Red Hats

RESIST WITH RED

My Brownie friend Cindy knitted me a mini red hat for my birthday in February.

I was curious about this mini red hat and started to read about the history of it. During WWII Nazi occupation of Norway, Norwegians began wearing red knit caps as a sign of resistance. Thursday, February 26th, 1942, such wearage was outlawed as a form of protest. Norwegians then wore paper clips on their jackets in a subtler manner of resisting (paper clips keep papers together, so therefore symbolize unity). Due to what happened in Minneapolis earlier this year, the Needle & Skein Yarn Shop resurrected the hat pattern –the Melt the ICE Hat– encouraging people to wear hats in support of values the Norwegian Resistance Fighters stood for: Democracy, Menneskeverd*, and Unity. (You can read more about it on redhatfactory.com/creed)

The legacy of the red hat In Norwegian folklore comes from the gnomes that reside in any respectable Norwegian barn, wearing a red hat!

The Textile/Arts Group, the Peace Committee, the Social Justice Council and our Immigrant Solidarity at UUCB are collaborating on this RESIST with RED FUNDRAISER! We have mini red hats you can wear on your lapel in solidarity. People have knitted them, felted them and crocheted them! We are wearing mini red hats in solidarity, resisting this current regime.

Funds that are raised go to Cuba-Gaza-our local Immigrant community. We will continue this fundraiser through May 1.

*Menneskeverd: Norwegian word for “the value of the human being, merely for being human.”