Lick Bush film night @ Newsense Gallery 7/23 This grassroots benefit for the Kerry Presidential Campaign arrived with a surprise: The BBC, in contact with the Kerry campaign manager in Cleveland, decided to make a stop in our city to cover the Lick Bush event. Has the media finally caught on and determined that Cleveland's union of intellects and activists are sexy? Lyz Bly, organizer of the event said "The BBC called me on the phone, after Kerry's Cleveland campaign manager spoke with them, and they decided they wanted to show up." The Bly's Newsense Gallery spilled local art activists who gathered to view the political film Unprecedented and Robert Banks' film AWOL. The momentum picked up when News Channel 5 reporter Angie Lau stopped in to talk with Ohio's Delegate to the Democratic National Convention, Charlene Coates (pictured here), and yours truly. Charlene discussed the ineffectual state of health care and how it has affected her family; I voiced concerns about the current political climate and political constrictions of art, the reduction of National Endowment of the Arts funding, and how Cleveland is utilizing the arts as a revenue model for economic development.

And yes, we did purchase controversial t-shirts from the gallery - Good Bush, Bad Bush (Don't ask about the images on that t-shirt), and a few guests were sporting the Lick Bush message which fueled conversations about its literal and figurative messages. Local filmmaker Robert Banks came by and discussed the message of his film and Unprecedented, where free speech is the supreme expression, even in this political climate where anti-war sentiments are viewed negatively. Banks' film AWOL succeeded in its oppositional strategy; it played at the Cleveland International Film Festival, and was recently requested by the Sundance Film Festival for re-submission. "AWOL circulated at other film festivals, but after Moore's Fahrenheit 9/11 came out, my films became more popular. Now Sundance [Film Festival] wants me to re-submit, since audiences are now more open to these topics," said Banks. He continued, "As a filmmaker, I'm touched by war and other issues that relate to it - so, some of my films are based on the military. I am not only a filmmaker, but I also served in the military, and while I have respect for our country and its diversity, I actually served for our country and I know that experience. We should be able to express ourselves via film or other medias without being seen as unpatriotic."

Not all of us bantered about politics and war; us girls discussed perversion in the media, gender equality, and frustration with local universities who blow their fellowship grant budgets on administration costs. And while Channel 5 was taken aback by the group and the event, stating they had no idea of the arts/activist community here, we explained to them that this is how we live and what we do...for us, it was another typical night in Lakewood.

from Cool Cleveland senior editor Tisha Nemeth (:divend:)