Craftivism: How Artists Use Crafts to Change the World (#172)

Throughout history, there have been so many different methods people have used to affect change in the world, from peaceful protests to revolutions that are anything but quiet. But one of the methods that has risen to prominence over the last century or so is “craftivism”: a word that combines craft and activism. An article in the Guardian describes it as a quiet form of punk:

“Where punk snarled and spat to dramatically shake up the nation, craft looks ineffably twee by comparison: needlework is not the Buzzcocks, knitting is not the Ramones. And yet through painstaking, collective action, craftivism has become an unlikely social and political force.”

Knitter Betsy Greer first coined the term “craftivism” in 2003, believing that artists needed a term to express how their craft was socially or politically motivated. She wrote a book in 2008 called Knitting for Good!: A Guide to Creating Personal, Social, and Political Change Stitch by Stitch, and this is the blurb:

Every time we knit, we have the opportunity to create positive change in ourselves, our community, and in the world. That’s Betsy Greer’s fervent belief, and in this book she shows us how. Betsy explores the ways we can use knitting to slow down in a fast-paced culture, while using the craft to benefit charities in our communities, to advocate for worthwhile causes, and to support individuals and communities across the globe. Filled with insights from knitters and crafters on how they use craft to benefit others, Knitting for Good! will get you thinking about knitting in a whole new way.

On craftivism, Greer said:

“The very essence of craftivism lies in starting a conversation. By creating something that gets people to ask questions, we invite others to join the conversation about the social and political intent of our creations.”

Peaceful protestors use knitting, crochet, sewing or other types of craft to build momentum around political causes. Craftivists aim to make art that provokes thought in a non-combative, compassionate, gentle and respectful way. The slow, methodical nature of crafting is ideally suited to those who want to protest with respect and compassion. Craftivism is community-spirited, with craftivists using their individual power as makers to empower and inspire a larger collective that those in power can’t ignore.

Early examples of craftivism can be seen in the UK during the Women’s Suffrage movement, when suffragettes sewed banners for their protests (you’ve likely seen the green and purple banners that say things like “Votes for Women”). Another example is in the 1920s, when Gandhi spun cotton to inspire India to become self-sufficient instead of being reliant on British-made textiles.

Craftivism as a Feminist Movement

One of the reasons I love the idea of the craftivism movement is its connection with feminism and women’s liberation, due to the fact that craft originates from traditional household tasks performed by women and has been used by women throughout history to gain rights and freedom. An article on the website Nest Creative Spaces says that modern craftivists see craft as a peaceful way to promote social justice, honour the sacrifice of the women who came before them, and reclaim historically disrespected techniques as art.

The article also explains that ‘women’s work’ has been historically undervalued in our patriarchal society. Darning socks, knitting clothes, mending, and weaving historically hasn’t been viewed as important as masculine activities (going back to one example I know well is the women’s strikes in Dagenham in the 1960s, where women’s work producing car seats for Ford was deemed “unskilled labour” and their pay grade was reduced).

Craft skills used to be commonplace amongst women, maybe going back to a time when women would stay at home rather than going out to work. But over time, craft skills have become less common, and this was exacerbated by the Industrial Revolution which brought mass production and a decline in craft skills. A lot of the domestic arts were outsourced to factories and over time people became reliant on buying textiles from shops instead of making or mending their own, leading to today’s trend in fast fashion. (Episode plug — check out our episode we did with Lyndall last year all about textiles and fast fashion!)

So over the last hundred years or so, craftivism has been a way to reclaim these techniques and traditions. Craftivists embrace traditional techniques like knitting, sewing and crochet as vehicles for empowerment and positive change.

Suffragette Handkerchief (1912)

So with its connection to feminism, women have long used craft to challenge male authority and fight oppression. There are a couple of big examples of this historically. One example is the Suffragette Handkerchief, which I found written about in a great article by the Royal College of Physicians.

The Suffragette Handkerchief was signed in embroidery by 68 women inmates at Holloway prison in 1912. These inmates were suffragette prisoners, serving varying sentences for their participation in the March 1912 window-smashing demonstrations in London, organised by the Women’s Social & Political Union. Between 1905 and the First World War, over 1,000 women were imprisoned because of their involvement in suffrage activities like these.

Many of the names on the handkerchief have been identified by researchers, and one particularly notable name is of Alice J. Stewart Ker (1853–1943), a Scottish doctor who worked as a surgeon at the Children’s Hospital in Birmingham, and as honorary Medical Officer to the Wirral Hospital for Sick Children. Dr Ker was active in the Birkenhead Women’s Suffrage Society, and in 1912 was sentenced to three months for smashing a window at Harrods department store.

These women were not just prisoners – they were also survivors of the famous Holloway hunger strikes, which was a means of non-violent protest and passive resistance to the injustices suffered because of their gender. The hunger strikers were protesting in particular about their treatment in prison – they were classified as common criminals rather than political prisoners, and were held in harsher conditions as a result.

The use of embroidery by these women to record their experiences is significant. The delicate handiwork required to sew a signature presents a stark contrast to the grim reality of prison life. In the emerging accounts of imprisonment in Holloway, we learn that after four weeks, women were allowed to leave their dismal cells to “take their needlework or knitting to the hall downstairs, which was more airy, and sit side by side, although talking was still forbidden.” Through the handkerchiefs, the women subverted the materials available to them in prison, and by using this typically ‘feminine’ craft, they were able to make a powerful point about the restrictions placed on women’s right of self-expression. These textiles gave women a voice.

