OVER RULED
Large red letters command “NO DANCING” from afar. Closer examination reveals stories from community members, about how rules affect their lives, particularly those receiving a disproportionate share of enforcement. Rebellious energy gives way to genuine contemplation of how rules shape humanity.
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Part of the goal of this work is to raise awareness of restorative justice as a component of racial justice. We hope people who enjoy this piece will join us in accepting this alternative theory of justice in pursuit of a more equitable society.
Over Ruled is a large red sign composed of 12’ fabric letters supported by a metal frame, readable from across the Playa, day and night. A steel frame holds each letter 8’ aloft for visibility and passage underneath.
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Block capitals resemble Gotham Black font, house paint on retired billboard vinyl.​ Ground-mounted white spotlights evenly illuminate each letter, making them clearly visible in true color at night. Spotlights also cast enlarged shadows from participants onto the letters, so dancing crowds are sometimes visible on the letters.
Over Ruled features stories of imprisonment, termination, expulsion, and banishment, and the consequences that accrue disproportionately to people of color, reinforcing equity gaps. This is embedded within a piece which seems lighthearted at a distance, specifically to surprise participants when they approach.
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We hope this twist ending provokes true contemplation, and openness to alternative theories of justice. Restorative justice is the foremost of these theories, which provides better outcomes for both individuals and communities–but it requires community support to be properly adopted, so popular acceptance is crucial for realizing the benefits.
Debuting at Burning Man 2023, this artwork now lives in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park until late 2024 as part of Illuminate's Golden Mile Project.
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This is our mascot, Buster. He was inspired by this photograph of a police raid of an illegal distillery in Seattle in 1918. (The disco ball was first patented only a year earlier, but was not yet illegal. So we believe the original Buster would have been cool with it.)
To read more about Cody and his story, see Burning Man Journal article: The Upward Spiral.
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Recommend reading:
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The New Jim Crow, a book by Michelle Alexander, which explains in stunning detail why dismantling mass incarceration in America is so urgently necessary.
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The Big Book of Restorative Justice, a collection of four books on new practices of justice and peacebuilding, including lessons and stories the first fifty years of this emerging theory.
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