We, a son and his father, set out on a research project where we intend to do some good and learn something while trying. How much for your sign? is an independently conceived project that intends to amplify the voice of the resource depraved (possibly) homeless, almost literally, underfoot. Who knows about them, where they set up, and records their story with their name? This site was launched in July 2025 by Remke Douma Wahlen.
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Project Thesis
We walk past people expressing their needs on the sidewalks of our city almost every time we are transversing the higher density pedestrian areas – the Loop, the lakefront, the museum campuses, River North, Navy Pier, around sports stadiums or well attended concert venues. And there are people there in almost every instance, planted on the sidewalk, alone, communicating their needs to the general passerby, and their desires, using a (handwritten) sign. Bluntly stated, generically, the signs could be summarized, “may I have a handout?” Or more nuanced, but still bluntly, “I am in need - for various reasons - and I want your attention. With less than a few seconds of your time, would you aid me?”
The Sign's Purpose
Isn’t the sign’s main purpose to draw attention? Or is it to resolve an inherent conflict between (distant but proximitous) strangers? And if its main purpose is to draw attention, isn’t attention in general an economic indicator? The more the better? Advertising, media, posts, banners, posters, placards, table tents, whiteboards and blackboards and chalkboards; aren’t they all there to draw specific attention? In a broader sense, signs take on a myriad of forms; it could be a Jolly Roger, coat of arms, a flag, a standard, a pendant, a banderol, a streamer, a semaphore, or a jack, all telling a tale or a story about…the signaler?
Think of our sign holders as on a campaign, maybe. A campaign to draw attention to their plight.
How much do we, as the public, focus on their predicament? Is the sign the solution to the uneasiness that is the brief encounter between a desperately needy individual and the inattentive pedestrian transiting to their destination?
Examining Ourselves
We, in this project, aim to observe the circumstances around these interactions, with an emphasis on the use, value, and purpose of signs.
a). What do they try to convey and do they succeed?
b). Who determines the value of the sign and what monetary value can be attributed to a sign?
c). If we amplified the sign’s reach, accelerating viewership, would that serve a good or noble purpose?
d). What other questions does our project raise?
e). What can we do to help?
Those are some of our ideas to get us started in this project. Any good project should have a thesis, or an argument, or opinion, or discussion or debate, on what is the potential outcome from performing the project. And being open to what else we might learn can be a key approach to our project. There is plenty here, and of course, plenty more where that came from, as we approach the exploration of How much for your Sign?