Gary Brown: Making money proclaim your political ideals
"STAMP MONEY OUT OF POLITICS."
The uppercase words were stamped on the front of a $1 bill, right over the face of George Washington. He looked a little like he was frowning at the disrespect, but it was difficult to tell because his eyes were barely peeking out over the "O" and "U" of "OUT" and most of his mouth was covered up by the "TIC" of "POLITICS."
Regardless of our first president's plight I was sort of pleased with the little treasure I had come across. I had gotten my first Stamp Stampede dollar bill. The campaign that had been launched more than a dozen years ago – it was spearheaded by Ben Cohen, the co-founder of Ben & Jerry's ice cream – was only now getting around to passing on its message to me.
"Stamp Your Money and Make it Talk," a motto at the Stamp Stampede's website suggests.
Turning the bill over in my fingers, I found there was nothing untoward on the back of my dollar. We still trusted in God, put an eye at the pinnacle of a pyramid, and apparently were proud of "The Great Seal of the United States."
But, on the front, we wanted to "#GetMoneyOut" and I could "TRACK THIS BILL" by going to a website, either the Stamp Stampede's or the stamper's. The latter stamper billed itself as an organization that was "Championing Progressive Values."
According to an online definition I read, "Progressive holds that it is possible to improv e human societies through political action."
"As a political movement, progressivism seeks to advance the human condition through social reform based on purported advancement in science, technology, economic development and social organization."
It's hard to argue against any of those things. I guess I just always assumed that getting all that accomplished would cost us more than a buck.
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How the stamping started
Stamping began in the autumn of 2012, according to a history at the Stamp Stampede website, when the self-proclaimed "Original Viral Marketing Campaign" solicited people to "Stamp Your Money and Make it Talk."
"Stamped bills stay in circulation for 2.5 years and are seen by over 800 people as they get passed from hand to hand," the Stamp Stampede website explained.
A lot of people liked the idea. A map at the website shows what appears to be thousands of red dots of stampers on a map of the United States.
The website said that "every time someone reports seeing a stamped bill it gets added to the leaderboards." I guess progressivism is sort of competitive. Still, the winners, the campaign's supporters predict, ultimately will be the people.
"It's not gonna be easy," the Stampede website notes. "But, sustained protests by the people have forced huge changes before. It ended slavery, It got women the vote. It passed the Voting Rights Act. It passed gay rights. The key is to make your voice heard."
I looked down at my dollar again. It looked like it had been talking for a long time. Certainly it wasn't shouting at the top of its lungs anymore. When I put it into my wallet, it was in worse shape than any of my other non-protesting and unstamped $1 bills.
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Why it's legally OK
I can guess what some of you are thinking. You're wondering, "Is it even legal to stamp money?" I questioned that myself.
"Many people assume that it’s illegal to stamp or write on paper currency, but they’re wrong!" claim the Stamp Stampede people on a page at their website for frequently asked questions. "We’re not defacing U.S. currency, we’re decorating dollars!"
According to the website, there are three things you cannot do to money. You can't increase the denomination because adding a zero to a $1 bill to grow your investment doesn't go over well with the Treasury Department. You can't destroy or in any other way make currency unfit for circulation, although it's difficult to understand why you'd want to throw away your money in that manner. And, you can't advertise a business.
"But we are putting political messages on the bills, not commercial advertisements," notes Stamp Stampede. "Because we all want these bills to stay in circulation and we’re stamping to send a message about an issue that’s important to us, it’s legal!"
So, you can cover up George Washington's face with any kind of political message you want. "Not To Be Used For Bribing Politicians" is another message the Stamp Stampede suggests. But, I suppose you should stop short of drawing a mustache beneath the president's nose.
That might be defacing currency.
Reach Gary at gary.brown.rep@gmail.com. On Twitter: @gbrownREP.
This article originally appeared on The Repository: Gary Brown: How to make your money proclaim your political ideals
