{"id":219448,"date":"2026-06-15T10:01:18","date_gmt":"2026-06-15T10:01:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/219448\/"},"modified":"2026-06-15T10:01:18","modified_gmt":"2026-06-15T10:01:18","slug":"ice-out-protest-art-in-philly-ramps-up-amid-world-cup-spotlight","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/219448\/","title":{"rendered":"‘ICE Out’ protest art in Philly ramps up amid World Cup spotlight"},"content":{"rendered":"

Love Philly? So do we. Let\u2019s be friends.\u00a0Sign up for the Billy Penn newsletter today<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The \u201cICE Out\u201d movement continues to gain traction in cities and towns across the U.S., including in Philadelphia, where city officials passed bills restricting immigration enforcement<\/a> and community advocates are pushing for protections for fans and tourists<\/a> attending FIFA World Cup games<\/a> and festivities<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But anti-ICE efforts have been active for over a year on the ground in Philly, with residents embracing the city\u2019s long tradition of blending art, activism and community-building.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a tradition that the U.S. Department of Arts and Culture \u2013 a national advocacy group launched in 2013, not an actual government agency \u2013 made sure to include in their latest campaign, \u201cNo ICE in the Cup.\u201d<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n

The group\u2019s Philly street poster, designed by local printmaker and artist Peri Law, depicts a World Cup trophy that resembles a classic Greek vase and incorporates the Philly skyline, images of ICE officers and a multiracial coalition of residents at local protests \u2013 set against the backdrop of a soccer goal net made of chain link topped with barbed wire.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It joins other posters commissioned from artists in each of the 11 cities in the U.S. that are hosting World Cup games including New York, Boston, Miami, Kansas City, Dallas, Houston, Atlanta, Los Angeles and Seattle.\u00a0<\/p>\n

As Carol Zou, cultural organizer with the USDAC who is also a former Philly resident and community leader, told Billy Penn, the group\u2019s campaign plugs into existing anti-ICE infrastructure in local communities that have been doing the work already.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe No ICE in the Cup campaign came about because many people in the U.S. were moved to take action against the presence of ICE in our cities and communities,\u201d Zou said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

On the vibrant Philly art ecosystem and loose artist collectives, Zou, who once worked as director of programs at Asian Arts Initiative, notes \u201cWhat isn\u2019t special about Philly? I really love that Philly has so many artists who are engaged in using their artwork for social change. Philly has artists [who] can serve as that valuable bridge between organizing priorities and narrative change artwork.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

What USDAC offers participating cities in the campaign, they said, is \u201cdigital connections to people in other cities \u2013 how people can be using their art to fight our current wave of fascism.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

For Law, the opportunity to create the Philly poster for No ICE in the Cup was a natural continuation of her work as both an artist and youth programs coordinator with Asian Americans United.\u00a0<\/p>\n

She had already created a popular design of a Lunar New Year Fire Horse surrounded by flames and melting ice, with the words \u2018ICE MELTS UNDER FIRE\u201d that she prints as stickers and posters to fundraise for AAU\u2019s Communities In Solidarity Fund that supports immigrant families in Philly who are affected by detention.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI was hosting an ICE Out printing event at Soapbox<\/a> and a person asked about my art and said Carol is looking for someone based in Philly. The [art prompt] was to say \u201cICE Out of the World Cup\u201d or \u201cNo ICE\u201d and to make connections between what is happening in your city with what is going on nationally as well.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cICE hasn\u2019t been as prevalent in Philly probably because of the U.S. 250th birthday because they don\u2019t want bad press in Philly ahead of a national event and international event,\u201d Law said of her design inspiration. \u201cSo I kind of wanted to highlight, \u2018what are people doing?\u2019 There are still people protesting every day, ICE Watch [participants] getting arrested outside to make a stand. I wanted to make a connection that Pennsylvania has the largest detention center in the Northeast<\/a>. Our state holds so many people who are detained.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Working together to reclaim space\u00a0<\/p>\n

Reclaim Philly is among the many local collectives using art as a form of protest and solidarity. During the summer of 2025, the group waged a successful letter-writing campaign to get beloved Germantown cafe owner Anovsack \u2018Anou\u2019 Vongbandith out of the Moshannon Detention Center<\/a>. Now, the self-organizing, decentralized group helps support and empower artists.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Among those artists are Alison Zeidman and Timothy Prettyman, a South Philly couple who created a mass-producable design that allows people to DIY their own window signs showing solidarity with immigrant neighbors.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"People color posters designed by Timothy Prettyman and Alison Zeidman crafted for Reclaim Philly, expressing solidarity with immigrants amid ICE raids. (Heather Chin\/Billy Penn)<\/p>\n

