It started with clowns in lab coats.
Outside a major hospital in Barcelona, activists staged a carnival: a rigged Wheel of Fortune, unwinnable shell games, and pharma execs as the only real “winners.”
It looked like a prank.
But it was a protest.
They were calling out the outrageous price of hepatitis C treatment, and it worked. People laughed, stopped, and acted, writing complaint letters to the government and the pharmaceutical company.
This is artistic activism.
It’s unexpected. It’s effective. And yes. Sometimes, it’s pretty funny.
This April Fool’s Day, the world already feels like a joke, but the punchline shouldn’t be our rights, our safety, or our future. That’s why we’re launching our spring fundraising campaign today.
If you believe, like we do, that imagination isn’t a luxury but a necessity for social change, your donation turns that belief into action. It fuels training for activists and artists who are building campaigns that don’t just resist oppression; they reimagine what’s possible.
You’re not just giving money.
You’re fueling joyful resistance, bold strategy, and the tools people need to win real change in their communities and beyond.
We’re asking for your support because even though philanthropic institutions are floundering right now, we refuse to back down. Activism needs wins and momentum, and we can make it happen.
So we’re reaching out to you – our community. With your support, we’ll be able to provide advocates, artists, and activists with what they need to win, with programs like:
- Creative Advocacy Bootcamp: let’s help advocacy groups design winning campaigns
- Artist Activator Lab: let’s turn artistic energy into action
- Action Energizer Lab: let’s get wins at the local and state level through grassroots activations
- How to Win: let’s gather and share the most inspiring and useful insights from activists who have won big in repressive regimes
- Test Kitchen: let’s experiment, measure, and share what works on the ground in real time
Your dollars and cents can make all this possible.
So, if you’re feeling overwhelmed, disheartened, or unsure where to begin, start here. Show some support for movements that aren’t kidding around. Fund a future that’s anything but foolish, and let’s take back the narrative with art, humor, and serious impact.
Let’s make cents of it all.
With love, mischief, and meaningful mayhem,
Center for Artistic Activism
