Let's Move the Needle An Activism Handbook for Artists, Crafters, Creatives, and Makers; Build Community and Make Change!

Create change in the world with this inspiring guide to social activism, from the artist and craftivist behind Badass Cross Stitch.

Craftivism, or the space where art and activism meet, is a powerful, ever-evolving social justice movement that continues to grow and diversify as more voices and mediums take part in it. In Let's Move the Needle, Shannon Downey, an outspoken voice in the craftivist movement for over a decade, provides a roadmap and accessible toolkit for burgeoning art activists.

Filled with self-reflective activities, exercises, prompts, and stories, Let's Move the Needle educates and empowers creatives to center their art around collective action in service of political, social or community issues they are most passionate about; affirming that everyone can be a changemaker and that change-making can be generative, enjoyable, and a bit sassy!

Introduction: My “Why”

Chapter 1: Let’s Get This Party Started  

Who knew learning to cross-stitch using a pink bunny pattern in fifth grade could lead to a life of craft-based activism and community development? It certainly wasn’t a straight shot from the pink bunny stitch to the work Shannon now does using embroidery as a medium for galvanizing action around issues like gun violence, voter turnout, immigration policy, and abortion rights. She was in her mid-thirties, burned out and running a digital marketing company, when she serendipitously found a cross-stitch pattern of Captain Picard from Star Trek: The Next Generation that inspired her to pick up a needle for the first time in 20 odd years. Captain Picard was Shannon’s gateway stitch, which lead to a personal revelation that redirected the trajectory of her work as an activist—and, really, her entire life. She realized she loved embroidery! The reason she hadn’t created a piece in two decades wasn’t because she didn’t connect with the medium, but because when she learned to stitch that pink bunny all those years earlier, she didn’t feel any connection with the content. When she found content that spoke to her and that naturally aligned with her work as an activist, advocate, and community organizer, she realized she was a stitcher at heart—and Badass Cross Stitch was born. 

As Shannon’s digital audience grew organically and exponentially, with people re-gramming, retweeting, and reposting her work, she saw the potential in using social media to build community and encourage action and collaboration among her followers. More and more people reached out saying they wanted to try embroidery and learn to use it as a medium for exploring and expressing their opinions about issues that mattered to them. And this was the moment Shannon realized she could help passive consumers transform into engaged makers! 

In this chapter, she shares personal stories about how she got started in the craftivism movement, her embroidery practice, and how she uses it to think substantively about the issues that matter to her. Shannon spotlights some of her best-known and impactful initiatives, including her Boys will be Boys piece (shared by millions online as a digital illustration to their #MeToo stories) and Rita’s Quilt (which touched millions of lives and inspired people to think differently about the artistry behind fiber arts and quilting). She also explores the current language and framing of the modern and ever-evolving craftivist movement and discusses her work in the context of inclusive craftivism as a critical space within the social change ecosystem. The chapter closes with an overview of the book itself and what readers can expect as they begin exploring their activist identity using LET’S MOVE THE NEEDLE as both a roadmap and guidebook. 

Chapter 2: What’s Old Is New Again - A Dive into the History of Craftivism 

Craftivism (craft + activism) is a relatively new term, but the use of art and craft as tools for activism have been in play for a very long time. This chapter explores the deep historical roots of creative mediums used as activist tools alongside contemporary initiatives, encouraging readers to expand how they think about craftivism. From Roman liberty caps, the Indian Swadeshi Movement, and British secret agent Phyllis Latour Doyle concealing codes in her knitting, to the AIDS Memorial Quilt, The Guerrilla Girls, and Tattoos for Change, Shannon takes the reader on an expansive journey through time to showcase the broad scope of art activism. She frames each example with context around the definition of the term craftivism and how it has continued to evolve based on the growth of the community, ongoing examination of the history of art activism, and diversity of voices and mediums taking part in the movement. 

Shannon provides a system of categories and loose definitions to help the reader think about various approaches to art and craft activism (including Protest, Community Building, Record Keeping, Boycott, Skill Share, Storytelling, and Resistance, among many others), and how these categories can be applied to the historical and contemporary initiatives presented in the chapter. For example, The Welcome Blanket Project, which invites makers to create a blanket that is gifted to immigrants as a way of welcoming them to their new communities in the United States, holds the following craftivism categories: Community Building, Education, Storytelling, Resource Building, Social and political Commentary, Awareness. 

