Season 1 of the Art of Resistance Podcast is now available to binge! In the next few weeks, you’ll see our first bonus episode, small hits of <10 minutes that feature artists of today using art to resist. And I’m hard at work on Season 2 of the pod!
Meanwhile, this weekly newsletter will tide you over. With inspiration, brain-rest, and historical perspective, you can start the week ready for whatever fuckery comes our way.
But I want to make this newsletter work for you. So throughout, you’ll have the opportunity to weigh in. More content like this? Less? Lemme know!
Resist like an artist
I’m a big fan of Dread Scott, the artist behind performance art like “Slave Rebellion Reenactment,” and “A Man Was Lynched by Police Yesterday.”
Dread, along with an impressive list of other artists, have created The Fall of Freedom:
“This Fall, we are activating a nationwide wave of creative resistance. Beginning November 21–22, 2025, galleries, museums, libraries, comedy clubs, theaters, and concert halls across the country will host exhibitions, performances, and public events that channel the urgency of this moment. Fall of Freedom is an open invitation to artists, creators, and communities to take part—and to celebrate the experiences, cultures, and identities that shape the fabric of our nation. Art matters. Artists are a threat to American fascism.”
The site offers ideas for how to participate, from big concerts to small book club readings!
Explore an artist from the show
Filled with his posters, newspaper covers, and other art, Black Panther: The Revolutionary Art of Emory Douglas is the perfect way to learn more about Emory Douglas and the Black Panthers.
Follow great artists and truthtellers
Turn off your brain
Tina Fey showing off her favorite terrible Halloween decorations is something:
Cut them down to size
The MAGA administration and followers take power from the idea that that their actions are unprecedented. But they’re just fucking copycats, recycling old bullshit we’ve seen before. Let’s expose them for the posers and losers they are. I’m calling this segment “Precedented.”
‘UnAmerican’
The spin is wild: Speaking out is unAmerican. Disloyalty is unAmerican. Defying fascist tactics is unAmerican. Making books, performance, music and other art that critiques the system is unAmerican.
It can feel like this virulent and hysterical ‘UnAmerican’ push that defies logic is new. But this shit is old.
In the 1950s, conservatives stoked the fear of communists in every corner and demanded ultimate loyalty. What we now call the “Red Scare” quickly exploded into weirdness, and tied nicely with efforts to root out all LGBTQ people from jobs. It tied nicely with moves to make sure women stayed home and out of the workforce. And it tied nicely with the House UnAmerican Committee making blacklists of artists, filmmakers, and other creatives with even the hint of anti-fascist pasts.
The book Red Scare is an excellent deep dive into this. But for a quick hit, here’s the author, Clay Risen, on Amanpour and Company:
Connect with other creatives who are resisting
Find your community. Connect on your terms. And create art as resistance. Join the Rebel Yell Creative community! Learn more and tell me you’re interested.
Thanks for reading!
If you like the podcast, leave a rating or review on your favorite podcast app. And if you take a screenshot and send it in reply to this email, I’ll get you a free copy of the new creative review workbook from Rebel Yell Creative!
Support
The Art of Resistance podcast comes from Rebel Yell Creative and Amy Lee Lillard. With Rebel Yell Creative, create your best work. Review your opportunities. Reframe your creative as resistance. Connect with a community. And more. Get in touch at amy at rebelyellcreative dot com.
If you like The Art of Resistance, the best way to show your support is a paid subscription. This is independently produced art, and subscribing helps keep the show going!
Other ways to show your support: Share the show with your friends; order original art and goods; buy a book; and/or join the Rebel Yell Creative community!