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HANDWRITING THE CONSTITUTION

Handwriting the U.S. Constitution and international documents in support of human rights.

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HANDWRITING THE CONSTITUTION

HANDWRITING THE CONSTITUTION

HANDWRITING THE CONSTITUTION

HANDWRITING THE CONSTITUTION

HANDWRITING THE CONSTITUTION

Handwriting the U.S. Constitution and international documents in support of human rights.

Handwriting the U.S. Constitution and international documents in support of human rights.

Handwriting the U.S. Constitution and international documents in support of human rights.

Handwriting the U.S. Constitution and international documents in support of human rights.

Morgan O'Hara
Morgan O'Hara
Morgan O'Hara
Morgan O'Hara
1 Campaign |
New York City, United States
$2,163 USD 26 backers
7% of $30,000 Flexible Goal Flexible Goal
Overview
HANDWRITING THE CONSTITUTION is a return to essentials, hopefulness and a positive vision. It is a quiet action that deepens understanding of historic documents written to protect basic human rights. Initiated by Morgan O'Hara at the New York Public Library in January 2017, a small group gathered monthly to hand copy the Constitution of the United States. It has now spread nationally and internationally led by collaborators who wish to embody the laws that are meant to protect all people.

Summary

Morgan O'Hara is a visual artist based in New York City. In January 2017, a time of stark political change in the United States, O'Hara felt the need to do something connected to her art practice which also addressed her political concerns and offered a sense of empowerment and encouragement to the community. Her practice of hand copying the Constitution of the United States - a document that is meant to protect the basic human rights of all American people - provided focus. Through hand copying, the writer absorbs information experientially, making room for reflection, new realizations, and an embodied understanding of the text. When done as a community, a sense of collaboration surfaces and nourishes.

HANDWRITING THE CONSTITUTION is not about learning by rote, but participation through writing. It is not about efficiency, but about taking time to contemplate meaning through the simple act of handwriting. As the writing flows, each person's gestures and choices give new form to the text, aligning the project with an art practice. It is also a social practice, a gathering in a public place for a collective effort. This project exists so people can know their rights, and resist negative thinking.

This project is not only intended for people in the United States. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was hand copied in an O'Hara exhibition in Taipei, Taiwan in April and May of 2017, and she will hand write The Magna Carta in Dublin, Ireland in 2018. It is the intention of this project to involve as many people as possible to discover and handwrite documents that protect the basic human rights of all people. 

 

What We Need & What You Get

We are looking to fundraise $30,000 for:

- rental of space in which to work

- website hosting

- designer's work on the website www.handwritingtheconstitution.com

- website maintenance

- documentation of handwriting sessions (photo and video)

- outreach, daily correspondence, and collecting feedback from collaborators

- generation of national and international visibility, including writing press releases, interviews, and social media 

Up to this point, we have volunteered time and skills, such as video and photo documentation, the design of invitations to handwriting sessions, gathering materials for sessions, researching human rights documents, and organizing handwriting sessions. We'd like to continue these efforts in order to bring this project to as many people as possible and, of course, the rent must be paid.

If we do not reach our entire goal, we will continue to the best of our ability. At its most basic, a handwriting session is simple and inexpensive: a few copies of the document being handwritten, paper, pens, and a group of people who decide to give their time to experience an important document. The time consuming aspect of the project is administrative. 

 

Perks

$25 Donor name listed on website 

$50 Handwritten personalized thank you from O’Hara and the New York HANDWRITERS plus donor name listed on website

$100 Set of 5 different WE THE PEOPLE postcards plus donor name listed on website

$250 Have your name added to a document WE THE PEOPLE HANDWRITING THE CONSTITUTION done in the calligraphic style of the U.S. Constitution by O’Hara and posted on the website

$1000  Dinner in New York with two members of the HANDWRITING THE CONSTITUTION team

$2500 A member of the HANDWRITING THE CONSTITUTION team will go to your town and organize a handwriting session in your place of choice

$5000 Morgan will go to your town, give a lecture on the project, and organize a handwriting session in your place of choice

$30,000 Own a complete original handwritten copy of the Constitution done by Morgan O'Hara, approximately 10 handwritten pages on handmade paper.

