The art of the protest sign
April 2, 2025 8:21 AM Subscribe
The art of the deal protest sign. You want to make a protest sign but you’ve hit a brick wall for ideas. That’s okay! Inspiration is as easy as a google image search. But if you want to get into it a little bit more, Iranian-born Canadian artist Guity Novin can help you out. So can Reuters. If you need more, take a look at An Emergency Guide to Writing Protest Signs. Maybe invent your own font. Here’s a handy pdf that talks about design elements. For some final thoughts, Vice has some advice.
Crappy cardboard makes you look like a loser. Take the time to find some decent cardboard. And PROOFREAD! ("Electile Dysfunction" is much funnier than "Electile Dysfuntion").
posted by Joan Rivers of Babylon at 8:55 AM on April 2
posted by Joan Rivers of Babylon at 8:55 AM on April 2
For one protest, I made a sign that said, "Canada is like a kazoo orchestra, Everyone is welcome". I liked it but I didn't get that many people playing kazoo around me.
I generally recommend foam core poster board. At least in Toronto, it's available very cheaply in single sheets (Skip Staples and go directly to our homegrown massive dollar store chain), and takes marker very well. If you're using water-based paints, it can bend the sign somewhat, but it's not a big deal. But there is no reason to struggle with Bristol board anymore.
posted by jb at 9:07 AM on April 2 [1 favorite]
I generally recommend foam core poster board. At least in Toronto, it's available very cheaply in single sheets (Skip Staples and go directly to our homegrown massive dollar store chain), and takes marker very well. If you're using water-based paints, it can bend the sign somewhat, but it's not a big deal. But there is no reason to struggle with Bristol board anymore.
posted by jb at 9:07 AM on April 2 [1 favorite]
My husband took our protest sticks to his dad's workshop and used the electric sander. Those poles were so soft to hold. We would reuse them for all sorts of different things (he did about 10 for Pride in 2014. I think we have some around still).
posted by jb at 9:08 AM on April 2
posted by jb at 9:08 AM on April 2
You know when you feel around in your pocket for the keys but can’t find them? And you do this three times and you still can’t find them? And then you do on the fourth try? I swear that there was a link for Guilty Novin.
posted by ashbury at 9:11 AM on April 2 [3 favorites]
posted by ashbury at 9:11 AM on April 2 [3 favorites]
For me, rule #1 in protest signmaking: Use a thick marker, not a ballpoint pen. If I have to squint at your message in thin, thin letters on a large piece of paper, I'm losing my fervor as I read it.
posted by the sobsister at 9:17 AM on April 2 [2 favorites]
posted by the sobsister at 9:17 AM on April 2 [2 favorites]
I used the back of my Harris/Walz yard signs for the last couple protests. I’m ready for a new sign and planning to pick up some foam core today. Concur it’s easier to hold. Most people seem to have dropped the handle and just hold the board. This does make it easier to block your face.
I really love the Doge protest sign (first result) but I think it’s maybe too niche for rural Oregon.
Sorry, several edits trying to get the link to work! It’s just a link to a google image search for Doge protest sign anyway - turns out it’s a Facebook image and I’m not linking that trash.
posted by mygothlaundry at 9:21 AM on April 2 [3 favorites]
I really love the Doge protest sign (first result) but I think it’s maybe too niche for rural Oregon.
Sorry, several edits trying to get the link to work! It’s just a link to a google image search for Doge protest sign anyway - turns out it’s a Facebook image and I’m not linking that trash.
posted by mygothlaundry at 9:21 AM on April 2 [3 favorites]
I have a lazy question. What can I order at any print / copy shop that will look good? I've done plenty of home-made signs. I'd love to pay someone to print something really nice, maybe 36"x24", and mount it for me. What do I ask for?
posted by Nelson at 9:24 AM on April 2
posted by Nelson at 9:24 AM on April 2
I disagree fairly strongly with one of the points in the “Emergency Guide” link: do not go long. Sure, sometimes protest signs get posted on social media, but usually not, and the in-person audience is also important. Most protests are such that a significant portion of the target audience may be driving by, walking by on the far side of the road, or otherwise in transit but not right up close. So:
1. Make all lettering at least 2 inches high and thickly drawn. Using all caps is often helpful if hand-lettering.
2. Keep it under 10 words.
If you have more to say, make a pamphlet or handbill to pass out, or have a website url (short and easy to remember) or maybe a scannable QR code on your sign that people can follow for more detailed info. Or have a rally at which you make speeche, and invite the local media to get coverage.
