Art and Activism
An interactive presentation and workshop by Montreal’s Stefan Christoff
Introduction by New York City based artist Yasmeen Abdallah
Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space: MoRUS
1pm, Sunday, August 13, 2023
155 Avenue C, New York, NY 10009
Suggested donation $15 (to help cover Stefan’s travel expenses)
This interactive workshop, facilitated by long-time community organizer and artist Stefan Christoff, will highlight three examples of creative activist campaigns and community organizing work that explores the intersections of art and activism.
Stefan will speak about the campaign to support Dollarama warehouse workers in Montreal during the peak of the pandemic crisis who faced unjust and unsafe working conditions. Many workers were facing the realities of precarious status and pending deportations from Canada. Stefan helped coordinate artist support for this campaign as part of the Immigrant Workers Centre (IWC), which included an open letter (audio from a press conference) and street art posters (download link from the IWC).
Also Stefan will speak about an ongoing collaboration with Wet’suwet’en activist Marlene Hale to support the Indigenous land rights of the Wet’suwet’en people who are struggling against the imposition of the Coastal GasLink Pipeline on their traditional Indigenous territories. Stefan coordinated a series of events and an open letter signed by many local artists to support the Wet’suwet’en resistance to contemporary colonialism.
Finally Stefan will speak about helping to coordinate the global #MusiciansForPalestine campaign, which has brought over 1500 artists together to support the global Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement against the apartheid policies of the Israeli state against the Palestinian people.
There will be a presentation aspect and also a street art aspect to this workshop. Participants will cut out street art lettering to express an important campaign and / or political demand that arises from the conversation in this workshop.
Stefan Christoff is a media maker, community activist and artist living in Montréal. Stefan hosts Free City Radio, broadcasting weekly on CKUT 90.3 FM, CJLO 1690 AM, CKUW 95.9 FM in Winnipeg, CFRC 101.9 FM in Kingston, Ontario, CFUV in Victoria and shared globally as a podcast (Spotify + ApplePodcasts). Stefan helps to coordinate #MusiciansForPalestine and makes music with many people globally, including Rêves sonores, Sam Shalabi, Lori Goldston and Anarchist Mountains. Stefan is on the board of the Immigrant Workers Centre in Côte-Des-Neiges and works with Cinema Politica Network. Stefan also currently works with the Social Justice Centre at Concordia University in Montreal.