The revolution is here. Well, at least, the new “Revolutionaries” moniker is here.
To “rev” up your engines for the school year, check out these items — from a bagel slicer to a hippo mug — to embrace the new moniker, deck out your room and revolutionize your style.
Your New Best Friend: A Revolutionary Bobblehead
While the new moniker is inspired by American Revolution General George Washington, there are plenty of other famous revolutionaries to take inspiration from. Whether you are drawn to Black Panther Fred Hampton’s Illinois social programs before he was assassinated by law enforcement in 1969 or fascinated by Toussaint Louverture’s determination during the Haitian Revolution, a figurine or bobblehead that inspires you is a great dorm room decoration because it’s funny and subversive.
The image of Che Guevara, the radical leftist thinker and a leader of the Cuban Revolution, stands as an iconic image for many leftist movements. You’ve almost definitely already seen his historic portrait somewhere on campus. If Guevara isn’t your style, consider a bobblehead of Albert Einstein — who revolutionized physics — to have watching over your math homework.
“Let Them Eat Bread” With a Bagel Guillotine
Bagels are a college staple, but it can be difficult to purchase them all from the deli if you’re on a GWorld budget. You can save money by buying bagels at the grocery store or farmers market and preparing them at home.
A bagel guillotine is a device where you can insert your bagel and push down a blade to slice your bagel easily and safely in half, named for the machines used to behead the condemned during the French Revolution. A bagel guillotine is a fun and exciting way to eat your bagels at home and put a swift end to your hunger.
A Rosie the Riveter Poster — You Can Hang It!
The classic image of Rosie the Riveter, featuring a woman flexing her muscles and the phrase “We Can Do It!” was created to symbolize and support the women who took on factory and labor jobs during World War II while men served in the military. The image represents all of these women and became a feminist touchstone of the 1940s.
Rosie stands as a reminder of how revolutionary the idea of women joining the workforce once was and serves as an inspiration to many today because feminist history is still ingrained with the movement. Grab Rosie’s image on a T-shirt or rep her red bandana if you want to stand with the movement.
Reject “Revolutionaries,” Embrace the Hippo Tradition
If you’re looking to start your own revolution against the new moniker, we won’t tell. The hippo represents many club sports teams and harkens back to Foggy Bottom’s iconic River Horse statue.
Cute hippo merch, like a mug or candy dish, never goes out of style. Helpful gear for the school year like stress reliever toys, water bottles or magnets are also ways to show off your hippo style. You can even purchase a hippo terrarium to have a miniature hippo figurine serve as your own desktop pet.
Revolutionary Reading List
With each generation of freshmen that comes to the District, there are more young people preparing to dive headfirst into the future and make an impact. Some may be active participants in the climate revolution while others are gearing up for a political career.
Living in a major metropolis means people can easily stumble into a bookstore and find a book to inspire the next phase of their lives. Consider making your back-to-school read Andreas Malm’s “How to Blow Up a Pipeline,” a manifesto arguing for sabotage as a beneficial form of climate activism that’s already been turned into a feature film. Or, if you want a strong piece of historical analysis about a revolution, check out David McCullough’s “1776,” a tale of the defining year of the American Revolution.
A “Hamilton” Poster, Unless You’re a Poser
The revolutionaries GW most directly evokes are George Washington and his comrades from the American Revolution. Many of us have had our understanding of the American Revolution molded by the musical “Hamilton.”
If rapping revolutionaries are more up your alley than the sorrowful ones of “Les Misérables,” a musical about the June Rebellion of 1832 in Paris, now is the best time to embrace your former “Hamilton” phase. Though the musical’s combination of history and rap often borders between cringe and cool, there is definitely no reason to obscure your “Hamilton” phase now that you’re in the District. Feel free to shamelessly hang up a “Hamilton” poster in your room — college is the time to let your freak flag fly. Don’t throw away your shot.