But nobody’s going to post a photo of your wordy sign on social media if they can’t even tell what the protest is about in the first place due to overall poor signage. And, increasingly, people protesting Trump administration policies are going to be worried about having any identifiable images of themselves on social media.
posted by eviemath at 9:37 AM on April 2 [3 favorites]
1. Make all lettering at least 2 inches high and thickly drawn. Using all caps is often helpful if hand-lettering.
2. Keep it under 10 words.
If you have more to say, make a pamphlet or handbill to pass out, or have a website url (short and easy to remember) or maybe a scannable QR code on your sign that people can follow for more detailed info. Or have a rally at which you make speeche, and invite the local media to get coverage.
But nobody’s going to post a photo of your wordy sign on social media if they can’t even tell what the protest is about in the first place due to overall poor signage. And, increasingly, people protesting Trump administration policies are going to be worried about having any identifiable images of themselves on social media.
posted by eviemath at 9:37 AM on April 2 [3 favorites]
@Nelson: Give your local quick print shop a call and talk to them. They can print a poster for you and/or mount it on foam core for you.
posted by hydra77 at 9:41 AM on April 2 [1 favorite]
posted by hydra77 at 9:41 AM on April 2 [1 favorite]
I recommend coming up with a short statement from the heart.
When Trump instituted the "Muslim Ban" in his first term, I made one that said, "Immigrants are our neighbors, not our enemies." For Gaza protests I have one that says, "Stop killing children," with a picture of a child that died. (I do not use gruesome images of death because I prefer to show dignified pictures of people as they lived). For the youth climate march, one of my students made one with a picture of a sea turtle that said, "Save them."
posted by mai at 10:20 AM on April 2 [1 favorite]
When Trump instituted the "Muslim Ban" in his first term, I made one that said, "Immigrants are our neighbors, not our enemies." For Gaza protests I have one that says, "Stop killing children," with a picture of a child that died. (I do not use gruesome images of death because I prefer to show dignified pictures of people as they lived). For the youth climate march, one of my students made one with a picture of a sea turtle that said, "Save them."
posted by mai at 10:20 AM on April 2 [1 favorite]
Right next to the foam core board at your local office supply store you'll find poster letters - giant letter stickers that you can stick on the foam core board to spell out your message in a way that is readable from quite a distance. They can be removed and reused, or you can use them like stencils if you're making signs for a crowd.
posted by last_fall at 10:41 AM on April 2 [3 favorites]
posted by last_fall at 10:41 AM on April 2 [3 favorites]
When part of the Chud brigade, known as the Freedom Convoy, came through Vancouver I made the most Canadian sign I could think of; 'PLEASE GO HOME PLEASE' using a black marker on the thick cardboard stock of an oversize drawing pad that was full. Very stiff, large lettering, and as I stood on the corner of Kingsway and Broadway, a major intersection where they had to slow down to make a right turn, I got an awful lot of double takes from various passengers in the convoy. One even laughed out loud.
posted by Phlegmco(tm) at 10:43 AM on April 2 [1 favorite]
posted by Phlegmco(tm) at 10:43 AM on April 2 [1 favorite]
Crappy cardboard makes you look like a loser.
Hard disagree. NO ONE who attends a protest in good faith is a loser.
I got my sign idea yesterday:
It's not right vs. left. IT'S RIGHT VS. WRONG.
Cory Booker filibuster, April 1, 2025
I love the Doge one linked by mygothlaundry. May put on back.
For some of 2017 I had a WWMRD (What would Mr. Rogers Do) one.
posted by Glinn at 11:04 AM on April 2 [7 favorites]
Hard disagree. NO ONE who attends a protest in good faith is a loser.
I got my sign idea yesterday:
It's not right vs. left. IT'S RIGHT VS. WRONG.
Cory Booker filibuster, April 1, 2025
I love the Doge one linked by mygothlaundry. May put on back.
