Free Speech was part of a citywide project with Monument Lab in 2017. Monument Lab asks “What is an appropriate monument for the city”. Free Speech was up for three months.

Can a monument hold many voices and experiences? Can a monument be interactive and collaborative?

Free Speech was a temporary monument to the experiences of new refugees and immigrants. It was a interactive news kiosk in Marconi Plaza featuring the stories of immigrant and refugee artists. It included an audio piece, video and photos by Walinsky documenting six years of work with immigrant and refugee families in South Philadelphia. Free Speech was installed next to SEPTA’s Oregon Ave. bus and subway stop. If you stopped by the kiosk you were prompted to write a poem and draw your families migration experience on a collaborative map. Free postcards and a immigrant business map helped frame multiple migration stories in one project.

Free Speech was informed by Walinsky’s work for over six years at the Mural Arts Southeast By Southeast project. Southeast by Southeast is a community hub in South Philadelphia a collaboration with Mural Arts Philadelphia, the Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual disAbility Services, and members of the Burmese, Bhutanese, Nepalese and other immigrant and refugee communities. For Free Speech Walinsky collaborated with many artists including Sanctuary Poets, Catzie Vilayphonh of Laos in the House, Laura Deutch of PhillyCam, Ma Kay Saw, Krishna Tamang, Noor Azizah and Mayyadah Alhumssi.