tl;dr: how do we safeguard the acronym "EZLN" against Che-shirt commodification/recuperation? I bought a plain, white, shirt from a co-op (Esperanza threads, if anyone else sees it as more than a pointless token to shop at co-ops. They have affordable socks and shirts, but everything else costs so much it would be like charity to buy it). I also bought red and black fabric paint and some letter and star stencils from Hobby Lobby. The point of making my own is to be different from the college kids that show up at rallies for the democratic party wearing Che shirts. It's also for the obvious reason of not wanting to buy your weapons from your enemy, though buying the fabric paint probably invalidated that (depending on how many shirts I get out of a $5 spray can). Now I'm feeling kind of silly. If I just put "EZLN" and a red star, the best I can hope for is that a few people google EZLN and immediately forget it; possibly noting that I'm dangerous and insane and should be avoided as soon as they see the guitar guy with his mask on in the Wikipedia article. My original motivation was probably commodity fetishism. But the crap has been bought, and now I want to make some good propaganda to wear around. Can you think of any really good, short, quotes or phrases? It'd be good if it could underscore the non-violent or defensive nature of the EZLN, or something that says "they have democracy. We do not." Maybe a detournement of the "in Soviet Russia..." joke: "In Zapatista Mexico, army obeys you!". am i detournin' it rite? (any content that I post on this forum which I "own" the copyright to, I hereby place in the public domain. Now you can make one too!!!)
From the remarks at the opening ceremony of the encuentro: Behind our black mask, behind our armed voice, behind our unamable name, behind what you see of us, behind this we are you. Behind this we are the same simple and ordinary men and women who arerepeated in races, painted in all colors, speak in all languages and live in all places. ... Behind this we are you. If youre going to have several people wearing the tshirts I would place one of the "behind our..." under the ELZN star then on the opposite side of each tshirt place "behind this, we are you". Im still thinking of more ideas ill be back later.
