Float the Vote is an Unstoppable Voters Project – a series of Center for Artistic Activism supported works that celebrate voting rights and counter voter suppression.
Float the Vote
Float the Vote calls upon individuals with mobile services, such as food or ice cream trucks, to “float” around specific voting districts in Detroit, increasing access to voting by providing: specific election information (i.e. polling location, polling hours, etc.), guidance towards helpful resources, and a place to register online/sign up for early, absentee, or mail-in voting. Additionally, after the polls close on Election Day, these trucks will embark on a celebratory parade through the city, which people can follow, to the Float the Vote Festival site where all can gather to patron and build community around the fact that “together, we were able to float the vote.” The objective is to cultivate engagement, fun, humor, joy, and community around voting and elections by meeting disenfranchised voters where they are rather than assuming they will make the sometimes sacrificial choice of voting on Election Day.
Brandon Stuart, Project Creator & Co-Lead
Christiana Beckley, Project Co-Lead
Donovan Weston, Project Ambassador
Sharazod Martin, Project Ambassador
John Hanson, Project Cinematographer
Brandon Stuart is, but not limited to, an interdisciplinary artist, technologist, and social theorist. His creative approach to learning has helped to interconnect his knowledge of multiple fields in order to achieve “vocational intersectionality” and garner further professional skill sets. Together these disciplines provide him the basis to work on projects that lend perspectives on how social innovation can evolve in tandem with technological innovation.
One thing he hopes individuals will gather from learning about his career trajectory is that a multidimensional, life-oriented engagement with the arts and academia can enable anyone to actualize their ultimate life goals through a combined artistic and scholastic mentality and perspective.
Christiana Laine (Beckley) is a filmmaker, writer, and multidisciplinary artist based in Detroit since 2014. Her work aims to dissect and reflect back the human experience through the lens of interconnection, shared experiences, and compassion. She hopes to address socio-economic inequalities and center social justice in all of her creative and professional endeavors.
Her favorite self-reflective questions are: What makes this beautiful? What makes this impactful? Is it wasteful? Is it relatable to people unlike me?
Unstoppable Voter Projects Throughout the Country Will Bring Art and Entertainment to Voters and Polling Places; Artists Hope to Inspire Others in Their Own Communities
In this contentious election season, many people are wondering how we can move past division and tension to celebrate democracy and our freedom to vote. Artists, in the business of storytelling and culture-making, are working around the country to turn the focus to honoring and encouraging participation in our democratic process. With this in mind, the Center for Artistic Activism created the Unstoppable Voter Project. We funded 11 of the most ambitious, innovative collaborations between artists and civic organizations seeking to increase voter engagement after receiving more than 100 applications. Artistic events will take place nationwide, with a focus on states where voters are facing barriers to the polls.
