People Preamble.  If you'll be in the area, shoot us an email and we'll connect.

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We wanted to give you a brief report in this issue of the Spinal Column on some of the actions that you've helped make possible; we hope they will inspire your activism!

Protect Public Lands: Bill and Leo set up this 24/7 Light Projection installation on top of the Patagonia store in downtown Seattle, which will be illuminated every night for the next several weeks.  Please take action to protect public lands by texting DEFEND to 71333.

Bannering Badasses: Our bannering badasses are bringing good trouble across the Puget Sound and the nation, and we couldn’t be prouder. These courageous folks are standing up and speaking out against our slide into fascism and giving other people the courage to do the same.

Tens of thousands of people see our messages that rotate and get refreshed each week. Some of our favorite messages from the last several weeks include Can’t Harvest Liberty by Sowing Fear, Democracy not Dictatorship, Diversity Makes America Great, We Love Our Canadian Neighbors, and Courage and Action Defeat Fear.  To find out more about our local bannering actions or to take a workshop to make your own banner click here.

Volunteer Spotlight: Karen Davis

This month we spotlight long-time Backbone volunteer extraordinaire Karen Davis. Karen has been holding down our 50th street banner actions since January and had done banner actions for years on that overpass, calling for protection of Southern Resident orca and wild salmon.

On April 12th, Karen and friends traveled to the Peace Arch at the Canadian border  to show solidarity with our friends and neighbors to the north. She definitely earned her Bannering Badass Badge on that day! Karen, thank you for showing up with such determination and joy!

Shining Lights in Solidarity: Earlier this month, Backbone organized a multi-city light projection, in partnership with SEIU. Projections highlighted pro-immigrant and workers rights in Seattle, Boston, LA, San Francisco, Minneapolis, Kansas City, and Portland, Oregon. 

mark! Lopez of East Yard Communities for Environmental Justice shared this incredible story. “The migrants detained were flashing their lights and waving letting us know they could see us. A truck with a big white container stopped at the light to our right so we were able to project right on to the truck for all of them to see.”

In times of turmoil, solidarity brings us together to fight for what is right. Thank you to SEIU for their leadership and to all of our friends who helped make this important action happen. 

This May Day We're Heading to DC!

Since January 20th, the Backbone Campaign has trained hundreds of volunteers across the country and supplied dozens of banner toolkits to communities near and far. Now we’re hitting the road with our giant 210' “We the People” constitution replica and heading to Washington, DC. We’ll be joining the May Day protests standing up for worker and immigrant rights. 

For more than 20 years Backbone has been a leading voice in the artful activism movement. Providing creative tools, training, and support to legions of everyday folks across the country. Like so many of you we are rising up and fighting back against the oligarchs who are running roughshod over our constitution and a President hell bent on dictatorship over democracy. And we’re doing it in Backbone style with our creative tactics that shine a light on corruption and remind us all that our nation and all of its people are worth fighting for.  

Your support makes all the difference. Please pitch-in today with a donation to fund our trip and our staff back at home working hard to provide the creative tools fueling the movement.

Support Backbone during GiveBig!

Early giving has started, and our GiveBig platform is open for donations. Please help us reach our goal of 30 new Lumbar Club monthly donors with a tax deductible donation today!

Thank you for making Backbone Campaign one of the ways you make a difference.  Forward Together!