(by Kelly)

These photos of Chipotle's subway ads for the "Cultivate" festival they brought to San Francisco look like a scene out of George Orwell's 1984. " is watching you." 

And even for this blatant indication of their corporate model and effort at infiltrating the public consciousness, they still have people buying their image of being a small, foodie company, comprised of impossibly bucolic farms, and run by well-meaning people who just want to make the world a better place. Their marketing department is just that clever.

The humanewasher is intent on making people identify as strongly with their brand as possible, because when a brand becomes part of your identity -- becomes a part of your conception of you -- you feel compelled not just to hold onto it (to go there all the time), but to promote it (to tweet about it and wear shirts advertising it), and even to defend it (to walk by protestors calling out "I love Chipotle!" or "Go protest at McDonald's!").

Like I said, their marketing department is clever... but no amount of manipulative propaganda can stand up against the force of truth now can it? It's violence, and they can't distract people from that forever.

But we take a page from their playbook, by learning to enable and empower people with a liberationist identity that they feel so strongly attached to that they have to hold onto it, promote it, and fight for it with every watt of energy they have. Chipotle has doting fans because the company is skilled at selling those fans a hip identity... but Hipness will never inspire the commitment and drive that Justice can.

I am a liberationist, and will be until every animal is free.

(Thanks Darren Chang for the photos!)