Gauntlet Gallery
What is Shepard Fairey’s piece called “DEI-TY (Orange)”?
Artist Statement
Please read the words DIVERSITY, EQUITY, and INCLUSION and think deeply about their meaning —individually and collectively. Diversity: the condition of having or being composed of differing elements: variety. Equity: the quality of being fair and impartial. Inclusion: the act or practice of including people who have historically been excluded (often because of their race, gender, sexuality, or disability). DEI is meant only to enhance the priority of our institutions and workplaces to provide equal opportunity to the many groups that make up our beautifully diverse nation. These formerly unassailable ideas have been aspirationally woven into our nation's entire history, even if our idea of who is equal has thankfully evolved to include more than just white men. From the Declaration of Independence to the 14th Amendment granting equal protection for all citizens, to the 15th Amendment granting Black men the right to vote, to the 19th Amendment granting women the right to vote, to the Civil Rights Act outlawing discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin, we have moved toward a more fair and less discriminatory society. The symbolism of the Statue of Liberty as a welcoming beacon to those fleeing forms of discrimination to find refuge in the melting pot of the US is a cornerstone of the American story. The current attack on DEI is nothing less than a betrayal of American values and aspirations. The attack on DEI is very literally a Republican policy of discriminating against those who oppose discrimination in their businesses and organizations. When have racism, sexism, homophobia, or the like been okay in plain sight from our leadership, much less turned into law that punishes those trying to provide equality? I feel like I'm in a dystopian mirror world. Terrifyingly, this is here and now, and catalyzed mainly by one power-hungry narcissist who is a deranged, egomaniacal, insecure, tyrannical, yapster. If you oppose the mean-spirited embrace of discrimination like I do, please use every tool at your disposal to push back, especially by voting in EVERY election, including the midterms. We have power in numbers if we use it! -Shepard PRINT DETAILS: DEI-TY (Orange). 18 x 24 inches. Screen print on 80# cream Speckletone paper. Signed by Shepard Fairey. Numbered edition of 300. Comes with a Digital Certificate of Authenticity provided by Verisart. $65.
Summary
DEI-TY (Orange) is a 2025 Obey Giant screen print, 18 x 24 inches on 80# cream Speckletone paper, in a numbered edition of 300. The print foregrounds the words Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and asks viewers to consider their meaning. Fairey's accompanying text defines each term and traces equality through American milestones from the Declaration of Independence and the 14th, 15th, and 19th Amendments to the Civil Rights Act, framing current attacks on DEI as a betrayal of American values. It urges viewers to push back, especially by voting in every election. The print is signed by Shepard Fairey and includes a Verisart Certificate of Authenticity. It priced at $65, and a Cream variant exists.
Why It Matters
DEI-TY is an explicitly political print that mounts a defense of diversity, equity, and inclusion at a moment Fairey describes as a "dystopian mirror world." Rather than relying on imagery alone, the work centers the three words and Fairey's detailed argument tying them to a sequence of American legal milestones: the Declaration of Independence, the 14th Amendment's equal protection, the 15th and 19th Amendments' expansions of voting rights, and the Civil Rights Act's ban on discrimination. He invokes the Statue of Liberty as a welcoming beacon and frames the rollback of DEI as a betrayal of national aspirations. The call to action is concrete, urging participation in every election, including the midterms. For collectors, this places the print squarely in Fairey's lineage of civic, pro-democracy, and civil-rights work. Its typographic, message-first approach and its directness about a current political fight make it a document of its moment, appealing to buyers who collect Fairey's activist and voting-themed pieces and who value art that takes an unambiguous stand.
Collector Perspective
This print draws collectors of Fairey's political and civil-rights work and those who want art that makes an explicit civic statement about diversity, equity, inclusion, and voting. Its word-forward, message-driven design differs from his portrait-heavy releases, appealing to buyers who collect his typographic and pro-democracy pieces. With a numbered edition of 300, it is the smaller-edition release in this batch, which collectors focused on edition size may note. At 18 x 24 inches it frames easily and pairs well in a political grouping. The existence of a Cream variant gives variant-focused collectors a companion piece, and the artist signature plus Verisart certificate support documented authenticity.
Historical Context
Released in 2025 through Obey Giant, DEI-TY extends Fairey's decades of pro-democracy and civil-rights advocacy into a contemporary political flashpoint over diversity, equity, and inclusion policy. The work's grounding in American legal history, from constitutional amendments to the Civil Rights Act, reflects his recurring strategy of anchoring present-day arguments in the nation's stated ideals. Its emphatic call to vote in every election, including midterms, connects it to his long catalog of voting-rights and electoral-participation prints. Issued in Cream and Orange variants with a relatively small numbered edition, it sits among his modern activist releases that respond directly to specific policy battles of their moment.
FAQ
What is this print about?
DEI-TY asks viewers to consider the words Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Fairey defines each term and argues that current attacks on DEI betray American values, tracing equality through milestones like the 14th, 15th, and 19th Amendments and the Civil Rights Act. He urges pushing back by voting in every election.
What are the edition details?
DEI-TY (Orange) is a screen print measuring 18 x 24 inches on 80# cream Speckletone paper, in a numbered edition of 300. It is signed by Shepard Fairey and includes a Digital Certificate of Authenticity from Verisart. It was released in 2025 at $65.
Are there other versions?
Yes. The source lists editions in Cream and Orange. This record is the Orange edition; a Cream variant of the same image was also produced, giving collectors a companion colorway.
What action does the print call for?
Fairey urges viewers who oppose discrimination to use every tool available to push back, emphasizing voting in EVERY election, including the midterms. He frames collective participation as the way to exercise "power in numbers."
Related Works
About the Artist
Shepard Fairey (b. 1970, Charleston, South Carolina) is an American street artist, graphic designer, and activist, and a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design. His 1989 “André the Giant Has a Posse” sticker grew into the global OBEY GIANT campaign — an ongoing experiment in propaganda, obedience, and visual culture. He reached worldwide recognition with the 2008 “Hope” portrait of Barack Obama, now held by the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery. Across screen prints, stencils, murals, and collage, Fairey channels propaganda aesthetics toward themes of peace, justice, environmentalism, and civil rights. His work is in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, the Victoria & Albert Museum, and LACMA.