Sean "P. Diddy" Combs recently founded Citizen Change, a non-partisan, non-profit organization dedicated to mobilizing the young vote, and of course, there's a T-shirt. The controversial "Vote or Die!" shirts have been appearing on MTV on the backs of artists like 50 Cent and Mary J. Blige. While the extreme message has generated plenty of press, it's hard to tell whether the shirt will help Citizen Change win over young people to the democratic process. While Combs has been lauded for his efforts, not everyone agrees that it's enough to simply get young voters to the polls.
"It's important to vote, but I think that voter education is key - making sure that people know what they're voting for and what the issues are," junior Stacey Garfinkle said.
Controversial shirt designer John Foster-Keddie, however, points out that in order to get someone interested in the issues at hand, you have to first grab their attention.
"I think T-shirts can force people to think about voting, if only for a second," Keddie said. "And since the biggest problem affecting the youth vote is indifference, even thinking about voting for the split second it takes to read somebody's shirt is a step in the right direction."
Last winter, Keddie's vintage shirt company, Vintage Vantage, sold a design to Urban Outfitters that read, "Voting is for Old People." Keddie insists that he was just "trying to be funny and start a dialogue," but not everyone saw the humor. Urban Outfitters yanked the shirt from its shelves under protest from the Harvard Political Institute and Fox News, among other groups, so Keddie is taking the shirt's message into his own hands. He's offering the shirt for free through his Web site if shoppers promise to send him a picture leaving the voting booth in his shirt this November.
While Keddie said he thinks shirts can get people to think about the upcoming election, he questions whether or not a shirt is a useful tool for making a political point or influencing someone else's opinion.
"It's important to vote, but I think that voter education is key - making sure that people know what they're voting for and what the issues are," junior Stacey Garfinkle said.
Controversial shirt designer John Foster-Keddie, however, points out that in order to get someone interested in the issues at hand, you have to first grab their attention.
"I think T-shirts can force people to think about voting, if only for a second," Keddie said. "And since the biggest problem affecting the youth vote is indifference, even thinking about voting for the split second it takes to read somebody's shirt is a step in the right direction."
Last winter, Keddie's vintage shirt company, Vintage Vantage, sold a design to Urban Outfitters that read, "Voting is for Old People." Keddie insists that he was just "trying to be funny and start a dialogue," but not everyone saw the humor. Urban Outfitters yanked the shirt from its shelves under protest from the Harvard Political Institute and Fox News, among other groups, so Keddie is taking the shirt's message into his own hands. He's offering the shirt for free through his Web site if shoppers promise to send him a picture leaving the voting booth in his shirt this November.
While Keddie said he thinks shirts can get people to think about the upcoming election, he questions whether or not a shirt is a useful tool for making a political point or influencing someone else's opinion.
