Postcard calling for "Statehood or Else" in DC: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

The postcard has an image of the Supreme Court building at night. There are nine (9) people standing in front of it. Most of them are wearing red. They are holding up black signs that read [STATEHOOD/OR ELSE]. Each letter has its own sign. The letters appear to be purple and look like they are made of strings of lights. There is an outline of a red circle in the top proper right corner. The inside of the circle reads [FREE D.C./STATEHOOD] in red. "Free D.C." is in an arc at the top of the circle and "Statehood" is typed in a horizontal line. In between the words there is an image of a metal chain.

The back of the postcard is royal blue with white text. The majority is made up of different statements. The top reads [TELL YOUR CONGRESS MEMBER TO MAKE DC THE 51st STATE!!/Congress treats the more than 655,000 DC residents like POLITICAL SLAVES!] and the bottom reads [DC must have "STATEHOOD OR ELSE"/U.S. DEMOCRACY is HYPOCRISY!]. Below that it reads [Stand Up! for Democracy in DC (Free DC) with an address, a website, a phone number, and links for social media accounts. On the right side in the bottom corner there is an image of an American flag. On the left side in the bottom corner there is a white circle with a red circle inside. Inside the circle are the words [FREE D.C./STATEHOOD/NOW]. The words are in red except for "Now" which is in black. "Free D.C." is in an arc at the top of the circle and "Statehood" and "Now" are typed in horizontal lines. Under "Free D.C." There is an image of a metal chain.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: 2015
• Distributed by: Stand Up for Democracy DC, American, founded 1997
• Subject of: Million Man March, American, founded 1995
• Type: fliers (printed matter)
• Medium: ink on paper
• Dimensions: H x W: 4 × 6 in. (10.2 × 15.2 cm)
• Place collected: Washington, District of Columbia, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Activism
• Topic: Justice
• Topic: Local and regional
• Topic: Race relations
• Topic: Social reform
• Topic: U.S. History, 2001-
• Object number: 2015.251.14.14
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: Restrictions likely apply. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.