The Revolution Will Not Be Televised graffiti
Graffiti on a bridge reading "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" in black text.
Urban Art Mapping Research Project
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=40&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=2020-11-17">2020-11-17</a>
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Photograph by Sally Pemberton
UAM-GF_1705
Dinkytown Greenway, Minneapolis, MN, USA
Frog and Toad's Fuck the Police
A sticker showing classic children's book characters Frog and Toad out for a pleasant bike ride. Text below them reads "Fuck the Police."
The sticker shows an illustration from the Frog and Toad series of children’s books, written and illustrated by Arnold Lobel. The book series catalogs the friendship of the two titular characters, Frog and Toad. The specific illustration is taken from the 1972 book Frog and Toad Together, which was published by Harper & Row. Unlike the original cover of the book, the illustration on the sticker is not fully colored. It is rendered solely in a blue-green color.
The characters are on a two-seater bicycle, one sitting behind the other. They are cycling through a green meadow, which contrasts the text underneath. The text, in bubble letters and all caps, reads: “FUCK THE POLICE”. The sticker seems to be placed high on the pole, which draws the eye to it more than a sticker at eye level.
While the sticker was placed in response to the killing of George Floyd, the saying “Fuck the Police” has been around for much longer. It was famously used in the song “Fuck Tha Police” by N.W.A., a hip-hop group from Compton, California. The song was released in 1988, more than 30 years before the George Floyd protests and this sticker’s placement. The song and album were censored by politicians, which ironically, led to the song’s underground popularity.
Interestingly enough, the characters of Frog and Toad have connections to police abolition. The image used on the sticker is similar to a photoshopped image originally posted on the social media site Reddit, in 2010. The image rose to prominence in 2019, after a mother ordered a shirt for her daughter from an online retailer. The online listing did not have the text underneath, but when the shirt arrived, the phrase was listed underneath the illustration. According to a Buzzfeed interview with the mother, after she posted the image to Facebook, it went viral.
In addition to that, Arnold Lobel, the author, and illustrator of the Frog and Toad series was a gay man who died in 1987. He also lived with the effects of AIDS for some time. His daughter, Anita Lobel, stated in an interview with The New Yorker that the Frog and Toad series represented her father’s coming out journey. In a historical context, the LGBT community’s relationship with the police has not been amicable. Because sexual activity between members of the same sex was criminalized well into the 20th century, there were frequent crackdowns by police on parties and establishments that served members of the LGBT community. This led to many altercations, the most famous being the Stonewall uprising. The uprising culminated in 6 days of protests, where many protesters were beaten and arrested. While not the same as the George Floyd protests, the protesters at the Stonewall uprising championed many of the same issues that were foundational to those protests.
References:
Chen, Tanya. “A Mom Ordered A Cute Shirt For Her 3-Year-Old From A Retailer Based In China But It Came With A, Uh, Unique Addition.” BuzzFeed News, BuzzFeed News, 22 June 2019, www.buzzfeednews.com/article/tanyachen/chinese-retailer-ali-express-surprised-midwestern-mom-with.
Goldstein, Rich. “A Brief History of the Phrase 'F*Ck the Police'.” The Daily Beast, The Daily Beast Company, 23 Aug. 2014, www.thedailybeast.com/a-brief-history-of-the-phrase-fck-the-police.
History.com Editors. “Stonewall Riots.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 31 May 2017, www.history.com/topics/gay-rights/the-stonewall-riots.
RocketRobinhood. “r/Pics - Indeed, Fuck 'Em.” Reddit, Reddit, 29 Sept. 2010, 10:39 p.m., www.reddit.com/r/pics/comments/dktxb/indeed_fuck_em/.
Stokes, Colin. “‘Frog and Toad’: An Amphibious Celebration of Same-Sex Love.” The New Yorker, Condé Nast, 31 May 2016, www.newyorker.com/books/page-turner/frog-and-toad-an-amphibious-celebration-of-same-sex-love.
Contextual information provided by Owen Larson (February 2021)
Urban Art Mapping Research Project
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=40&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=2020-11-17">2020-11-17</a>
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Photograph by Sally Pemberton
UAM-GF_1704
Dinkytown Greenway, Minneapolis, MN, USA
ACAB | Fuck 12 | No Fun
Graffiti on a cement pylon reading "No Fun," "ACAB," and "FUCK 12." Painted on a jersey barrier.
Urban Art Mapping Research Project
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=40&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=2020-11-19">2020-11-19</a>
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Photograph by Sally Pemberton
UAM-GF_1703
27th and Girard, Minneapolis, MN, USA
Game Over Pigs!
A black sticker with white writing: "Game Over, Pigs!" This is accompanied by a pink pig's face. This is located on a MPLS public schools parking restriction sign.
Urban Art Mapping Research Project
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=40&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=2020-11-19">2020-11-19</a>
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Photograph by Sally Pemberton
UAM-GF_1702
2519 Hennepin, Minneapolis, MN, USA
Game Over Pigs!
A sticker with green background and white writing/image. It reads "GAME OVER PIGS!" with a simple line drawing of a pig's face.
Urban Art Mapping Research Project
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=40&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=2020-11-19">2020-11-19</a>
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Photograph by Sally Pemberton
UAM-GF_1701
27th and DuPont, Minneapolis, MN, USA
George Floyd | Rest in Power Stencil
A George Floyd portrait stencil accompanied by text reading George Floyd and Rest in Power, located on the pavement on the campus of the University of Minnesota.
Urban Art Mapping Research Project
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=40&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=2020-11-11">2020-11-11</a>
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Photograph by Sally Pemberton
UAM-GF_1671
University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
Stand Up and Vote | BLM
A poster pasted up on a bridge near the University of Minnesota. The poster reads "Stand Up and Vote," with an image of the Statue of Liberty as a Black woman. In one hand she holds a ballot and in the other hand she holds a book that reads "fight the power." A dove, a peace sign, a blue rose, and the scales of justice appear in the background. There is also an image of the earth, focusing on the African continent. An eagle flies by, holding a banner that reads Black Lives Matter in its talons.
Urban Art Mapping Research Project
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=40&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=2020-11-11">2020-11-11</a>
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Photograph by Sally Pemberton
UAM-GF_1650
Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
GF graffiti
RIP GF graffiti on a detour sign.
Urban Art Mapping Research Project
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=40&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=2020-11-11">2020-11-11</a>
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Photograph by Sally Pemberton
UAM-GF_1648
Dinkytown Greenway, Minneapolis, MN, USA
Stop Facism sign modification
A stop ahead sign modified to read "Stop Facism"
Urban Art Mapping Research Project
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=40&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=2020-11-12">2020-11-12</a>
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Photograph by Sally Pemberton
UAM-GF_1648
Greenway, Dinkytown, Minneapolis, MN, USA
FUCK KKKOPS graffiti
Graffiti on Fogo de Chão reading "FUCK KKKOPS"
Urban Art Mapping Research Project
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=40&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=2020-11-12">2020-11-12</a>
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Photograph by Sally Pemberton
UAM-GF_1647
645 Hennepin Avenue, Minneapolis, MN, USA