City of Chicago - Boards of Change
The City of Chicago wanted FCB Chicago to address persistently low voter turnout in disenfranchised neighborhoods, especially among Black Americans, following the Black Lives Matter protests. The challenge was to transform symbols of social unrest into tools for civic engagement. The brand needed to empower these voices, inspiring them to register and vote, ultimately increasing participation and fostering systemic change.
Creative Idea
Chicago converted Black Lives Matter protest boards into voting booths, channeling street demands into electoral power.
The City of Chicago, through the Boards of Change campaign, transformed plywood boards from Black Lives Matter protests into voting booths, turning symbols of social unrest into tools for civic engagement. By repurposing these boards with messages of unity and justice, the campaign inspired residents in low-turnout neighborhoods to register and vote, empowering disenfranchised voices to create systemic change.
Creative Strategy Deconstructed
Company
The City of Chicago possessed the administrative authority to facilitate voter registration and access to the physical plywood artifacts recovered from its own streets.
Category
Public service announcements typically use generic 'get out the vote' slogans or celebrity endorsements that lack a visceral connection to the specific local struggles of the community.
Customer
Disenfranchised residents felt their voices were powerful in the streets but doubted that the bureaucratic act of voting could actually deliver the justice they were demanding.
Culture
The 2020 social justice movement turned urban plywood barricades into a global visual language of protest, signaling a shift from civil unrest toward a demand for systemic change.
Company
The City of Chicago possessed the administrative authority to facilitate voter registration and access to the physical plywood artifacts recovered from its own streets.
Category
Public service announcements typically use generic 'get out the vote' slogans or celebrity endorsements that lack a visceral connection to the specific local struggles of the community.
Strategy:
Convert the physical artifacts of street activism into functional voting tools to bridge the gap between protest and policy.
Customer
Disenfranchised residents felt their voices were powerful in the streets but doubted that the bureaucratic act of voting could actually deliver the justice they were demanding.
Culture
The 2020 social justice movement turned urban plywood barricades into a global visual language of protest, signaling a shift from civil unrest toward a demand for systemic change.
Strategy:
Convert the physical artifacts of street activism into functional voting tools to bridge the gap between protest and policy.
Strategy Technique
Turn Brand Values Into Action
The City transformed protest boards into voting booths, tangibly demonstrating its commitment to civic engagement and empowering disenfranchised voices. This action proved their values rather than just stating them.
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Creative Technique
Unexpected Utility
The campaign repurposed protest boards into voting booths. This gave existing objects an unexpected and empowering utility, turning symbols of unrest into tools for change.
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