The modern craftivism movement has unlocked a pathway for artists and creators working in various mediums to explore their activist identities and how they can channel their work towards actions that support their values and beliefs. The chapter closes with Shannon extending an invitation to the reader: “The activist journey is lifelong and rooted in self-reflection, curiosity, and strategy. I invite you to jump into the deep end with me, get comfortable being uncomfortable, and do some hard work that will literally change your life. Sounds a bit scary? I promise there is fun to be had.” 

Chapter 3: I Put the Fun in Uncomfortable - Want to Change the World? Deal with Your Shit  (See Sample Chapter page 61) 

How we self-identify, what we believe about ourselves, and the values we hold form the foundation of everything we do in this world. To become effective and powerful activists, we need to be confident in the identities we hold and clear about the issues we care about most deeply. In this chapter, Shannon guides readers through a gauntlet of uncomfortable self-reflection and self-exploration activities intended to prime them for the next leg of their activist journey. Throughout she shares candid stories about her own journey, including the challenges she faced working through very personal issues and trigger points around money and pivot points that tested her resolve. 

The activities encourage readers to explore identities they hold (or wish to hold), core beliefs and values, issues they care deeply about, associations with the words “activist” and “craftivist” and ultimately take their first steps in developing a strategy for incorporating activism into their lives. 

Shannon provides completed versions of selected activities to show how she approaches leaning into the discomfort of the self-work, emphasizing that revisiting the exercises periodically is key to building a self-strengthening practice. As she says, “You need to ask yourself the hard questions to understand what you value, why you do what you do, and what stands in the way of your taking in action in service of the issues that matter to you. If you aren’t willing to get uncomfortable and ask yourself these hard questions, you will never be an effective activist.” The chapter closes with an activity that asks readers to articulate and pare down the issues they care most about having impact on—the first step in their activist strategy creation. 

Chapter 4: ‘Cause We Don’t Know It All - Research 

Shannon walks the reader through a 5-step process for doing research on the issues they care most about having impact on with the ultimate goal of creating an activism strategy built on a foundation of proactive, consistent, and manageable action. Throughout she shares stories of her own practices in action, including the tangible steps she took to achieve her goals in service of issues including abortion rights after the fall of Roe v Wade and immigration rights after Trump took office and deportations became a very real threat. 

Step 1: Consume encourages readers to go down the rabbit hole and consume a range of media—books, articles, documentaries, television shows, movies, podcasts, blogs, art, music, and events—that centers the issues they care most deeply about and want to engage with. The goal is to gain a better understanding of the complexity of an issue, its connection to other issues, and a sense of who is already working in these spaces. 

Step 2: Listen invites readers to tap into their broadened knowledge base about an issue and seek out various, diverse voices already in the space. Social media accounts, as well as virtual and in person events are a great way to begin to plug into the community and really listen. As Shannon says, “I keep my mouth shut and my ears open. I am listening to expand my understanding and looking for important variations and deviations among those already in the movement regarding their approaches and philosophies. This helps me formulate my own understanding of the issue and helps clarify who I feel most in alignment with.” 

Step 3: Narrow shows readers how to take all that they’ve learned about an issue and identify an entry point for action. Starting where you live is the fastest way to create visible and radical change, especially when it feels like “the issue” is too big and insurmountable. It allows you to develop a nuanced understanding of how that issue directly impacts your local community. Shannon shares the story of how the community around Rogers Park, a neighborhood in Chicago with a large and diverse immigrant and refugee population, created a neighborhood movement called #ProtectRP to educate its denizens about their rights and protect them from ICE raids after Trump took office. #ProtectRP has become an important model of how hyper-local organized community action can transform a neighborhood and protect lives. 

