Craftspeople are using their skills, but not in the way you might think. Some of Hobby Lobby’s customers have turned against the store in response to the Supreme Court’s decision that Hobby Lobby can refuse to cover contraception for its employees on religious grounds. They have done this by boycotting Hobby Lobby products and knitting their way to Washington.
The #KnitABrick campaign, which was started on July 2 by the Secular Coalition for America, asks for knitted red “bricks” to help rebuild the wall between church and state.
Organizers think that the June ruling showed cracks in the wall between church and state in the United States. Even though it was one of the country’s founding principles, the idea of separating church and state has been attacked over and over again, from what is taught in schools to women’s rights. But the Secular Coalition for America, a national group that speaks up for people who don’t believe in God, wants to fix this crumbling wall by doing “craftivism.”
“Craftivism” is a way of looking at life in which expressing your opinions through art makes your voice louder, your compassion deeper, and your desire for justice stronger.
The coalition’s campaign encourages craftivists to take part in three ways: to #KnitABrick by contributing their own knitting, to #GetAnotherHobby by buying their supplies from somewhere other than Hobby Lobby, and to #JoinTheDissent as knitted bricks are added and the campaign is shared on social media.
The group has already gotten hundreds of bricks from all over the country and even from other countries, since they get dozens of bricks every day in the mail. Anyone can send one in, and the coalition has put a helpful guide on Pinterest that shows how to do it.
The deadline for sending in bricks has been pushed back to August 5. By then, the coalition hopes to have reached its goal of 800 bricks. As of Wednesday, July 30, 700 bricks had been collected, far more than the original goal of 400 bricks. If 800 bricks are collected, they will be given to Congress. If 1,200 bricks are collected, the coalition has promised to give them to the White House staff.
The organization’s director of communications, Lauren Anderson Youngblood, told the Religion News Service, “It’s a visual way to show how angry people are about this decision and a good way to show lawmakers that they can change it.”
Bricks can be sponsored for $10 to $100 by people who don’t knit. These bricks will be knit by interns, staff, or even the coalition’s president.
The #KnitABrick campaign uses both new and old ways to protest. It is a social media project and a creative take on the petition drive. It has grown into a nationwide project that brings together crafters and activists who want to make the wall between church and state stronger.