no. NOT EVER. is a multi-media, interdisciplinary, immersive installation that provides an anti-racist, anti-fascist framework for understanding the rise of white nationalism in the current moment. This video-based “living archive” depicts a wide-range of rural and suburban organizing strategies from the 1980’s and 1990’s that say “no. NOT EVER.” to white nationalism in the Pacific Northwest.
In response to the Northwest Territorial Imperative, a late 1970’s call to (re)create a white homeland in the Pacific Northwest, a network of 120 rural and suburban grassroots groups organized to counter white nationalist attacks on their communities. Some of these groups consisted of a few people, some were formalized non-profits with a board of directors, some were only around for five years, and some still exist today. The activists interviewed developed invaluable creative and resourceful ways to differently counter a variety of white nationalist assaults in and on their communities. Their strategies break down isolation, provide networks for resource and research sharing, and challenge urban assumptions and stereotypes about rural and suburban organizing.
no. NOT EVER. is an installation that combines video footage from archival interviews, interactive research stations and a community resource guide. This dynamic “living archive” functions as a participatory teaching tool and as an intergenerational bridge to support ongoing efforts to say no. NOT EVER. to white nationalism in a wide range of communities and contexts.
If You Don’t They Will is a Seattle-based collaboration that provides concrete and creative strategies to counter white nationalism through a cultural lens.
For the Brooklyn installation of no. NOT EVER., Interference Archive will draw from its collection of over 30,000 archival items spanning the 20th and 21st centuries to provide exhibition viewers with an additional lens into the history of anti-fascist organizing. The exhibition will present posters, newsletters, buttons, and vinyl albums from campaigns and organizations from the 1960s to the present.