Step 4: Support brings readers into the work! This chapter shows how to channel all that they’ve learned into actionable steps by supporting others who are doing work that aligns with their values (while not expecting them to take on additional labor). There are a million ways to support issue and movement leaders. Lean into your skillsets, your networks, and the ideas that bubble up. Shannon shares the story of how she helped support Abortion Access Front after the fall of Roe v Wade. She saw a clear need, an opportunity to use her knowledge base and networks to help, and reached out with an idea and a tangible plan she was offering to execute as a way to support the organization. “How can I help?” is a fantastic question in routine times. “Here’s how I believe I can help” is more useful in moments of crisis. 

Step 5: Engage offers readers the opportunity to take their work further through volunteering or as instigators of new initiatives. Throughout, Shannon continues to nudge readers to ask the hard questions around their choices, encourages them to think critically about what not to do (ask marginalized people to educate you), and what role they might play in different activist spaces. She includes a list of ways to engage to help readers start thinking creatively about how they can use their time, talents, and networks to lend support to organizations or initiatives that align with their values. 

The chapter concludes by providing readers with an overview of the activist ecosystem by looking at the work of Deepa Iyer and Omkari Williams. These activists help make self-reflection in this context easier by offering well-articulated guidance on what roles are necessary to ensure a movement progresses—front line responders, healers, storytellers and artists, and caregivers, to name a few. There are so many roles that need to be filled within a movement—there really is a place for everyone! Every role is vital, and each person who becomes involved brings with them their unique strengths, temperaments, and current circumstances. 

Chapter 5: About Blue Babies - Root Cause Analysis 

Being an activist means being a problem solver. The key to creating a strategic plan for addressing problems is getting laser focused on distinguishing between the symptoms and the root causes, because solving for symptoms rarely leads to a sustainable path forward. Consider this thought experiment: You’re standing next to a river and see a blue baby float by. You jump into the river and rescue the baby just in time to see another and another blue baby heading downstream. You call for backup. You set up aid stations and bring in doctors and social workers. More and more blue babies appear. Of course, you need to keep rescuing the babies (addressing the symptom), but at some point you have to send a team upstream to find out where the blue babies are coming from (the root cause) if you want to solve the problem in a definitive way. 

Being a problem solver doesn’t mean you spend your life looking for problems, though. It means you move through the world being joyfully curious, asking questions about why things are the way they are, and looking for ways to make life a little easier for everyone. In this chapter, Shannon shows readers how she cultivates curiosity in her day-to-day life as an activist using this pathway: observe, listen, wonder, believe others, and confront reality. 

Observe: Become a voyeur of life and culture, an anthropologist taking in the mundane with fresh eyes, an alien visiting planet earth for the first time. Can grocery shopping be an exciting exploration of food systems and invention as opposed to a necessary chore? 

Listen: Eavesdrop on everyone and everything. Eat alone at a restaurant and listen to the conversations. Go to a museum and learn about the art by listening to what other patrons are saying. 

Wonder: Allow yourself time and space to just daydream. Ask questions and allow your brain the opportunity to roam. Stare at a flower for minutes and really get to know it. 

Believe Others: When others declare something a problem, believe them, even if it isn’t a problem you have experienced. We don’t need to make every problem our own, but we also should not invalidate the experiences of others. When we listen and believe others and stay curious about their experiences and thoughts, our eyes are opened. This clarity expands empathy and can often illuminate blind spots we may unknowingly have. 

Confront Reality: Avoidance, magical thinking, and escapism are the engine of the status quo. Change demands we confront and accept reality. 

Shannon shares the story of how she used this pathway to develop, execute, and analyze the results of #MakeDontBreak, a project that activated tens of thousands of creatives and makers between December of 2020 to January of 2021. The project was born out of Shannon’s observations, what she was hearing, and a deep desire to proactively create a solution that would protect the mental health of her digital community. She called in her fellow activists and built a 31-day program to channel the new year optimism and energy into creative making practices rooted in activism. 

The chapter wraps up with a simple and powerful exercise called Ask Why. It models how, through simple inquiry, we can get from symptom to root cause. Shannon shares an example of this method in action through the issue of used needles being discarded on the beaches in her hometown. This example sets up a case study that will be used throughout the book to explore and contextualize each part of the strategic process. 

