This year, Alaska's "I Voted" stickers celebrate the women of Alaska using bright and fun illustrations. There are four designs representing people of different areas and their regional dress. A southeastern woman wears a flowing button blanket as she drums; from the far north, a musher in a parka appears with her dogs and sled; a woman in a floral kuspuq (overshirt) throws her hands up in delight; and three pairs of legs, one in heels, one in mukluks, one in sneakers, represent urban women in a voting booth. These cheerful stickers can be found at https://www.elections.alaska.gov/Core/ElectionStickers.php
The patriotic stickers salute Alaska's Native languages too, as the "I Voted" script appears in Aleut, Alutiiq, Cup’ig, Gwich’in, Koyukon, Northern Inupiaq, Nunivak and Yup'ik, plus English, Spanish, and Tagalog.
The website encourages Alaskans "to continue paving a way to justice and equality for all generations to come. And in 2020, the best way to do that is to vote." It also describes the 'I Voted' stickers as "Significant. Powerful. Encouraging." Perhaps in 2024 the "I Voted" stickers could be more significant and powerful if Native artists were encouraged to design them.
There aren't any baskets portrayed in these drawings, but I felt this was interesting and worthy of putting in the blog. My husband brought these stickers to my attention last week. I wrote this on 10/28/20, but didn't put on this blog until 11/6/20.
A selection of basketry on display at the Alaskan Native Medical Center, Anchorage. Photo 3-2-2019.
