Street Art and Peace

This chapter looks at street art and its relationship to peace efforts. Specifically, it examines how street art is used as a medium to express the concerns, needs, and wants of societal groups whose everyday lives are affected by decisions made at (and by) higher political levels, but whose voices remain marginalized and/or silenced. The fact that this type of artistic intervention takes place in the street means that its message is by definition accessible by a large audience. Depending on the circumstances of each case and the severity of the situation faced by everyday actors, street art interventions may not only manifest instances of injustice or mistreatment but may also lead to the transformation
of the situation through collective action (mobilization, protest, manifestation). The chapter looks at a few examples where street art has had this type of effect.