Chapter 6: Where Are My People? - Creating an Intentional Team 

Activism offers us a beautiful opportunity to connect and re-engage with our fellow humans in meaningful ways. In fact, much of activism centers around the experience of being in community, working in tandem to bring others into the fold and to build unity. In this chapter, Shannon provides guidance on how to develop and grow an intentional group of collaborators, including a series of questions to consider relating to the type of community readers want to build or join. 

Why is this group necessary? Articulating and clarifying the reason a team is being constructed lays the foundation that everything else will grow from and sets the intention. 

Who should be in this group? We refer back to Chapter 4 and think through the different roles and skillsets that should be present in our collective work. 

How do you diversify a group that already exists? Shannon addresses the timely issue of groups that exist but recognize there is a glaring lack of diversity in their space. 

Who is your group for? Readers consider who their group centers, who is invited in, and who is not. Shannon shares the story of Lisa Woolfork, who founded Black Women Stitch in direct response to being alienated by her former, predominantly white, quilting group. 

What will the structure of the team look like? Structure and accountability are key to outcomes. Articulating how the group can share leadership, the roles folks feel most comfortable assuming, and the division of labor are excellent starting points for dialogue and planning. 

How will decisions be made? Shannon walks readers through her favorite process for decision making— Issue, Share, Explore, Propose, Amend, Solve, Implement—using an example from her time as the Director of Development at a nonprofit. 

What are the expectations of behavior? Expectations of behavior might include provisions for: presence/distractions, respecting time, responding to ideas not people, making mistakes, listening, communicating to be understood, radical honesty, confidentiality, and taking up space. 

How will you handle conflict? If the group has successfully organized a space in which people feel respected and heard, we can expect to be skillful in navigating divisions. Internal and third-party mediation can be effective tools for addressing strife. 

The chapter reminds us that our objective should be that all group members are able to bring their best self to the work. That we should all feel fulfilled and restored through our collective labor, not drained, or depleted. 

Chapter 7: Working with What You’ve Got - Brainstorming and Mapping 

How can we solve for the symptoms of a problem and ensure that the root cause is being considered and addressed? In this chapter Shannon explores the brainstorming process for changemaking and revisits the Ask Why exercise introduced in Chapter 5 to delve deeper into how simple inquiry can lead us from symptom to root cause of even the most complex problems. Resurfacing the case study about used needles being discarded on the beaches in her hometown, she shares the step-by-step approach to brainstorming, resource and power mapping, that informed her emerging strategy for this initiative. 

Start by asking questions. If used needles littering the beach is the symptom, what are possible root causes? People who use drugs may be trying to avoid the violent repercussions of our country’s punitive systems. The stigmatization of drug use and specifically the harsh judgement directed at people who use drugs may be driving them to use in isolated areas like beaches. What are some possible actions that can be taken? On a micro level, organizing beach cleanup efforts addresses the symptom and helps make the beach safe for the community. On a macro level, establishing safe injection sites and a needle exchange program addresses the root cause, and by extension, the symptom. It’s crucial to shift the attitude in the community from me to we, from a beach cleanup that centers property owners and beach goers acting out of self-interest, to action taken by an informed group of neighbors who understand the root causes of the issue that can be addressed for the good of all. 

A pivotal step often overlooked by new activists is sorting out what resources you and your team have at your disposal, what resources you will need, and how to go about creating a path to securing them. Working with what you’ve got is what gets things moving. Knowing what you need is what keeps things moving. Shannon introduces the reader to creating and using a resource map, a visual tool for documenting available resources as well as identifying resource needs that provides a realistic look at what we can take on. By creating a resource map we acknowledge our personal investment and limits (by setting boundaries) and expand our list of potential collaborators by identifying individuals, organizations, and institutions that contribute to the work. 

Power maps are another invaluable tool that activists use to assess relationships and networks relevant to an initiative they are working in support of. Shannon walks readers through her methods for mapping, including the spectrum of allyship, to develop a clear picture of who is in alignment with our vision, who opposes the work, and who could be convinced to join us. She then applies the power mapping process to the beach needles case study for further clarity. 

The goal is to make your activist life manageable, help you keep momentum, and remain consistent and steady in your commitment as a change maker. Resource and power mapping are tools that support activists in making informed and thoughtful decisions that honor our boundaries, help prevent burnout, and ensure we are bringing our best self to our work. 

