“But isn’t it illegal?” Using Street Art to Engage Students on Issues of Social Justice

For the past 15 years I have been researching and documenting, through photography and video, street art from different parts of the world.As a longtime educator whose teaching practice is rooted in the principles of equity, inclusion and cultural responsiveness, I regularly integrate street art in my courses when discussing issues of social justice.I have witnessed how this art form encourages learners of diverse ages and backgrounds to have in depth discussions on accessibility, racism, decolonization and related issues.I see how street art not only engages students but also opens pathways to difficult discussions.This is something I experienced personally when I was eight years old.At that age, I became aware of the importance of political freedom for the first time.I didn't learn about it in a classroom, or by reading a book, or from watching or listening to a news report.I learned about politics through messages posted anonymously on the walls and streets of a bustling city.In the summer of 1976, when I was visiting Lisbon, Portugal with my family, I first saw political street art.It was fanned out like the pages of a newspaper, providing information and personal opinions everywhere I looked.One image was painted and posted repeatedly: a red carnation.I remember a specific piece of street art on a wall at a busy intersection.It depicted a soldier with a rifle and a red carnation stuck in its barrel.There were no words with the art, but I remember thinking that it meant something important.I asked my parents, who were both Portuguese, what the message was communicating to the many people who were crossing paths with it daily.They explained that the red carnation, already a symbol associated with socialism in Portugal, was adopted during a revolution that started on April 25th, 1974.Known as "The Carnation Revolution," it led to the fall of a dictatorship and the installation of a democratic socialist government backed by ordinary citizens, who despite the risk of imprisonment took to the streets to support the risky coup started by a handful of low-ranking military officers.The dictatorship, which had been in