'Loose Tongues' Public Information (1977)
When this poster was distributed by Scarfolk Council in 1977, many
people were concerned that they did not understand the poster's message
correctly and were thus at risk of unintentionally breaking the law by
either talking or not talking about it.
Worried citizens gathered
in secret to discuss the poster campaign. Knowing that most homes
contained surveillance devices, they debated the poster non-verbally,
using hand gestures. Unbeknownst to the clandestine groups, however,
specially-trained police mime experts had infiltrated the meetings and
reported everything they saw to Scarfolk's police commissioner who, keen
to outdo his predecessor's record, had created the public information
campaign to boost arrest numbers.
Telephone helplines were set up
to provide legal aid to the many who were accused of talking (and not
talking) and faced punitive tongue removal. Although the legal experts
who manned the lines were not permitted to speak, they were authorised
to offer advice via the medium of mime.