By this point in the book, readers have zeroed in on an issue they are passionate about working to support, assembled a team of individuals whose values are aligned on the issue, brainstormed ways to solve the problem, and identified available resources. Now it’s time to set some goals! 

The only way to make change is to clearly articulate exactly what we are trying to accomplish. This chapter will demonstrate how to establish and evaluate S.M.A.R.T (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Time-based) goals for short and long-term impact. Once again resurfacing the beach needles case study, Shannon takes readers through the process of creating goals using the S.M.A.R.T framework. For example, instead of saying the goal is to hold a beach cleanup, we would use the S.M.A.R.T model to clarify that goal: By June 2nd (Time-based), we will have commitments from at least ten neighbors (Measurable) to participate in the beach cleanup (Relevant) which will happen on July 5th at Fore River Beach (Specific and Attainable). Readers will have a chance to see several examples relevant to the case study as well as practice setting their own S.M.A.R.T goals. 

How the collective feels while working toward a goal is profoundly important and Shannon introduces the idea of Sentiment-led goals as part of the framework (S.S.M.A.R.T). We are most productive when we enjoy the process and the people we are working with, which is why Sentiment-led goals—part intention setting, part expectation setting—are positioned ahead of the first S in S.M.A.R.T. Once readers have mastered S.S.M.A.R.T goals, they will be introduced to S.S.M.A.R.T.E.R. goals, which expand the idea of goal setting to include evaluation and revision. 

The chapter closes with a reminder of why goals are important for a variety of reasons: they establish milestones and provide opportunities to celebrate wins, honor progress that keeps morale and motivation high, and remind onlookers that actions drive change. 

Chapter 9: Ok Cool, Now What? - Messaging and Tactics 

Now that we have our foundation, we can move on to the crafty stuff—and this is where the magic happens! Readers will learn how to develop relevant and transformative messaging, narratives, and counter narratives in support of their goals and objectives using their creative medium of choice. 

The chapter showcases three of Shannon’s most viral pieces (I’m so Angry, Boys will be Boys, and Covid) and explores what about their tone, messaging, and approach led them to become so popular. Shannon then walks readers through the process of developing impactful messaging using the working case study about used needles being discarded on the beaches in her hometown for context. She asks readers to: 

1. Clarify what their messaging will accomplish through more goal setting. 

2. Identify the target audience they are trying to connect with. 

3. Determine what they want their audience to feel and what action they want them to take. (We analyze the messaging of four major animal rights organizations). 

4. Analyze the messaging by those who align with our work and those who oppose it. 

5. Keep it simple but deep. 

Once the message is clarified, it’s time to spread it! Developing strategic tactics for change making is a combination of ingenuity, marketing, advertising, and execution. This is the moment to invest in visualizing how craft and art can help you meet your goals. 

Beyond goals, audience, and resources, Shannon offers up other considerations including: 

1. What skills are in the room? 

A skills inventory is a great way to kick off an initial planning meeting. This is an opportunity for the team to share their skillsets (and deal breakers), and will undoubtably lead to brainstorming of innovative ideas. 

2. How do we ensure our tactics are accessible? 

When we create events, materials, presentations, and outreach prioritizing accessibility we demonstrate that we are creating a safe and inclusive environment. Shannon includes an accessibility checklist. 

3. How can we make it as easy as possible for people to take action? 

The key to getting people to act is to clearly articulate what you need and want them to do. Make sure your asks are explicit (Ex. donate, sign the petition, attend this event, sponsor, share this post, call your legislator) 

4. What are other ways to spread the word quickly? 

Get creative and think like a marketer. How can we amplify our message and needs wider and faster? What partnerships can we explore? Would the press be interested in our story? Could you get an invite onto a relevant popular podcast? Do you need a website? Are there events happening that your target audience will attend? If so, can you table, advertise, get stage time, or even just attend to network? 

5. How do we mitigate risk? 

Proactively name all risks that you can think of related to your tactics. How do you plan for them? 

