On December 7, 2005, Daniel McGowan was among the first people arrested as part of an FBI offensive against environmental activists called “Operation Backfire”, which activists have dubbed part of the Green Scare (after the Red Scare of the 40s and 50s). Daniel began serving his seven-year sentence in July 2007. In August 2008, Daniel was moved to the Communication Management Unit (CMU) in Marion, IL, a federal prison unit that bypassed the usual review process and severely restricts inmates’ communication with the outside world.
To mark the four-year anniversary of Daniel’s arrest, and to highlight the continued repression of activists that the federal government has labeled “terrorists,” Family and Friends of Daniel McGowan will be hosting an art show, auction and raffle on Friday and Saturday, December 4th and 5th, 2009. Proceeds will go to Daniel’s commissary account and a couple of his favorite environmental and social justice organizations.
We are looking for art that embodies or deals with the struggles activists face in today’s climate of government repression, as well as the heart-breaking effects of prison.
On the one hand, we would like to see art that explores the themes of the Green Scare and resultant political prisoners, the government fear mongering that tries to paint radicalism as terrorism, and the resulting repression of activism. On the flip side, we encourage art that explores what is lost and what is sacrificed when we lose parts of our community to prison. This art can explore the important aspects of being human that are lost to the isolation of prison, such as communication and expression, human touch and contact, and trusting relationships with those that surround you.

Submission Guidelines: Two dimensional visual works – photography, painting, silkscreen, printmaking, collage, drawing, illustration, postcards, et cetera. Please limit the size of your submission to 24″ by 36″.
Submission Deadline: December 1, 2009
Original works will not be returned and unsold pieces will be sold at a future date for the same benefit.
Send work to:
Jenny Synan
c/o ADC
106 West 29th St, Ground Fl.
New York, NY 10001
For inspiration and more information on these issues, see:
http://www.supportdaniel.org
http://www.supportdaniel.org/cmu
http://www.greenisthenewred.com
http://www.abcf.net
http://www.cldc.org
http://portland.indymedia.org/en/topic/greenscare/