For some of 2017 I had a WWMRD (What would Mr. Rogers Do) one.
posted by Glinn at 11:04 AM on April 2 [7 favorites]
You can look like a loser without being one. Particularly when you're at a protest, a lot of people are predisposed to see you as a loser. Why make it easy for them with crappy cardboard and lousy spelling?
posted by Joan Rivers of Babylon at 11:32 AM on April 2 [3 favorites]
posted by Joan Rivers of Babylon at 11:32 AM on April 2 [3 favorites]
Why make it easy for them with crappy cardboard and lousy spelling?
Sure thing - but sometimes you heard about it last minute and do the best you can with what's on hand, for example!
I am also annoyed by bad spelling! But if someone's out there, I try to appreciate it, is all I meant.
posted by Glinn at 11:47 AM on April 2 [2 favorites]
Sure thing - but sometimes you heard about it last minute and do the best you can with what's on hand, for example!
I am also annoyed by bad spelling! But if someone's out there, I try to appreciate it, is all I meant.
posted by Glinn at 11:47 AM on April 2 [2 favorites]
A fat sharpie on Bristol board and a wooden stake that will give you splinters. Ban the bomb...burn the bra! Golly I miss the 60s
Know the local law. Many places (such as NYC) disallow the use of wooden sign sticks. Do not give the cops a stupid reason to arrest you or take your sign.
posted by Ayn Marx at 1:31 PM on April 2 [2 favorites]
Know the local law. Many places (such as NYC) disallow the use of wooden sign sticks. Do not give the cops a stupid reason to arrest you or take your sign.
posted by Ayn Marx at 1:31 PM on April 2 [2 favorites]
> Many places (such as NYC) disallow the use of wooden sign sticks.
Well now I kinda wanna make a "legalize wooden sign sticks" sign on a wooden stick.
posted by Hot Pastrami! at 2:53 PM on April 2 [5 favorites]
Well now I kinda wanna make a "legalize wooden sign sticks" sign on a wooden stick.
posted by Hot Pastrami! at 2:53 PM on April 2 [5 favorites]
Now that we're retired we're going to lots of protests (went yesterday even). I've started making signs in bulk:
- buy pack of 6 square garden stakes, saw off the points so cops wont take offence, lightly sand the bit you will hold
- buy 3 sheets of corflute, chop them in half
- staple corflute to signs with 4-5 heavy duty staples (staple gun, not office stapler)
- reinforce the back with to pieces of duct tape
- store in garage until needed
Corflute is slightly better that posterboard (because it's thinner and the staples get more grip).
I recommend simple signes black or blue on white, not a lot of decoration, simple messages written big - most people who see it will get seconds to see it read it and understand it (especially if you end up on the TV news).
Having said that my one for the next Palestine march is likely going to be "If I still lived in the US I would be deported for this"
posted by mbo at 5:29 PM on April 2 [1 favorite]
- buy pack of 6 square garden stakes, saw off the points so cops wont take offence, lightly sand the bit you will hold
- buy 3 sheets of corflute, chop them in half
- staple corflute to signs with 4-5 heavy duty staples (staple gun, not office stapler)
- reinforce the back with to pieces of duct tape
- store in garage until needed
Corflute is slightly better that posterboard (because it's thinner and the staples get more grip).
I recommend simple signes black or blue on white, not a lot of decoration, simple messages written big - most people who see it will get seconds to see it read it and understand it (especially if you end up on the TV news).
Having said that my one for the next Palestine march is likely going to be "If I still lived in the US I would be deported for this"
posted by mbo at 5:29 PM on April 2 [1 favorite]
I find that message confusing, mbo! I presume you're not in the US, so it sounds like you're celebrating the freedom to protest that your location allows? Which is an odd message for a Palestine march.
posted by The corpse in the library at 5:55 PM on April 2 [1 favorite]
posted by The corpse in the library at 5:55 PM on April 2 [1 favorite]
I got my sign idea yesterday:
It's not right vs. left. IT'S RIGHT VS. WRONG.
Cory Booker filibuster, April 1, 2025
You may want to bear in mind that's a Ronald Reagan quote from 1985, criticizing the Sandinistas: "The issue is not right versus left; it is right versus wrong."
posted by the sobsister at 7:07 PM on April 2 [3 favorites]
It's not right vs. left. IT'S RIGHT VS. WRONG.