Words hold power and can incite action. It is a tremendous responsibility that we all hold, and it should not be taken lightly. Taking the time to slow down and build the blueprint for your messaging is arguably the most important part of this process. Having clear goals, understanding your audience, knowing your resources, and crafting effective messaging will make it simpler to conceive of effective tactics for spreading your message and inspiring action. The best part is that this process will make every step easier and keep things organized. 

Chapter 10: Well, That Was Fun - Milestones, Timelines & Assessments 

Many craftivists and art activists come for the fun and languish with the spreadsheets. Project management can be a struggle and many brilliant ideas sadly collapse under the weight and frustration of disorganization. Every project, event, or action requires a strong organizational system to be successful and ensure that we are meeting our goals, evaluating our progress, making changes as needed, and most importantly maintaining momentum. If organization is not your strong suit, make sure the team that you create or join has plenty of Marie Kondo types to support the initiative. 

Getting organized doesn’t have to be complicated nor does it require fancy apps or programs. Using the beach cleanup case study, Shannon demonstrates how she lays out and plans all the steps needed to accomplish goals, using a simple spreadsheet approach that translates to a shared calendar. Other documents crucial to organizational success include a financial tracking spreadsheet and contact management system. Shannon also recommends keeping an archive of agendas, meeting notes, brainstorms, marketing collateral, photographs, videos, testimonials, and anecdotes. These resources will be invaluable moving forward, making it easier to tell your story and share your successes with others. Sharing what you have done and learned isn’t bragging—it’s power building, base building and may inspire others who want to model their strategy around your successfully executed initiative. Lastly, a post-action assessment will clarify when and how to escalate, iterate, pivot and frankly, when to call it quits. Not every idea will work and that’s ok! Learn from it and try again with a revised strategy. 

Shannon closes out the chapter with a compelling story about her work with youth immigrant and refugee students in Chicago during her tenure at Asian Americans Advancing Justice. It encompasses all the strategic elements covered in the book and exemplifies the powerful impact strategic thinking combined with art can have on creating institutional change. 

Chapter 11: To Sum It Up - The Activist Lifestyle 

It is much easier to find hope when you have clarified your purpose and committed to having a positive impact on the world every day. This chapter synthesizes the predominant messages from everything the reader has learned thus far on their journey and invites them to create a vision and mission statement for their new activist lifestyle. Shannon offers hard-earned wisdom and advice from a lifetime of activism and over a decade as an outspoken voice in the craftivism community, including both proactive and reactive self and community care for the activist soul. 

The activist lifestyle centers a lifelong commitment to taking action, every day, in support of the issues we are most passionate about and to create the kind of world we want to live in. Shannon underscores the importance of cultivating a self-awareness practice and paying attention to internal cues (lack of sleep, drinking more alcohol than usual, loss of motivation) to pro-actively prevent burnout and overwhelm. As creatives and change makers, understanding our limits and making sure our boundaries are heard and respected is what allows us to do the sustained worked required to effect societal change without sacrificing our own wellbeing. 

We know the power of art in shaping culture, engaging community, and finding voice. Using these tools to expand the work of activist movements is transformative. Centering the activism and supporting it with art is how we proliferate the impact of our work. Art offers us a portal to collaboration and community, and a mechanism for advocacy. Creativity is the singular most valuable asset in reimagining what is possible. There is no transformation without art. There is no transformation without you. 

Chapter 12: Time to Move the Needle - Planning Templates 

This chapter provides readers with a robust planning template to build out their own craftivism project or action. The planning template empowers readers to apply everything they have learned to address an issue of social or political importance that they want to take action on. There will be an example template that will use our working case study to fill in all the sections to further clarify how the document should be used. The document will cover our entire activist journey—from creating a vision/mission statement, identifying a target issue and skillsets, team building, problem and root cause analysis, research, resource and power mapping, goal setting, tactics, spreading the word, assessment, and celebration. Readers will walk away empowered to level up their craftivism work for maximum impact! 

The book closes with an embroidery pattern – Go Do Good 

The New copy of this book will include any supplemental materials advertised. Please check the title of the book to determine if it should include any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.

The Used, Rental and eBook copies of this book are not guaranteed to include any supplemental materials. Typically, only the book itself is included. This is true even if the title states it includes any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.