Description
“Education and justice are democracy’s only life insurance.”
— Nannie Helen Burroughs
This hand-pulled letterpress print is printed from hand-lettered original typography and hand-drawn illustrations (in fact, everything was done by hand, the hard way!). This piece was created in honor of the Black women who work to protect the pillars of democracy and freedom.
Burroughs was one of many Black suffragists working in the late 19th century, often overshadowed in suffrage history by white women. She contributed to the movement through the circles of education and religion. With a devout belief in both her Baptist faith and the power of women’s collectives, Burroughs created the National Training School for Women and Girls in 1909. Funded with grassroots donations, the school focused on vocational skills for future working Black women, and a dedication to teaching the true history of Black America.
Our 32nd broadside, Knowledge Trust, is filled with allusions to education, powerful pen strokes, turn-of-the-20th-century typography, suffrage colors, and democratic symbols.
To help insure the next generation of students and voters, we are donating a portion of our proceeds to She the People, a non-profit focused on reaching and enfranchising women voters of color. In light of the situation in Ukraine, we will be making a second donation to Urgent Action Fund for Women’s Human Rights to aid the people fighting to save their own democracy there. The UAF Urgent Response Fund for Ukraine supports women, trans, and nonbinary activists on the ground by providing flexible funding and security support. We are supporting both organizations via Action Grants from the Dead Feminists Fund.
This poster was printed on an antique Vandercook Universal One press. Each piece is printed on archival, 100% rag (cotton) antique white paper, and individually signed and numbered by both artists. This piece was printed in a limited edition; once the edition sells out, it will not be reprinted. So snag your copy while you can! In the meantime, you can learn more about this broadside and the story behind it on our blog.
Edition size: 190
Paper size: approximately 10 x 18 inches
Colophon reads:
Nannie Helen Burroughs (c. 1879 – 1961) was born in Orange, Virginia and moved with her mother to Washington, DC after her father’s death. As a student at M Street High School, she met activists Mary Church Terrell and Anna J. Cooper. After graduating with honors, she moved to Kentucky to work for the Foreign Mission Board of the National Baptist Convention (NBC). At NBC’s annual meeting in 1900, Burroughs’ speech “How the Sisters Are Hindered from Helping” gained national attention and inspired her to co-found the NBC auxiliary Woman’s Convention (WC), the largest Black women’s organization in the United States. Here Black women could exercise their labor and organizing power independent of male membership and white women suffragists. Burroughs served the WC for over 40 years, first as corresponding secretary, then as president.
In 1907, funded by donations from women and children, Burroughs opened the National Training School for Women and Girls in Washington, DC, adopting the motto “We specialize in the wholly impossible.” To develop “the fiber of a sturdy moral, industrious and intellectual woman,” students learned vocational skills to become selfsufficient wage earners. Burroughs’ African-American history class was a graduation requirement. She served as school president until her death. The former Trades Hall, now a National Historic Landmark, today houses the Progressive National Baptist Convention. Illustrated by Chandler O’Leary and printed by Jessica Spring, in gratitude to the Black women who have insured our democracy’s future beneficiaries. 190 copies were printed by hand at Springtide Press in Tacoma.
————————————
This original artwork is copyright Chandler O’Leary and Jessica Spring 2022. Copyright is not transferable with the sale of this print. The buyer is not entitled to reproduction rights.
WA state residents are subject to sales tax.
The print is packaged in a clear poly sleeve and will ship flat in a protective mailer, via USPS Priority Mail.