\u201cWe came up with a message that started with \u2018We all live here\u2019 and have a few different taglines,\u201d said Zeidman, who is a comedian and writer. \u201cTim had the idea of using this quilt motif as an element of the design to emphasize the idea of unity and neighborhood solidarity.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Prettyman, an artist who usually works in paint, said that while he\u2019s never quilted, the idea of \u201cjoining pieces that don\u2019t necessarily look like they\u2019re gonna fit together, but when you put them together, it makes a solid, cohesive design\u201d seemed appropriate.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It\u2019s also \u201ca nice way for people who are from different parts of Philly to sit down and make a design of their own, but it\u2019s all uniform in the end.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the first time I\u2019ve done some kind of political or timely messaging,\u201d Prettyman added, saying he grew up inspired by political art from the pre-WWII era up through the Cold War. \u201cIt kind of really sparked something in me that this might be something going forward that i do on a more regular basis because it\u2019s necessary, people respond to it, and it\u2019s hard to not put some kind of messaging in your work now because everything is just so urgent and so upfront.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"A window sign expressing solidarity with immigrants in Philadelphia amid increased ICE raids. (Heather Chin\/Billy Penn)<\/p>\n

On the power of art to convey messages, Zeidman, who has written for \u201cFull Frontal with Samantha Bee\u201d and \u201cAdam Ruins Everything,\u201d said she \u201calways love[s] a funny protest sign. People get really creative and clever. I think that that kind of stuff is not frivolous. It\u2019s whatever gets people engaged, whatever grabs attention.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cPhilly is a sign town. Every block, there\u2019s always a handwritten sign in somebody\u2019s window or on their stoop, saying \u2018don\u2019t throw trash out here,\u2019 but you stop and read it,\u201d Prettyman said. \u201cThe idea behind this is we want people to look at these signs and stop. And go \u2018I know I agree with this messaging\u2019 It\u2019s positive, it\u2019s uplifting.\u201d<\/p>\n

Art as communication beyond party politics<\/p>\n

Art educator Mitch Wiesen shares the sentiment, noting that \u201caction cannot exist without design and oftentimes design cannot exist without action.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cDuring the previous wave of anti-ICE protest work in 2017, I was involved with Abolish ICE Philadelphia, Occupy City Hall, and designed a zine at the time and posters back then,\u201d they said. But \u201cit can be really difficult to organize and mobilize people under democratic leadership. I think people can have a really difficult time sometimes equating the things they so vehemently oppose with things Democrats are supporting and abetting as well.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Now, \u201cwith widespread anti-ICE sentiment, it felt like a really important time to use the skills I have as a designer and citizen of Philadelphia to spread the most important information.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why Wiesen, a graphic designer who also works as an adjunct at Temple, created a 26\u00d740 inch print design available free through Four Fingers Press. The design visualizes eyes looking out from windows in a communal act of witness, above a variation of the post-9\/11 \u201cIf you see something, say something\u201d message, and lists the phone number for Juntos\u2019 Raid Response Hotline.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cDesign is so much about communication. My goal with this piece was to communicate an idea that Philadelphia is a tightly knit city, with tightly packed rowhomes on often narrow streets [where] someone is almost always peeking out their windows to see what\u2019s going on \u2013 an important element of what makes Philly community oriented, can keep Philly safe in times like this.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Wiesen says they \u201chope the average person sees that and thinks \u2018yeah, we do keep an eye out,\u2019 but also that ICE agents see the poster and think twice about what they\u2019re planning to do \u2013 this city is watching them and we are going to hold them to that standard.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

And, they add, \u201cI hope immigrants see that poster and see that [we] stand up for our immigrant neighbors and community members.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"A protest sign that mimics the blue and yellow historic markers you can find around Philadelphia with the city\u2019s official seal on top.\u00a0(Courtesy of Make it Weird)<\/p>\n

Street art, by and for the people\u00a0<\/p>\n

Philadelphia\u2019s street artists have also been getting creative with messaging against ICE.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Artist Make it Weird created a protest sign with musician Huston West that mimics the blue and yellow historic markers you can find around Philadelphia with the city\u2019s official seal on top.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cMonday, February 16th, 2026 at 8:45 a.m. at this location, a man was kidnapped by federal ICE agents,\u201d the sign reads. \u201cLikely a food delivery driver, he parked in the handicap zone, with hazard lights on, a foot from the curb, clearly not expecting to stay long. Clearly not expecting to be kidnapped.\u201d<\/p>\n

The sign was placed outside of the Federal Courthouse Sixth and Market streets.<\/p>\n

\u201cI designed that sign and I hit up Make It Weird,\u201d West told BP in March. \u201cThey tweaked the design a little, made the sign, came over the next day and installed it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe idea [was to create] a series of these things that help people to remember that this is happening and not be able to look away,\u201d Make it Weird said. \u201cIt\u2019s the largest sticker I\u2019ve ever made. \u2026 It\u2019s 23 inches wide, 11 inches high.\u201d<\/p>\n

You may know Make it Weird for their viral SEPTA bus signs around the city \u2014 the unofficial solar-powered signs that let you know when the bus is arriving. (A service the city finally began rolling out in May.<\/a>)\u00a0<\/p>\n

