WHAT IS HATE HAS NO HOME HERE ABOUT?
Hate, unchecked, can make neighbors feel fearful and unwelcome in their own communities. The Hate Has No Home Here project reminds us what it means to be American.
The Hate Has No Home Here project seeks to declare neighborhood residences, businesses, and places of community free from hate speech and behavior, providing safe places for conversation, work, learning, and living.
Hate Has No Home Here encourages other communities to participate in combating hateful messages and behavior in their neighborhoods by going beyond the poster or sign. In the North Park neighborhood, we have used this opportunity to gather neighbors, start conversations about protecting and encouraging each other, and make plans for using resources to educate others.
WHO’S BEHIND IT?
The “Hate Has No Home Here” sign project began with a group of neighbors from North Park, a Chicago neighborhood characterized by its diversity of age, race, nationality and ethnicity. Many ties bind the residents of North Park to one another; the most notable is the neighborhood school, Peterson Elementary School, where the student body mimics the demographics of the neighborhood and where educators and families are committed to celebrating diversity. The phrase used in this poster was imagined by a third grader and kindergartener at Peterson Elementary School; Steven Luce, a North Park neighbor and designer, created the graphics; and neighbors Catherine Korda, Barbara Nordlund, Megan Trinter, Carmen Rodriguez, Jeanne Marie Olson and Kurt Peterson secured the translations, organized and launched the campaign.
WHAT’S THE POINT?
The Hate Has No Home Here movement is built around a simple idea: it’s easy to hate people we don’t know. Posters and yard signs are just the beginning. What starts as powerful, positive messaging continues in relationship-building, dialogue, and communal action. When neighbors of different races, religions, and nationalities move past indifference to investment in one another, we knock out the underpinnings of racism and intolerance, and make possible a better future for our communities.
IS THIS SIGN ASSOCIATED WITH A SPECIFIC POLITICAL PARTY AND/OR A CRITIQUE DIRECTED AT THE CURRENT ADMINISTRATION?
No. This sign is a public declaration that hate speech and hateful actions against others will not be tolerated by the person or organization displaying the sign. In that, it is non-partisan. This sign is a statement that, while it is okay to disagree with others civilly regarding issues, it is not okay to intimidate or attack a person or group—verbally or physically—based on attributes such as gender, ethnic origin, religion, race, disability, or sexual orientation. The colors of the sign—red, white, and blue—are the colors of the American flag, not any political party.
WHY RED AND BLUE?
The background colors were designed to loosely mimic the colors of the American flag, as the message is intended to cross all lines of distinction to bring us together under our American identity. Keeping the artwork to two colors also reduces printing costs.
More information about the Hate Has No Home Here initiative can be found here.