Anyone familiar with the subject of gay marriage is probably familiar with Adam Bouska’s NO H8 photo campaign – a tessellation of headshots against a white background, with duct tape over the subjects’ mouth and “NO H8” painted on to their cheek. While ostensibly this campaign can be considered a success, it has never settled well with me.

bouska-horns

Horns? Why?

At the core, I take issue with the words “NO H8”. Proposition 8 has nothing to do with “hate” and everything to do with a fair vote. It’s unfortunate that some have chosen to demonize those that have voted in favor of Proposition 8 by calling them “haters”. For example, my mother does not think that gays should be allowed to marry. But she does not hate gay people. She quite simply does not believe that they should be able to get married. But marriage equality activists have chosen to throw her into a general bin of those who “hate”. I don’t have to tell you that “hate” is a strong word, and I’m not quite sure that pulling out the heavy artillery is going to get people to cross over to your side.

aldo-ad

The ALDO Campaign from 2004. It’s a stretch, but the duct tape makes some sense.

I don’t think the “NO H8” moniker was created by Bouska, but he did paint it on people’s faces, alongside a mouth covered by duct tape. There’s a couple of elements here that upset – that duct tape over the mouth is hardly an original idea. The first example that comes to mind is ALDO’s “Hear No Evil” campaign for HIV awareness several years ago. ALDO’s shots also featured images of celebrities with duct tape over their mouth. I’m still trying to figure out exactly what it means in the Bouska campaign. When I asked two friends that had their photos taken for the shoot, the look on their face said “how can you not get it?”. I shot back with a look that read, “are you sure you get it?” and after a few moments to gather their thoughts, they explained to me that it was “symbolic” of their voices being silenced in the fight for marriage equality. What’s flawed about that explanation is that nobody’s voice has ever been silenced regarding Proposition 8. In actuality, the mere existence of Proposition 8 and your vote on the ballot is proof that your voice was indeed heard. So, if you are still upset that you are restrained from doing something you want to do, perhaps a pair of handcuffs would be a more fitting symbol. Although, if it’s marriage that you want, perhaps that hits a little too close to home.

The campaign appears to have began with a group of friends and has expanded to include an undeniably impressive roster of celebrities – if you consider that to be a milestone of success. But it is no surprise that celebrities would be attracted to this campaign. After all, you walk away with what amounts to an 8×10 glossy headshot. Perfect lighting, smoothed complexion, and a crisp white background. The only people who wouldn’t want to look pretty in a photo are… those people who don’t want to look pretty in a photo. For me, the vanity of the subjects speaks louder than the eyeliner on their cheeks. If you support marriage equality and want to convince others of the same, is the solution to get a photograph of yourself taken?

bouska-too-far

Has this gone too far?

But wait – what is the message of this campaign, anyway? It’s hard to tell when there are so many distractions. The blank slate aspect of the photos has spawned a competition for attention. People showing off their biceps, singing into microphones, breaking records, making devil horns, wearing sunglasses, and holding ceramic elephants – all next to the photographer’s uncomfortably large watermark. What are we promoting here, the issue at hand, or how cute we are? They say there is no such thing as a selfless act, and I can’t think of a more fitting example than Perez Hilton’s photo for the campaign which features him on his computer, posting the image of himself onto his website that you are looking at. Think about it.

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Perez Hilton, never losing sight of what’s important.

In the end, we are left with a bunch of photos that we have we have plenty of reasons to pass around, the least important of which appears to be in effort to change someone’s mind on the serious subject matter at hand. And herein lies the problem. Campaigns are designed to raise awareness for your cause. This campaign fails at that outside of the gay community (the only place it matters). According to the Washington Post, 7 out of 10 black voters in California voted in favor of Proposition 8. If you put up a billboard featuring these images in an areas filled primarily with black voters, I highly doubt an image of someone in a plunging white V-neck holding a rosary necklace with “NO H8” painted on their cheek is going to change any minds. That is, of course, assuming that someone who is not rubbing elbows with the subject can decipher what “NO H8” even means.

At this point, I don’t even know what it means. There are a bunch of beautiful photographs, but now what?

There is no doubt that everyone involved in this project has only the best of intentions, and as long as you are making noise in the ether (including this article), you are doing something. Regardless of what I have written above, the only thing that matters is this: if his efforts have changed just one person’s mind on the issue, or at the very least raised awareness, then it should be considered a rousing success. While the spread of Adam Bouska’s NO H8 campaign cannot be denied and deserves accolade, it is disquieting to know that the efforts for this campaign could have been more focused to create change. Maybe it’s time to rip off the duct tape, and sit down with people like the 7 out of 10 black voters, or my Mother.

Submitted By: CJ Powers

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