While they create service-driven art and more light-hearted pieces, they have been gaining recognition for their protest art, which they started making after attending an anti-fascist event at the Flashpoint<\/a> Community and Gallery space.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI attended a couple events there, and I noticed that they had on the table those cards from the Immigrant Legal Resource Center<\/a>,\u201d Make it Weird said. \u201cI live in a neighborhood where I know that a lot of my neighbors may be worried about this stuff.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Volunteers with Spiral Q lead an art-making session at the Asian Arts Initiative. (Heather Chin\/Billy Penn)<\/p>\n

Make it Weird creates signs in both English and Spanish informing people of their rights during an ICE raid, including \u201cNo tiene que abrir la puerta\u201d or \u201cYou do not have to open the door.\u201d<\/p>\n

Artist Praise Dobler, a collaborator of Make it Weird\u2019s, has also been creating signs with anti-ICE messaging.<\/p>\n

The artist is known for his lighter fare<\/a>, stickers with the face of St. Louis Cardinals football guard Conrad Dobler. Lately, however, Dobler too has been leaning into more political content.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the past couple months, I\u2019ve definitely been putting out more explicitly f\u2014 ice type stuff,\u201d thee said. (Praise Dobler goes by thee pronouns.) \u201cAnd recently not even adding the Praise Dobler thing on it, just taking stickers and\u2026 flood as much of that message out in the streets as I can.\u201d<\/p>\n

The idea is to give people a reminder that they are not alone.<\/p>\n

\"\"Musicians with Son Revoltura lead a protest music-making session at Asian Arts Initiative. (Heather Chin\/Billy Penn)<\/p>\n

\u201cLook up Resistance Ephemera<\/a>,\u201d Dobler said. \u201cHe\u2019ll put [anti-facist messaging] on sticker material called eggshell material, where it\u2019s really hard to get rid of the sticker. It just comes off in little chips. So people will scratch his one sticker, and they\u2019ll find another\u2026 It\u2019ll be 20 scratch stickers lined up. And just, it\u2019s a back and forth. It\u2019s a battle with the Karens and the chuds in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

Praise Dobler said that anyone can step up when it comes to creating street art and finding common ground.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you\u2019re feeling some kind of way during everything that\u2019s going on in this country and in the world politically, then just connect with your neighbors and find like-minded people,\u201d thee said. \u201cHelp put that message out that you\u2019re not alone and that you don\u2019t have to deal with all this.\u201d<\/p>\n

And even if you don\u2019t agree with their artwork, Dobler appreciated the city of Philadelphia for being a space that is safe and open to messaging like his.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought a lot about [Isaiah] Zagar dying<\/a>,\u201d thee said. \u201cSome of the imagery and choices that are used can be a little raunchy or evocative in his work. But, you know, rather than just dismiss it out of hand or report it to 311, have it removed, I think people are just a lot more accepting of public art and rogue installations here than they are in other parts of the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Graphic artist Katie Dempsey\u2019s anti-ICE protest buttons were on display along with other artwork at a local art festival. (Heather Chin\/Billy Penn)<\/p>\n

Philly art on the world stage\u00a0<\/p>\n

With thousands of visitors from around the world expected to visit Philly \u2013 the \u201cMural Capital of the World\u201d<\/a>! \u2013 over the next several weeks and months, some artists say this is also an opportunity to communicate not just with fellow Philadelphians, but with neighbors from other countries.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWith the World Cup and America 250, I know a lot of people are staying home in their home countries and not coming here. It completely makes sense; I\u2019d probably do the same thing,\u201d said Katie Dempsey, a graphic designer and collaborator on Collide Zine, which co-hosted an anti-ICE fundraiser to support Juntos\u2019 work with local families earlier this week at Tattooed Mom.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Dempsey has started making small wooden \u2018F\u2013 ICE\u2019 buttons to sell at street fairs.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a Jewish person, I really can see a direct comparison between what\u2019s happening now and what was happening maybe in 1920s, 1930s Germany [when] this was my relatives being treated the same exact way as what\u2019s happening now,\u201d she said. \u201cIt matters very much to me as someone who has the kind of privilege where I probably will not be harassed specifically by ICE. I feel like it\u2019s my responsibility to do something to defend the people who are being unfairly harassed by ICE and by certain elements of today\u2019s society that are not as open-minded as I would like to think we should be at this point.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAmerica is not safe right now, especially for immigrants. I\u2019m a little ashamed of our country right now, but I\u2019m trying to do my little tiny part to make it a little bit better and to let people of other cultures, countries and ethnicities know that a lot of people in America consider them welcome here,\u201d she said. \u201cI don\u2019t want them to feel like the average American doesn\u2019t want people of other countries to come here.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Collide Zine collaborator Lindsey Gill agreed, stating that \u201cas artists, it\u2019s almost our responsibility to express that in ways that are different than the mainstream media. There\u2019s so much AI art now and misinformation being spread. The local artists that are really candid with people with their art, blatantly saying this is coming from people experiencing it first hand \u2013 children of immigrants, people that have seen their neighbors taken away by ICE, first-hand, especially here in South Philadelphia.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

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