Josh MacPhee

Overview

Josh MacPhee has expressed support for terrorists, celebrated intifada, demonized Israel and is a supporter of the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement.

As of September 2022, MacPhee’s biography page on blog.pmpress.org said he was a “Brooklyn-based street artist, designer, curator, and activist.” 

As August 2022, MacPhee was listed on the website of the Interference Archive as having co-founded the group in 2011. The archive calls itself a “public collection of cultural materials produced by social movements.” He was also listed on the website of the Justseeds artists cooperative as one of its founding members.

MacPhee’s Justseeds page also said: “He has organized the Celebrate People's History poster series since 1998 and has been designing book covers for many publishers for the past decade (AntumbraDesign.org).”

MacPhee reportedly graduated from Oberlin College (Oberlin) in Ohio in 1996 where he studied “media and culture.” 

As of September 2022, MacPhee used the handle “@josh.antumbra” on Facebook.

Supporting Terrorists

On March 31, 2021, MacPhee posted to Instagram: “As part of my commitment to being a day late in all things social media, here’s a #celebratepeopleshistory poster of Ghassan Kanafani by @jamaalyad to celebrate yesterday’s Land Day!”

Kanafani was a leading member and spokesperson for the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) during the terrorist organization’s early years. Kanafani announced the PFLP’s responsibility for the Lod Airport Massacre of May 1972 and was linked to the airport attackers. The attack killed 26 people and wounded 80 others.  

In the same March 31, 2021 post, MacPhee continued: “Ghassan Kanafani (1936–1972) worked as a journalist, a literary critic, and as a fiction writer. He was a spokesman for the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, and wrote extensively on the Palestinian struggle.”

The U.S. State Department has listed the PFLP as a foreign terrorist organization (FTO) since 1997, given its history of attacks against civilians, airplane hijackings and suicide bombings.

On May 2, 2017, MacPhee posted a graphic to Instagram with text that read: “STRIKE! DIGNITY!” He wrote: “Day 16 of the #dignitystrike of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails. Support the strike! Check out decolonizethisplace.org for more info. #decolonizethisplace.”

“Dignity Strike” refers to a hunger strike initiated by Marwan Barghouti on April 16, 2017. More than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners participated in the strike – most them also convicted for acts of terrorism. Barghouti headed the Palestinian Authority (PA) terrorist Tanzim force and founded the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades. He was sentenced to five consecutive life terms by an Israeli civilian court for some of his crimes, including his role in the Sbarro Cafe bombing. 

On April 28, 2017, MacPhee posted a graphic to Instagram and wrote: “Did you know that Palestinian prisoners have been on hunger strike for 12 days now, with many family members on hunger strike in solidarity? I whipped up this graphic in support for #decolonizethisplace @decolonizethisplace #dignitystrike Please copy and repost! Spread the strike!”

Celebrating Intifada

As of August 2022, two of MacPhee’s posters featured on palestineposterproject.org promoted “intifada,” including a 2014 poster that also celebrated rock throwing. 

Since the early 2000s, the term “intifada,” which translates from Arabic as “uprising” or “insurrection,” has carried the connotation of violence.  

Although romanticized as a form of “popular resistance,” rock throwing remains a deadly form of violence. 

 The other MacPhee poster that promoted intifada was created in 2003, during the second intifada. The poster read: “Ya Basta! [Enough already!] INTIFADA!”

The second intifada took place from 2000 to 2005 where Palestinian terrorists carried out over 130 suicide bombings, murdering over 1,000 Israeli civilians and soldiers. Terrorists targeted city buses, shopping centers, dance clubs and cafes. Palestinian leadership encouraged children to carry out “martyrdom” operations against Israel.  

Demonizing Israel

As of August 2022, 16 of MacPhee’s poster designs were featured on “The Palestine Poster Project Archives” website. Four posters included text that said: “APARTHEID ISREAL” while a 2010 poster promoted that year’s Israel Apartheid Week.


On April 11, 2017, MacPhee posted to Instagram a “zine” he made that featured a graphic of Handala. 

Handala is a cartoon representing a demand known as the Palestinian “right of return” to Israel. The “right of return” is a demand discredited as a means to eliminate Israel.  

On December 27, 2015, MacPhee posted to Instagram: “Another new cover I designed, and more long, stretchy arms! This one's for ‘Against Apartheid’ about the #bds movement, put out by @haymarketbooks - my cover my be the first of a series of covers designed by @justseeds artists…#apartheid #israeliapartheid #Palestine #boycott…”

The book “Against Apartheid” was edited by anti-Israel professors Bill Mullen and Ashley Dawson. The book’s foreword was by Ali Abunimah, director of the anti-Israel website Electronic Intifada.

On May 13, 2015, MacPhee posted to Instagram: “great shot of one of my #Palestine posters aging on the walls of #NYC. Must have been put up by #HowlArts on a visit from Montreal - this #screenprint is part of the #ImagingApartheid series, printed by @repetitive_press in Toronto.”

Supporting BDS

As of September 2022, MacPhee was listed on the Justseeds website as an associated artist for Imaging Apartheid, which was described as “a Montreal/Toronto based initiative with global reach responding to the call for support of the B.D.S. campaign.”

On July 18, 2022, MacPhee shared a flyer to Instagram that promoted an event in support of BDS. 

MacPhee wrote: “This Thursday at @interferencearchive ! Join us for a gathering to celebrate the Musicians for Palestine initiative…Also this event will launch the latest screenprint from the Imaging Apartheid series… an ongoing community art project taking place within the Justseeds network that aims to visually support the global Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement.” 

MacPhee continued in the post: “Both Musicians for Palestine and Imaging Apartheid take place with support of the global BDS movement and specifically in coordination with the Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC).”

One flyer also read: “END ISRAELI APARTHEID.”

In May 2018, Justseeds published an “information-based poster” designed by MacPhee, “explaining the Palestinian-organized tactic of BDS against Israel and its apartheid system.” MacPhee wrote: “I printed a small number of these on nice paper as part of an ongoing project/experiment…So if you like this print, please buy one, and help me print and distribute lots more! And thanks!”

On July 31, 2014, MacPhee co-hosted an event titled: “BDS: What It Means For Artists.” The Facebook event description read: “This event will pick up that momentum and address the importance of the cultural boycott…Join the BDS Arts Coalition for a 30-40-minute presentation to be followed by an open question and discussion session.”  

The event also featured anti-Israel activist Remi Kanazi.

Poet Remi Kanazi is known for his aggressively anti-Israel spoken-word performances. He has supported terrorism and has compared Israel to both ISIS and the Ku Klux Klan.

Social Media and Weblinks

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/josh.antumbra 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jmacphee  

Personal Website: https://joshmacphee.carrd.co/

Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Josh_MacPhee