When the Signs Speak for Themselves
- May 26
- 4 min read
How Two Sequim Women Created a Protest Project That Went Viral — and Why It Still Matters
There's a moment Dana describes that stops you cold.
Twenty people, dressed head to toe in black. Black masks. Black hats. Standing perfectly still along the roadside, holding black signs with bold white lettering. Not chanting. Not engaging with passersby. Just — holding the truth up in silence.
The signs read like a list you hope you'll never have to recognize. But you do recognize them. That's the point.
This is Signs of Fascism — a protest performance project created right here in Sequim, Washington, by two local women: Dana and Martha. And if you haven't heard of it yet, you're about to understand why tens of thousands of people have.
Where It Started
Dana first encountered a smaller version of the concept in a California Facebook group. She saw something powerful in it — and knew it could be more. She and Martha expanded the idea, refined it, and brought it home to the Olympic Peninsula.
Martha hand-printed every sign. Two-sided, so that traffic in both directions could read them. When participants march in larger protests, they carry the signs held over their hearts.
The rules of engagement are intentional and strict: participants stand still. They do not speak to onlookers. They do not engage. The silence is part of the message. The stillness is part of the power.
"It's very moving," Dana told me, "for the people carrying the signs — and for everyone who reads them."
The project was originally designed to simulate the disorienting, dehumanizing experience of encountering authority figures if you're an immigrant in today's America. But it grew beyond that framing quickly, because the truth it holds up is bigger than any single experience.
The Day It Went Viral
The first demonstration was emotionally hard. Dana described it plainly: you are delivering somber messages to your neighbors and strangers. People asked where they were from. The mood was heavy with purpose.
Then, without any plan or warning, a photographer named Michael posted a video of the demonstration to social media — set to music.
Within days: over 60,000 shares on Facebook and BlueSky.
Dana had to reach out to Michael directly. His inbox was flooded with questions about the signs, and he was answering them himself. She gently redirected him — send them to us — and then got to work writing up clear steps for other groups who wanted to replicate the project.
Over the following weeks, they received 15 to 20 inquiries from groups across the region. Each one wanted to know: How do we do this? Can we bring this to our community?
The answer was yes. With guidance.
The Details That Make It Work
What makes Signs of Fascism different from a standard protest sign isn't just the content — it's the execution.
The participants wear all black. The uniformity is not incidental; it removes individual identity from the equation and focuses all attention on the words. The masks, similarly, are not about anonymity. They are about creating an experience — the kind of faceless, institutional presence that too many people in this country have learned to fear.
The signs themselves are two-sided, printed by hand, consistent in syntax and word choice. Dana and Martha work to maintain that consistency as the project scales — new signs are created regularly, but the visual and linguistic language stays controlled and intentional.
When participants line up at the roadside, people driving past see the message going in both directions. When they march in large demonstrations — at events like No Kings, Good Trouble, and Friday Protest at Sequim AVE and Washington ST — they carry the signs pressed to their chests, walking in line, in silence.
The effect, by all accounts, is profound.
Going to West Seattle — and Becoming "The OG Group"
The viral spread of the project led to an invitation that Dana didn't quite anticipate: a group in West Seattle asked them to come and join a march there.
Dana laughed telling me this part.
"They asked us to lead the Signs of Fascism group," she said. "You are the OG SOF group," I replied.
They went. They collaborated. They helped the West Seattle group understand not just the mechanics of the project, but the spirit of it — the intentional silence, the careful consistency, the emotional weight that comes from letting the words do the work.
That's the thing about Signs of Fascism: it travels. It replicates. It scales. And it doesn't lose its power in translation because the power was never about the people holding the signs. It was always about what the signs say.
Enjoy this footage of the West Seattle Protest https://www.facebook.com/reel/1622447525737196
Why This Matters — Right Now
We are living in a moment when naming things clearly is an act of resistance.
When we call what is happening fascism — out loud, in public, in bold white text on a black sign held over someone's heart — we refuse the fog of euphemism. We refuse the normalization. We refuse the idea that what is happening is ordinary or acceptable or inevitable.
Dana and Martha built something that does all of that without saying a single word aloud.
Indivisible Sequim has been proud to participate in demonstrations where Signs of Fascism has appeared, and we are proud to call these women part of our community.
If your group is interested in replicating the project, reach out. The steps exist. The guidance is available. And the signs are still needed.
Indivisible Sequim is a 100% volunteer-run grassroots civic organization based in Sequim, WA. Find us at indivisiblesequim.org or email us at info@IndivisibleSequim.org.