 

The Impact

The process of HANDWRITING THE CONSTITUTION is transformative. It generates calm in the face of a daily bombardment from the news channels and social media. Clarity and peace of mind are essential to rational thought and decisive action and this process has been very useful in this regard. If you look at the website we created www.handwritingtheconstitution.com under COLLABORATOR STATEMENTS you will get an idea of the impact the process has had on other individuals. What kind of impact will it have on you? There is only one way to find out.

 

Risks & Challenges

The biggest risk or obstacle is that the project will diminish in scope rather than grow, simply because of limited resources for covering rent and professional services. Eventually it could turn back into one person at a table HANDWRITING THE CONSTITUTION as a solo activity. That wouldn't be bad, but it would be much better if the process and inspiration the practice generates would spread and more people would participate. The more cognizant we are of our rights as citizens, the more prepared we will be to recognize and act if these rights are threatened. If many of us are aware, the atmosphere can only improve.

We did not anticipate that putting HANDWRITING THE CONSTITUTION together would create such national enthusiasm. It was recently featured in the New York Times, the Primo Levi Institute, Art Net, and The New York Observer. Letters and emails arrive daily describing collaborators initiating their own handwriting sessions across the country. It is of course, wonderful that the idea generates interest and a desire to participate, but the time it takes to manage all of this and to make it grow is considerable. It has become a full time commitment and we still need to pay living expenses, rent, and professional services to keep it going. 

 

Other Ways You Can Help

1. Organize a HANDWRITING THE CONSTITUTION session in your town and send a few good images to handwritingtheconstitution@gmail.com

2. Write a few paragraphs about your take on the value of HANDWRITING THE CONSTITUTION

3. Get your local newspaper to post an article about the project

4. Use Indiegogo tools to promote the project

 

Thank you for becoming a part of the project and considering a donation.

- Morgan O'Hara and the Constitution Handwriters

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Choose your Perk

Listing

$25 USD
Your name will be added to the donor list on the HANDWRITING THE CONSTITUTION website
Included Items
  • Listing
Estimated Shipping
September 2017
4 claimed

Personalized Thank You

$50 USD
You will receive a handwritten personalized thank you note from Morgan O'Hara and the New York Handwriters plus your name will be added to the donor list on the HANDWRITING THE CONSTITUTION website
Included Items
  • Listing
  • Personalized Thank You
Estimated Shipping
September 2017
3 claimed
Ships worldwide.

WE THE PEOPLE Postcards

$100 USD
Receive a set of FIVE different WE THE PEOPLE postcards that you can send to friends and family.
Included Items
  • Listing
  • Personalized Thank You
  • WE THE PEOPLE postcards
Estimated Shipping
December 2017
3 claimed
Ships worldwide.

Calligraphy Document

$250 USD
Have your signature added to a facsimile of the Declaration of Independence in a calligraphic style by Morgan O'Hara and posted on the website.
Included Items
  • Calligraphy Document
Estimated Shipping
December 2017
0 out of 20 of claimed

Dinner in New York City

$1,000 USD
Enjoy dinner in New York City with two members of the Handwriting the Constitution team.
Included Items
  • Dinner in New York City
Estimated Shipping
January 2018
0 claimed

Session in your Hometown

$2,500 USD
A member of the HANDWRITING THE CONSTITUTION team will go to your town and organize a handwriting session in your place of choice.
Included Items
  • Session in Your Hometown
Estimated Shipping
January 2018
0 claimed

Session with Morgan O'Hara

$5,000 USD
Morgan will go to your town, give a lecture on the project, and organize a handwriting session in your place of choice.
Included Items
  • Session with Morgan O'Hara
Estimated Shipping
January 2018
0 claimed

Artwork by Morgan O'Hara

$30,000 USD
Own a complete original handwritten copy of the Constitution done by Morgan O'Hara, approximately 10 handwritten pages on handmade paper.
Included Items
  • Artwork by Morgan O'Hara
Estimated Shipping
January 2017
0 out of 2 of claimed
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