The Daily Orange is a nonprofit newsroom that receives no funding from Syracuse University. Consider donating today to support our mission.

Syracuse Cultural Workers has been a consistent publisher of local art for central New York since it was established in a house in the Westcott neighborhood. The publisher has now transitioned to an office building with a warehouse and machinery to accommodate the increase in demand.

The art that Syracuse Cultural Workers creates derives from social justice movements and is featured on items including mugs and posters. The majority of the art is local, with a yearly calendar featuring local artists, said Karen Kerney, art director of Syracuse Cultural Workers.

And with the recent rise of social justice and equality movements around the U.S. and the world, Syracuse Cultural Workers has created products for the movements — even during the coronavirus pandemic.

“The death of George Floyd and the protests that followed led to our online business (taking) off like crazy,” said Andy Mager, sales manager and social movements liaison of Syracuse Cultural Workers.

But the Black Lives Matter movement and social progress demands over the summer were not the catalyst for Syracuse Cultural Workers’ focus on social justice. In fact, social justice is part of the company’s mission statement.

Nicolas Janvier works for Syracuse Cultural Workers, a consistent publisher of local art for central New York. Sarah Lee | Asst. Photo Editor

The publishing company strives “to nourish communities that honor diversity and creative expression, and inspire movements for justice, equality and liberation while respecting our Earth and all its beings, according to its website.

“We created our first Black Lives Matter products shortly after the movement began a number of years ago,” Mager said. “And after a short time, we figured out a way to share the proceeds of sales with folks doing the organizing work of Black Lives Matter, so for the last several years we’ve (paid) royalties to Black Lives Matter groups in Syracuse.”

While the summer has been a time where Syracuse Cultural Workers was able to see an increase in productivity, there were struggles in the spring due to COVID-19, Mager said.

During the pandemic, the company has continued to work mostly online, with curbside pickup being the only option to buy products in person. The company was able to get funding from the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program and kept a skeleton crew in the office to process and ship orders.

Syracuse Cultural Workers has also adapted by focusing its products around the pandemic. The company started selling masks and reworked past popular products to suit the present, for example.

Andy Mager shows off posters and t-shirts that have designs created by Syracuse Cultural Workers’ artists. Sarah Lee | Asst. Photo Editor

The company planned to reopen on Aug. 2, but decided to not move forward due to concerns from the staff. Mager said that they didn’t want to put the staff in an uncomfortable position.

Still, Syracuse Cultural Workers continues to create products that promote social justice.

“When you think of culture, you think of art, music, food and tradition, holidays and all of those things, and it gave a feeling to mass culture,” Kerney said. “But as culture workers, we create the culture we want.”

Published on September 8, 2020 at 10:34 pm

Contact Mateo: mtestlin@syr.edu