18
x 24 Screen Print Edition of 450, $60 each
Signed by Shepard Fairey and Aaron
Huey
Artist's Statement: I
made this image based on a photograph by Aaron Huey (National
Geographic photographer) in support of this project. Proceeds
go to Pine Ridge Indian Reservations
To hear the whole story
check out Aaron’s 2010 TED
talk on the Lakota and their fight to get back the
Black Hills of South Dakota.
A few facts about the
Pine Ridge Indian Reservation:
In 1980 the Supreme Court
ruled upon the longest running court case in US History,
the United States vs Sioux Nation. The court determined
that the treaties with the Sioux had been violated when
they were resettled onto P.O.W. camps, and 7 million acres
of their land were opened up to prospectors and homesteaders.
These camps are now called “reservations”.
The grim statistics on
Native Reservations today are the equivalent to that of
a 3rd world country, revealing the legacy of colonization
and treaty violations. Unemployment on the Reservation
fluctuates between 80-90%. Many are homeless, and those
with homes are packed into rotting buildings with up to
5 families. More than 90% of the population lives below
the federal poverty line. The life expectancy for men
is 47 years old – roughly the same as Afghanistan
and Somalia.
Aaron’s ever-evolving
Pine Ridge project gives voice to social injustice and
a forgotten history. It empowers the Lakota and other
tribes who fight for recognition of the past in order
to help give them a chance to move forward.
The sales of this print
will go directly to pay for a campaign to educate the
American public about the issues that face not only the
Lakota, but every indigenous tribe in the US. Your involvement
will help raise the visibility of these images by paying
for advertising that will take the story straight to the
public—to the sides of buses, subway tunnels, and
billboards, ultimately benefiting grassroots non-profits
working on Reservations across the US. Help remind the
world that the Lakota and other Native people are still
here and demand to be heard. With your help the message
will be so loud that it cannot be ignored.
