Rock The Vote's 'Truth To Power' Is A Lesson In The Art Of Protest

Photos by Karas Lamb for Okayplayer

The Democratic National Convention kicked off in the City of Brotherly Love this week with a heavy activist presence punctuated by the opening of Rock The Vote's Truth To Power. The civil rights and social justice art show is a seismic event that seeks to amplify injustice and asks the difficult questions our nation so deftly avoids addressing with any sincerity during the electoral process. Instead of passing the buck, Truth To Power takes the baton from protestors crowding the city's streets and the iconic resistance movements of the past. The result is a combination of performances, panel discussions and a massive gallery show that is a knife to the heart of the systemic violence, rampant hypocrisy and failed policy plaguing both the American people and the run of government in the United States.

Toe tags, firearms, hoodies and flashing lights are just a few of the props that transform Truth To Power into an emphatic challenge to the founding principle, which states "...that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." The exhibition's geographical proximity to the very spot where the Declaration of Independence was signed in 1776 is merely the icing on the cake. Please check out the photo gallery above for a much-needed taste of Truth To Power. Watch the footage of the My Peoples TV forum The Future of Democracy and The War At Home (which is streaming right now) via Facebook. View the exhibit and attend all of Rock The Vote's TTP events through Wednesday, July 27th at 990 Spring Garden Street in Philadelphia. Lastly, get more via rockthevote.com and follow the #TruthToPower hashtag across social media.