During the Wisconsin Uprising, Moline, Hall and others invented and open-sourced a DIY technology to create lightweight and portable lighted letters, which allow communities of volunteers to spell out nighttime political messages in public spaces. Thus, the Overpass Light Brigade was born. We came to realize that our actions were not only commanding as political performance and documentary drama, but fostered a profound sense of community among our volunteers. In this session we hope to share a brief history of this movement, including actions from the 50 active nationwide and international chapters, a how-to for those interested in beginning their own Light Brigades, and analysis of how to harness video, images, social media, live-streaming and blog-writing in order to amplify collective progressive political messages. Working with labor organizations, peace activists, voting rights campaigns, Indigenous Rights groups, and on healthcare issues, OLB collaborations help give our disempowered citizenry visibility and voice.

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