As LA Weekly noted, Fairey’s detractors have been known to criticize him for “never meeting a social-justice cause he didn’t like.” Fairey has previously created art for Occupy Wall Street.
Shepard Fairey, the street artist behind the iconic “Hope” poster of Barack Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign, has created a similarly-styled work in honor of Trayvon Martin.
According to Fairey’s website, Ebony magazine commissioned the image several months ago, but the artist was not able to unveil it “until the issue hit newsstands this week.”
The painting recreates the now-famous photo of Martin wearing a hoodie. The background features images from rallies demanding justice for the Florida teen’s death.
“I have followed Trayvon’s case closely and I think any compassionate human being can relate to Trayvon as a brother or son and would want to see a thorough investigation into the killing of an unarmed person,” Fairey said in a statement on his website. “In my portrait I wanted to emphasize Trayvon’s humanity as well as the public outcry for a just investigation into his death.”
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