•The Project•
Kancel Klan Kulture began as an ActiveArt support project for students at Seaman High School in Topeka, Kansas who discovered that the namesake on their diploma (Fred A. Seaman) was an active leader in the Topeka chapter of the Ku Klux Klan when the school district was founded in 1920. Despite marginalized student requests to remove the name from buildings, diplomas and associated paraphernalia in the taxpayer funded district, the school board voted to to retain the name of Fred Seaman, the Exalted Cyclops of a documented domestic terrorist organization.
In the spirit of that realization, the project has evolved into a brand designed to actively contest a global kulture of minimization and dismissal. The persecution of marginalized peoples in the global south functionally demonstrates klan kulture is not only pervasive in the USD345 school district but increasingly prevalent around the world where the past is being selectively recalled and hateful inequity is venerated. Participation in this project is more than just a contribution to our efforts.
You are helping fight for Democracy’s Last Brand.
“The revolution has always been in the hands of the young. The young always inherit the revolution.”
Huey P. Newton
ActiveArt button installation donated to @renameseamanschools
What IS •ActiveArt?•
Political art has been a part of the social landscape of the world for centuries. Art has always been used as a way to reflect society and shed light on issues of the day. Political art has been around from the beginning of United States history, reflected in such iconic images as the donkey representing the Democratic party. Today, "The New Yorker" magazine has gained fame for its political art.
The term ActiveArt references a specific type of political art that focuses on blending and blurring the line between observed art and involved action. The Kancel•Klan•Kulture project modeled this concept initially by bringing awareness to the @renameseamanschools activism efforts with buttons that galvanized support among staff, students, parents and supporting individuals in the community.
The expansion of current ActiveArt apparel now includes voter registration, women’s rights, economic disparity and fighting the oppression of marginalized communities.
Products are sourced domestically here in the United States and all art is designed by individuals who are vested in the well being of a more inclusive global society.