M&S Living Wage

Craftivism has also been used, and is used a lot today, to change laws and business policies. A very recent example of this was in 2015, when craftivists worked to convince UK store chain Marks & Spencer to pay employees the Living Wage. For three years, the UK-based nonprofit ShareAction, which works to improve corporate behaviour on environmental, social and governance issues, had asked M&S to become a Living Wage employer — this means paying an hourly salary that is substantial enough for someone to live comfortably and support a family. But as of 2015, no high street employer had signed up.

Sarah Corbett is an award-winning campaigner with 30 years’ practical experience as an activist and the founder of the Craftivist Collective, an inclusive group of people committed to using thoughtful, beautiful crafted works to encourage the positive change they wish to see in the world. A group of 24 craftivists from the Collective worked together to research each one of M&S’s board members in order to make them personalised, hand-embroidered handkerchiefs, which they then presented as individual gifts at the company’s annual general meeting. The embroidery said things like “Being good is good for business”, and “It’s not just a job, it’s an M&S job. So please don’t blow your chance to pay the living wage.” (For people outside the UK who might not get the context, this plays on the well-known M&S slogan, “it’s not just food, it’s M&S food.”)

In a blog post on the Craftivist Collective website, Corbett explains how the Chairman of Marks & Spencer, Robert Swannell, and the company’s board, praised their creative campaign numerous times throughout the AGM, which is usually pretty unheard of. Swannell thanked them for his beautiful hanky made by craftivist Fran Reynolds and said that she had clearly researched his work, passions and values, and he was moved by her thoughtful letter she’d written him. He described their work as “an approach that appeals to us all,” and said, “the way you’ve done this is remarkable. It’s a campaign that is thoughtfully done and heartfelt. We feel every bit as heartfelt about our employees.”

Many more of the Board Members met with the Collective individually after the AGM to thank them for the campaign, and to share their own views on the Living Wage. Before they left, a staff member told Corbett that a meeting would be set up with the Collective and M&S’s Director of Sustainable Business to discuss this issue more.

In the meeting, which didn’t happen until the following year, they heard that M&S was determined to be a workplace leader, and the Living Wage could be a key element. In April 2016, craftivists sent the new M&S CEO cards congratulating him on his new role and encouraging him to implement the Living Wage. Soon after, they heard from a ShareAction trustee who shared that the chair and his wife said the handkerchiefs had had a profound impact on the entire board, and the Living Wage wouldn’t have been on their agenda without our gentle protest. Finally, in May 2016, M&S made an announcement: they were going to pay above the current Living Wage rates for their 50,000 employees.

You can read more about this whole campaign in a TED article written by Corbett. In that article, she explains that while their hankies definitely opened the doors to a meeting with company officials, there is so much more to craftivism than embroidering handkerchiefs, and that craftivists need to be crafty in many other ways. She shares five important elements of the Craftivist Collective campaigns, and ones to keep in mind when you’re planning your own protest. These are:

1. Ownership — Making it clear to the companies targeted by the campaign that they must take ownership of the issues because they are the only ones who can carry out and enforce changes.
2. Empathy — The Collective made it clear to board members that as activists, they understand the pressures they experience in their roles, and what they’re asking isn’t easy but they believe in them. This small statement and acknowledgment created allies with most of the people on the board.
3. Allies — Spending time nurturing friendly contacts, and looking for other allies when faced with blocks.
4. Commitment — This is commitment to the cause, and showing they’re doing it because they truly care about the outcome, not just their love of sewing or publicity.
5. Ripples — The often hidden or unplanned effects of a campaign. At the M&S AGM, board members explained how the hankies had affected them personally, or started conversations at home about the Living Wage — a wife of one of the board members even wanted to join the Collective!

How to Be a Craftivist

So, those are just a couple of the big ways craft-related activism has changed things for the better — there are so many more examples, but I’d be here for weeks trying to cover all of them. I’ll include a few links in the notes for this episode where you can find more examples of craftivism campaigns throughout history, if you’re interested in learning more.

If you’re interested in learning more about the Craftivist Collective and the work they do, or even how to join them, you can find their website at craftivism-collective.co.uk. Their website is full of free resources and advice on how to host your own event, as well as project ideas, and lots of articles on the work they’ve done. Their website says:

“If there’s time for the loud, there’s also time for the quiet. If there’s time for the fast, there’s also a need for the slow. In everyone’s heart is a desire to change things for the better – it is essential that there is an activist’s toolkit that is as diverse as humanity. Our gentle craftivism is for everyone wherever you are in the world: from skilled crafters to burnt out activists, introverts, highly sensitive people, people struggling with anxiety and those people who want to challenge injustice in the world but don’t know what to do, where to start or how to prioritise their energies and time.”

The Nest Creative Spaces article I mentioned earlier sums the craftivism movement up so beautifully:

“Whether your motivations are political, environmental, or anti-capitalist, craftivism offers a gentle way of protesting that boosts your mental health too. Mindful activities like knitting or embroidery offer a chance to slow down and organise our thoughts, or perhaps escape them altogether. In a world that sometimes feels heavy and overwhelming, craftivism brings people together with positivity and empathy, and proves that compassion and creativity can change the world one stitch at a time.”

Sources:

• Craftivist Collective
• Craftivism: How Gentle Protest Is Helping The World One Stitch At A Time
• Knitting for Good!: A Guide to Creating Personal, Social, and Political Change Stitch by Stitch by Betsy Greer
• Hunger strikes and handkerchiefs | RCP Museum
• What did we achieve at the Marks and Spencer AGM for shareholders? | Craftivist Collective
• How a gentle protest with hand-embroidered hankies helped bring higher wages for retail employees

More craftivism campaigns:

• Craftivism works! WWF used our 'gentle protest' approach and won | Craftivist Collective
• Sewing dissent: craftivism through the ages – in pictures | The Guardian
• A stitch in time: how craftivists found their radical voice | The Guardian
• Women craftivists are reclaiming domesticity as a quiet form of protest