Two bees stood at the front of the room and sang Baha Men's "Who Let the Dogs Out."
Except the words were changed.
"Who let the bombs drop? Bush! Bush! Bush!"
Two members of the Beehive Collective spoke Wednesday night at North Kedzie Hall to discuss their "Plan Colombia" graphics campaign - a mix of the evolution of biotechnology in Colombia and the U.S. colonization in the country.
The Beehive Collective, whose headquarters are in Machias, Maine, are a group of volunteers who integrate political advocacy with art projects. In their artwork, members depict scenes with insects. The group has been in operation for two years, and do not use their real names.
Members of the Beehive spent three months of research in Ecuador and Colombia, and spent a month painting a 9-foot mural that tells the story of "Plan Colombia," which is in Maine.
A 15-foot replica was brought to North Kedzie Hall. They are currently taking the replica mural on tour across the country. Their visit to campus was sponsored by Students for Economic Justice.
"It's a really good explanation of how the U.S. operates in other countries," said Etta the Bee. "It helps to connect different issues, and broaden a perspective of complexity."
Other members said the event was beneficial to get their message out to students.
"It's a very creative way to tell a complicated story," said interdisciplinary studies junior Melissa Hornaday, a member of SEJ.
"I'm going to have an appreciation for their time and effort for educating others about these things," she said.
Along with the mural, the Beehives presented a slide show explaining each section of the mural. Several layers depict the Collective's explanation of "Plan Colombia," ranging from the abuse of American corporations to life among native Colombians.
"This is Larvold Scharzenegger," Etta said, pointing to a muscled larva sporting sunglasses and toting two machine guns. She said it's a symbol of the movie "Collateral Damage," which took place in Colombia.
"And this is, like, a shopping bee who went to the Mall of America," Etta said, pointing to a bee with shopping bags.
"She just went on a sweatshop shopping spree," added Andres the Bee.
After the presentation, participants were invited to learn more about the group and give donations.
English junior Paul Krauss said he attended because it sounded interesting, but ended up learning something.
"It's a lecture outside the academic perspective," he said. "It's important to learn about why we live the way we do.
"It shows that things haven't changed since 2,000 years ago. Slavery and colonialism are still here, it's just a new rhetoric."
