the friday five | 4 26 24
Every Friday, a new Montage will recommend you five things that I, Brad, am currently enjoying. “Things” is an ugly word, but it’s the best word here I think.
This is the Friday Five for Friday, April 26, 2024. Thank you!
Two-person tents with a rainfly
Sleeping in a tent gives you the same distinct pleasure you might get from kissing the wet earth first thing in the morning. You go to sleep a little closer to the stars and wake up a little closer to yourself — a little more crisp and tired, a little damp, a little cold, and fresher somehow. A two-person tent (or three- or four-person if you can swing it) lets you turn the night into a party. Who doesn’t like staying up late telling stories, singing quiet songs, and writing joint statements of intent for the school’s daily paper? There is community there, and love, despite the tight quarters. Or because of them. A used tent off of Craigslist will do just fine. The tough part hasn’t yet begun, but you’re feeling strong. The rainfly’s for in case it rains.
Cardboard and fat black Sharpies
Let your university’s craven board of directors know how you feel in the cheapest, loudest way you can. What I love about cardboard and fat black Sharpies is one you can find lying around in basically any building on campus and the other you can borrow from your friend who’s currently undeclared but taking so many art history classes it’s obvious to everyone but them that they should just major in art history. Use your borrowed Sharpie to write thick and angry messages of righteous disgust — if it pisses off the cops, you get bonus points. Here’s a few ideas if you’re stuck pondering: “There is Blood on Your Hands.” “No War with Our Tuition.” “Divest.”
Breathable face coverings
Donating your visage to the surveillance state is so 2010. Bring safety to yourself, your friends, and the cause at large by covering up — privacy is power. Grab an N95 from the front office of any nearby building, or buy in bulk online and pass them around at camp (great way to make new friends). Put that scarf you got for Christmas six years ago and have never worn to good use for once. Buy a keffiyeh from Hirbawi — lightweight, beautiful, and large enough to cover everything you need it to. Be out and be loud, but be smart.
Documenting the militarized fascist police state
Have you noticed how much police officers hate to be recorded? Have you also noticed how much harder it is to stop someone from recording them when 30 people are doing so all at once? To archive the destructive actions of the militarized police state we all live under is to build history for the next generation. It holds up a mirror to evil, not with any expectation that a soul will suddenly emerge, but with a wider net in mind — one that exposes evil to the long arm of narrative, which reaches back into the past and forward into the future all at once. Put these goons on film, and put them online. Make sure they cannot hide.
Standing up against the genocide our degenerate geriatric institutions are actively financing without hesitation
Find a list of Gaza solidarity encampment bail funds here: