High Res Pictures of Previous Displays

It all began on a pretty small scale the first year that we moved into our house, in the Fall of 1998. I’d always loved Halloween and decided to put a witch on the tree. You know, the one that looks like the witch has crashed; legs and arms sticking out on each side, a broken broom tacked to the trunk.

I went to Goodwill, got a cool pair of black boots, a pair of sweatpants and sweatshirt, a grey wig and a witch hat. My step-brother and I put the witch up and it looked cool. We stood there in our glory, talking, standing on the opposite side of the tree to where the witch had flown in. 

Just then a woman walked up and started talking about my black lab, who was in the front yard with us. “Oh, I just love labs,” she said, and went on about what great dogs they are. Then, in an instant, she reeled back and screamed.  I mean a jump about a foot and a serious earth shattering shriek.

Up came her shaking arm, pointing at the boot and wart covered hand that stretched around the edge of the tree. She’d caught the witch out of the corner of her eye and freaked. Her voice was literally shaking and she abruptly walked away, never to be seen again. I don’t think she died, but she certainly didn’t come back to admire my dog. My brother and I walked into the house laughing and my wife innocently asked, “did I hear someone scream?”

A legacy was born. I’ve been doing Halloween ever since. It makes perfect sense that it’s grown. I love it, and the fact that I live on one of the busiest streets in town means a lot of people see the display. Over 23,000 cars a day pass through the intersection near my house.

At first doing stuff for Halloween was just about making cool scary stuff. It was pretty basic. The witch, a grave yard, maybe a few spooking ghouls. Two things fundamentally changed my thinking and the scope of what I was doing.

First, was the Iraq War in the aftermath of 9/11. I was outraged at George W. Bush’s patently illegal, immoral, and fabricated war. As an historian, and like so many other historians, political scientists, and scholars, I could see that going into Iraq was going to be a colossal disaster. For the first time in my life, I wrote the president, the vice president, secretary of defense, and national security advisor. My message was simple: you are about to destabilize the Middle East for at minimum 50 years, probably longer. My letter obviously had a huge impact.

What else could I do? Outrage led to parody and effigy. Both are long political traditions in the United States, going back to the American Revolution. 

What was my message? Bush and Cheney were liars.  They were deceiving the American people by stating that 9/11 was tied to Saddam Hussein and Iraq. Many Americans today still believe it. So, in the midst of my anger I put Bush and Cheney up on the tree, each wearing black pants with flames all over them, and a big sign: “Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire.” It was simple, but poignant.

So the first big change in Halloween was going political. I’ve pretty much been doing it ever since. The 2016 "Trump Wall" was big, both literally and figuratively, as was the 2017 "Ship of State," the giant pirate ship that covered my entire yard.

The second big change in the display was cardboard. Yea, cardboard. One summer about 10 years ago my wife and I went to a local church art show where a street artist had spent a couple of weeks working with local kids on how to make art out of trash. As I walked through the show I was amazed at what cool stuff the kids had made using cardboard. They had cut it, shaped it, layered, sanded, and painted it. A light bulb literally went on. I had worked with wood most of my life and realized that I could use most of the techniques for woodworking on cardboard. I could cut it with my table and jig saws, sand it, caulk it, and do just about anything.

I’ve been working with cardboard and Styrofoam ever since. They are the perfect medium for what I do. Best of all, it’s free. It took a little while to find a reliable source. I first started with random boxes, but then found a local furniture store. If you think refrigerator boxes are big, you should see what couches and dining room tables come in. My contact in the furniture warehouse is “John the Box Guy.” That’s how he’s listed in my phone.

And so it is. Cardboard art was born for me. It took me a while to accept that what I was doing is in fact art. To me it was just the Halloween thing. Recently, an artist friend looked at what I do and said, “Oh, you’re an installation artist.” I’d never heard the term before, but I’m good with it.

I now get to mix my passions – Halloween, history, and politics. In a lot of ways I’m trying to use the fun of Halloween to provide an historical and political lesson. I want people to think. I also realize that Halloween allows me to get away with what at any other time of year would seem extreme and even bizarre. But then again, this world is looking more extreme and bizarre every day. 

If I can get people to smile at the fun of what I do and reflect, even a little bit, on where we are as a nation, then at least I’m doing something.   

Halloween 2022 Artist Statement

Ukraine! I thought a lot about what to do for this year’s display. When I began working on everything in mid-summer, the Ukraine War had largely disappeared from the American newsfeed and my goal was to remind people of the tragedy and devastation that was still on going. As it turned out, the war suddenly “exploded” once again onto the news scene by the time October rolled around
 

Sitting in the middle of my lawn is a Russian T-90 tank, the lead armored battle vehicle used by Putin’s military. It stands motionless in front of a bombed out Ukrainian building, from which is hanging a small Ukrainian flag. The tank has a large hole in its side, from which smoke spews out. A Ukrainian soldier stands near by with a tank buster missile.
 

This is the story of a great part of the Ukraine War. I was impressed and amused by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s decision to have trucks carry blown up and burned out Russian tanks through the streets of Kiev to celebrate the nation’s annual independence day. 

This war is such a remarkable example of 21stcentury aggression and misinformation. Putin laughingly claims that his forces moved into Ukraine to stop “neo-Nazis.” The reality is that Putin wants to reclaim the lost empire of the Soviet Union and push back against US influence and the expansion of NATO. That, too, is a worthy issue to contemplate. How much has US imperialism stoked the fires of war? How much did the US invasion of Iraq, also illegal, aid Putin in his claims of acting against “neo-Nazis” and terrorists?

Also in the display is the Polish flag, held out as a blanket, a shield to an awaiting Ukrainian family. This is another part of the war story that Americans need to contemplate more deeply. Well over 500,000 Ukrainians have fled across the border into Poland, met there with food, water, and medical supplies. Children are given toys; mothers are given strollers and diapers. The Polish people have opened their homes to these refugees. It’s an amazing act of generous humanity. 

Please, enjoy the display, but also take the time to become aware of what’s going outside of the US. If Russia is allowed to steal pieces of a sovereign nation, what does that say for the future of the world?

SCOTUS – The Supreme Court of the United States – America’s highest judicial body. Most Americans know little about the history of the court or how it’s judicial decisions impact them on a regular basis. In many respects, some president’s legacies have been more defined by their choices for the Supreme Court than on what occurs in their four or eight years in office. Why? Because Supreme Court justices serve for life, and their tenure can span decades. Depending on the make up of the nine justices, substantial changes to American life can be dispensed. While most Americans think of the court in terms of controversy over abortion or the 2nd amendment, there are so many other cases that effect how we live our lives and how our democracy progresses, or doesn’t.
This year’s display includes not just the skeleton court, with its “left” and “right” benches, but key cases that have been handed down over the last decade that have directed life in America. I know that many Americans hate, and are sick of politics, with our 24 hour news cycle and partisan bickering, but as my previous displays have pointed out, democracy and representative government are ours to win or lose. I’m troubled by the direction that America is going in, and the Supreme Court has had remarkable influence on that direction. Merely look at Bush v. Gore (2000) or Citizens United v. FEC (2010). Each has chipped away at our democracy and the rights of the people over party power and corruption.
So, brush up on your knowledge of the Supreme Court and understand what a critical role it plays in our society. Equally important, understand that placing a new justice on the court of nine is one of the very powerful things that a president can do. With a number of aging justices, big changes are coming, and, be sure, partisanship, power, and the people’s rights will intermingle in ways that will shock and dismay.
Also note the awesome artwork over the center of the display, painted by my daughter, Jessie Warshauer. An awesome depiction of lady justice with wings made of the implements of death. The artwork is not original to Jess, but was custom painted. Many long nights to complete it for her demanding dad.  

"The Death of Democracy" 

We often forget that the United States is an experiment in representative government and human rights. That “we the people” are responsible for the success of that experiment, and that when we fail to educate ourselves and fail to take responsibility for the direction of our government, we are ultimately the source of the great experiment’s demise.

I teach political history and have read extensively the words of the nation’s Founders. They consistently advise and warn that knowledge, virtue, and the people’s responsibility toward the nation are what will safeguard America from failure. You might think that their words are old, with little relevance for today, but the Founders had a remarkable understanding of human nature. 

The echoes of their counsels have never been more important. James Monroe put it best, in his 1817 Inaugural Address:

"It is only when the people become ignorant and corrupt, when they degenerate into a populace, that they are incapable of exercising the sovereignty. Usurpation is then an easy attainment, and an usurper soon found. The people themselves become the willing instruments of their own debasement and ruin. Let us, then, look to the great cause, and endeavor to preserve it in full force. Let us by all wise and constitutional measures promote intelligence among the people as the best means of preserving our liberties."

Democracy can die. We are witnessing it now. Donald Trump is both a symptom and a dark agent of our downfall. He is immoral, unethical, and dangerous, caring nothing for people, ideas, or the most helpless members of our society. Rather, he is a narcissist who whips up hatred against “the other,” uses fear to separate Americans, and enflames culture wars all for his own elevation and aggrandizement. Nothing is more fatal to democracy.

Thus this year’s display focuses on the sage words of previous presidents, the warnings about fascism from political philosophers across the centuries, calls for Trump’s impeachment, and hope for the future through the greatest power we have – voting and political engagement. For if democracy does fail, it’s because we let it.

There is also a new feature. A “hope and fear” section on which visitors can write their own thoughts and ideas. I hope you enjoy the display. Be sure, my goal is to push people to think harder. I try not to be a hater and am not trying to foment hate. These are all just words, people. Remember, we are promised the right of free speech. 

"The Trumpian Ship of State"   

I came up with the idea for Halloween 2017 earlier than I ever have,  only one day after the 2016 presidential election.  Like so many  Americans, I was horrified and deeply concerned for the future of our  nation and the world.  My immediate thought was that the American ship  of state had gone horribly off course.  But what could I really do about  it?     

As a history professor, I try to get people to reflect and  consider their own ideas of what they believe and why.  I do this almost  every day through teaching, but I also try to reach a wider audience  through Halloween.  The ship of state is off course.  So what should I  do?  Build a HUUUUGE ship.  A tremendous, tremendous ship.  And, what  should it be called?  Why, the USS Constitution, of course!   

But what  type of ship should it be?  Again, the answer is so simple – a pirate  ship – because that’s what Trump and his merry band are, pirates, and  they’re pillaging our nation.  What should Americans – we the people –  do?  Fight! That’s what.  I’m not advocating violence.  Just good old  fashioned dissent, the cornerstone of democracy.     

So, however you  decide to do it, make sure you do something.  I make Halloween displays  and push my students and others to understand history and how it  intersects with today.  If you want to help me, please join the cause.

"The Trump Wall"   

It's an election year, and Donald Trump has focused part of his campaign on a grand and glorious wall to keep out the "other."  Immigrants of Latino descent are all "criminals," "drug dealers," and "murderers."  None are families fleeing for their very lives in the hopes that America, a nation made up of immigrants that has always hated immigrants, will once more offer a place of refuge and opportunity.  

The Statue of Liberty says  "Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore."  No.  The welcome sign is no longer out, and masses of Americans who were once equally ridiculed for being a new, unsavory element, are not doing the ridiculing.  

And, please, the point isn't that we need to "protect" our borders.  Of course we need to do that.  How we do it, however, matters.  Humanity matters.  The lives of people fleeing for something better matters.  That the Republican Party and their new henchman, Donald J. Trump, spews such venom and hatred matters.

If he is elected, he will burn this nation down by stoking division and hate.  

"Vietnam"   

There's no perfect date to choose as the 50th anniversary of the Vietnam War, but America has opted for 2015.  The nation's first defeat in war, it nonetheless rallied many to take political action by pouring into the streets and protest a conflict that was questionable.  

It was the first generation of U.S. soldiers who felt unsupported by their government.  It was a war that left millions of Vietnamese dead, but brought millions more to American shores.  They now live in our communities and make the nation more diverse.   Some celebrate this reality.  Others decry it.

The aftermath of Vietnam has, perhaps, taught Americans to "support the troops," but is that all we've learned of war?  Perhaps we should ask when war is actually necessary, and there are circumstance when it is.  Vietnam wasn't one of those circumstances.  Nor was the invasion of Iraq in 2003.

Wake up America.  Learn your history.  Stop repeating it.