Would you like to be an anti-fascist educator? This wheatpasting article will show you exactly how. All you really need is access to a printer, water, flour, large brushes, and time.
Why Wheatpaste?
In today’s environment, social media is important, but fascist-friendly tech oligarchs have instituted many censorship choke points that keep anti-fascist messages from spreading. Even posting something as basic as “punch a Nazi!” might be enough to get you banned. As a result, many people are confused about what fascism actually is and how to resist it. Sometimes, seeing one simple wheatpasted message in day-to-day life creates a visceral connection and can have more impact than a thousand social media upvotes. Showing solidarity to the victims and targets of fascism and lifting their spirits is another crucial purpose of these physical messages.
Our friends regularly wheatpaste simple messages and stickers around Atlanta.
You can find some designs here on our website. You can download PDFs with these messages and print them out, or make your own anti-racist and anti-fascist messages.
How to Wheatpaste
(Condensed from A Field Guide to Wheatpasting by Crimethinc)
To make wheatpaste, mix two parts white or whole-grain wheat flour with three parts water, stir out any lumps, and heat the mixture to a boil, stirring continuously so as not to burn it. When it thickens, add more water; continue cooking it on low heat for at least half an hour, stirring continuously. Some people add a little sugar or cornstarch for extra stickiness; don’t be afraid to experiment. Wheatpaste, once made, will last for a while if kept in sealed containers, though eventually it will dry up or become rotten—and sealed containers of it have been known to burst, to unfortunate effect. Keep them in a refrigerator if you can.
You can also obtain wallpaper adhesive at any home improvement store; this comes in pre-mixed buckets or boxes of powder. Wallpaper adhesive is much quicker and easier to mix than wheatpaste, and not much more expensive even if you are paying for it. Don’t get the brands advertised as “easy to remove,” obviously—get the most heavy-duty adhesive available.
If you’re pasting up a lot of small posters, carry them in a way that enables you to access them easily without it being obvious that you have them. A messenger bag will serve for this—just make sure you can reach into it and slide one out without much fumbling. If you’re posting great big posters, roll them up, top side out so you can swiftly unroll them down the wall, and rubber band them individually.
You’ll need a container from which to apply the paste. Wheatpaste tends to be thick, so a vessel with a wide mouth such as a large plastic bottled water container is well-suited for it; wallpaper adhesive tends to be thinner and more consistent, so it can be dispensed out of smaller holes, such as that of a dishwashing soap container with a pop-up nozzle. It can help to have something to smooth the posters up on the wall—a window-washing squeegee from a gas station will suffice, or you could get a plastic wallpaper smoother from the same retailers that provide wallpaper adhesive. Big paintbrushes can speed the application of wheatpaste, too. You could do all of this with your hands, but it will leave you messy.
For each poster, pick a good location, and make sure it’s clean; most smooth metal, glass, or stucco will take pasting nicely, while wood or concrete will be somewhat less accommodating, and brick even less so. Next, apply the paste. The more wheatpaste you use, the longer it will take to dry, so use the minimum amount to make all of the poster stick. If you’re using smaller posters, spread paste over the wall, place the poster on the pasted area, smooth out all air bubbles and wrinkles, and spread some paste over the top to hold down the corners. If you’re using larger posters, unroll them flat on the ground and apply the paste to their backs there, then put them on the wall, smooth them out, and add another layer of paste. Starting out on the ground renders you less conspicuous while you’re making sure the paste is evenly applied.
When you think about where to paste, balance the length of time the poster will probably stay up against the amount of traffic the location gets, factoring in the question of which demographics will most appreciate your design. Often, it is better to put up a poster in an alley that will remain for six months than it is to put up twenty along Main Street that will be gone by noon.
Risks of Wheatpasting
For popular public locations, it’s possible to get arrested and face charges for wheatpasting. Whether or not you’re part of an organized group like ours, getting caught for spreading anti-fascist messages could get you further targeted as antifa. Be aware of these risks and think through them carefully. The safest way to wheatpaste is to carefully pick the place and time, and most importantly, to do it in a group. Divide up the labor, stay in close contact, and keep someone on lookout.
When it comes to printing, black and white laser printers and inkjets are typically untraceable back to the source printer. (Inkjets using water-soluble ink are unsuitable for wheatpasted posters, though, since the designs will run.) Many color laser printers and color copiers leave marks that can potentially be traced back to the printer. You can read more about printer tracking here at the Electronic Frontier Foundation. If you’re using a basic home consumer inkjet or Brother black and white laser printer, you don’t have to worry about this.