Cory Booker filibuster, April 1, 2025
You may want to bear in mind that's a Ronald Reagan quote from 1985, criticizing the Sandinistas: "The issue is not right versus left; it is right versus wrong."
posted by the sobsister at 7:07 PM on April 2 [3 favorites]
I'm a kiwi who lived in the US for 20 years on a green card, I was very diffident about protest and [political action when I lived there, even though I paid taxes to a government that sometimes did terrible things - I did attend some protests, and walked away from some when they got out of hand because I was afraid because of my green card.
Given the legal residents in the US who are currently being snatched off the streets for protesting about the genocide in Palestine, I think my sign is completely appropriate for a march for Palestine, along with my Palestinian flag of course
posted by mbo at 7:26 PM on April 2 [2 favorites]
Given the legal residents in the US who are currently being snatched off the streets for protesting about the genocide in Palestine, I think my sign is completely appropriate for a march for Palestine, along with my Palestinian flag of course
posted by mbo at 7:26 PM on April 2 [2 favorites]
"DID GEORGE SOROS GAVE THE MAXIMUM $$$ TO {maga candidate}?"
"WHY WOULD NANCY PELOSI ENDORSE {maga candidate}?"
"ARE ALL MARXIST WELFARE QUEENS FOR {maga candidate}?"
I mean, you're not under oath, are you?
posted by zaixfeep at 10:40 PM on April 2
"WHY WOULD NANCY PELOSI ENDORSE {maga candidate}?"
"ARE ALL MARXIST WELFARE QUEENS FOR {maga candidate}?"
I mean, you're not under oath, are you?
posted by zaixfeep at 10:40 PM on April 2
Also "AYN RAND WASN'T THE MESSIAH, SHE'S JUST A VERY SELFISH GIRL"
Sorry to say, but only money, dirty tricks and violence will hurt these retrograde MAGA humanoids.
posted by zaixfeep at 10:42 PM on April 2 [3 favorites]
Sorry to say, but only money, dirty tricks and violence will hurt these retrograde MAGA humanoids.
posted by zaixfeep at 10:42 PM on April 2 [3 favorites]
I never carry signs at protests, but this time I made a Greenland flag and added ‘hands off’.
It’s nerdy enough as I guess most folks won’t recognize it. And it fits the hands off theme.
(Stepping outside my comfort zone)
posted by MtDewd at 6:00 AM on April 3 [3 favorites]
It’s nerdy enough as I guess most folks won’t recognize it. And it fits the hands off theme.
(Stepping outside my comfort zone)
posted by MtDewd at 6:00 AM on April 3 [3 favorites]
the sobsister
Thank you kindly! I figured he was not the first one, but that is too bad and I am glad I did not make my sign yet. : /
posted by Glinn at 6:21 AM on April 3 [1 favorite]
Thank you kindly! I figured he was not the first one, but that is too bad and I am glad I did not make my sign yet. : /
posted by Glinn at 6:21 AM on April 3 [1 favorite]
Indivisible's Hands Off! Flyers, Rally Signs, & Printed Materials
posted by achrise at 8:14 AM on April 3 [1 favorite]
posted by achrise at 8:14 AM on April 3 [1 favorite]
Ok my new idea:
Ewwwww de Musk
Stench of White Supremacy
(Or something like that. Suggestions welcome.)
The back is going to have the Hands Off flyer that lists all the things, in English and Spanish.
posted by Glinn at 8:39 AM on April 3
Ewwwww de Musk
Stench of White Supremacy
(Or something like that. Suggestions welcome.)
The back is going to have the Hands Off flyer that lists all the things, in English and Spanish.
posted by Glinn at 8:39 AM on April 3
The ones I've made for the Tesla Takedown protests are just text and I've been working to make them as short and punchy as possible. I want them to be readable to people who drive by.
For Hands Off on Saturday, I'm working on something with images that I've wanted to do for weeks now. I'm making it via cut and paste because I have no drawing abilities and it's making me happy to work on something creative. Again, half of this is just to give me energy to keep doing the boring stuff.
Anyway, don't worry about making the most unique sign. Just get out there!
posted by queensissy at 11:10 AM on April 3 [2 favorites]
For Hands Off on Saturday, I'm working on something with images that I've wanted to do for weeks now. I'm making it via cut and paste because I have no drawing abilities and it's making me happy to work on something creative. Again, half of this is just to give me energy to keep doing the boring stuff.
Anyway, don't worry about making the most unique sign. Just get out there!
posted by queensissy at 11:10 AM on April 3 [2 favorites]
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