Small: The Young Are at the Gates

Inspired by a 1917 National Woman’s Party banner and Lavinia Dock’s poem, this handmade silk velvet artwork echoes the spirit of youth-led activism. First displayed during the fight for suffrage, the phrase “The Young Are at the Gates” remains a powerful call for change. “What is the potent spirit of youth? Is it not the spirit of revolt, of rebellion against senseless and useless and deadening things? Most of all, against injustice, which is of all stupid things the stupidest? …The old stiff minds must give way. The old selfish minds must go. Obstructive reactionaries must move on. The young are at the gates!”