15 Ingenious Humanitarian Subvertisements

15 Ingenious Humanitarian Subvertisements: Creative Advertisements that Advocate Global Causes

By Urbanist in Guerilla Marketing & Ads, Urban Images, Various Uncategorized

Guerilla Red Cross Water Donations

(Check out our complete collection of Subversive Marketing and Culture Jamming.)

Save perhaps lawyers, what is more ubiquitous in modern society than advertising? We are used to guerilla advertisements that promote a product or service for profit or subvert the status quo but many organizations, individuals and guerilla artists have begun putting a unique spin on guerilla action by advocating for important local and global issues. Here are just some of the growing number of subversive advertising campaigns that have been to raise global awareness.

Guerilla Red Cross Blood Donations

Guerilla Red Cross Disaster Relief Advertisement

Guerilla Red Cross Emergency Preparedness

This collection of Red Cross guerilla advertisements touches on a great variety of emergency situations, from ones close to home to others around the world. For the most part they emphasize the living conditions of others who are less fortunate, from those who need blood transfusions to others in war-torn and poverty-stricken nations. Such culture jamming strategies can bring an issue into public discourse.

Homeless Clothing Donation Guerilla Ads

Homeless Hunger Guerilla Ad Campaign

Homelessness is also a contentious issue in the realm of public debate. Some people advocate more programs and assistance while others maintain the homeless should simply find their own way back to their feet. This collection of homeless advocacy advertisements illustrates the growing homeless problem, much like other creative urban artistic interventions question the status quo. Regardless of your position on the issue they certainly provide food for thought.

uerilla Humanitarian Advertisement

Global Warming Ice Caps Melting Subvertisement

This collection of ads on humanitarian interests is not for the faint of heart (the most tame are shown above). Some of the advertisements are extremely graphic and provocative. Still, the messages they carry are therefore all the more powerful and they address some issues that are less frequently addressed in current global discourse including child soldiers, domestic violence and animal rights. Projects such as the melting ice cap mug above are a good example of simple and local ways to advocate creatively for environmental good. Other projects are intended to work more as examples that can be replicated on a global scale.

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Really into the give blood one but not massively sure on some of the others… they were good ideas but they seemed more focused on artistic content rather than anything else. I’m not sure they would really have much impact on anyone. Maybe i’m wrong, maybe it’s just me. But i think making charity advertisments work is the hardest thing of all. The only real success i can think of is david lynch’s videos against throwing litter, which were effective and terrifying.
Just my ten cents anyway. Thanks for another great post though.

Thanks for posting this. To the homeless issue. Gentle reader/eater, the next time you are going to discard that uneaten lunch, just leave the bag on top or beside the can. 1) Somebody will get it and get fed 2) You will not be “disturbed” by that somebody having to dig through the “trash.” 3) Throw an extra napkin in the bag. Homeless people have dignity.
~ X anemi

Speaking as an ad copywriter, I can attest that many of us do have the balls to do things as subversive as these.

Good list, but you missed one of the best and most recent:

http://osocio.org/message/a_bi.....a_message/

Speaking as another ad copywriter, I’d like to think that many of ‘us’ had the balls to balls to do something as subversive as this. Unfortunately many of our account managers don’t have the balls to suggest the ballsy ideas to the clients. Or many of our clients don’t have the balls to run with it.

Great post, by the way. Keep ‘em coming :-)

AL wrote February 10, 2008, 4:14 pm: “Art is all it is. Apart from a few, most of these donÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t even exist. All fake. Cute, but fake. No person in the advertising industry has balls to do anything even remotely subversive as this is.”

Al, you are so wrong, and though I can’t guarantee one way or another, I doubt these are fake. There are tons of great progressive ads out there, you just need to find them. Plus, most non-profit organizations can’t afford these big billboard-style campaigns, and must rely on (scarce) pro-bono designers and venues for them to be created and seen (difficult, to say the least). Still, I agree we need more of this kind of marketing (and I condemn those agencies who make gazillions in profit off of greenwashing socially & environmentally destructive industries – I don’t know how they sleep at night). Anyway, thanks Urbanist.

Excellent ads.. thanks for designing and posting them. The American Red Cross (empty) water bottle hitsd home, as do the trucks with the scene of what you fair town could be if there were war … We take so much for granted. I’ve lived there, seen this, experienced war first hand– America has been blessed, though the US Civil War was no picnic. Thanks for the wake-up ads.. keep them rolling in.

I’ve always been a huge fan of guerrilla marketing for social causes. I’ve really been trying to focus on social causes with my work as much as possible.

The things pointed out in this article are DEFINITELY some of the cooler things I’ve seen done. The red cross ones are amazing.

Another great post.