Feb. 04--The makers behind Cards Against Humanity, the self-described "party game for horrible people," are suburban Chicago natives accustomed to making headlines for Black Friday pranks like selling bull feces on their website.
But this weekend, they're striking a serious note by hosting an aldermanic debate, hoping to leverage their popularity among young people to help engage them in the Feb. 24 election, said Cards co-founder Max Temkin.
"We're just one little company in the city," said Temkin, 27. "We can get some attention to this and talk about issues that people actually care about."
All six candidates who are running in the newly drawn 2nd Ward are expected to attend, said Temkin. That ward, in which the Cards of Humanity office is located, encompasses many neighborhoods from Streeterville to as far west as Ukrainian Village and as far north as West DePaul. Its current alderman, Bob Fioretti, is running for mayor.
The Sunday forum at the Cards Against Humanity's office on the Northwest Side, expected to be moderator by a WBEZ political reporter, will feature questions from in-studio attendees but also from folks watching it live online. It will be streamed on YouTube with an ongoing chat function where viewers can submit questions for consideration, Temkin said.
Despite the game company's inclination toward vulgarity, there's no catch. Temkin, who said he has assisted in Obama's presidential campaigns and been involved in aldermanic campaigns, too, said his political interests are sincere.
"Local politics and municipal politics are probably the most important kind of political involvement that people can have and it has the most direct impact on people's lives," Temkin said.
After past profitable stunts the small game company has pulled, like selling actual cow poop on their website, they've made donations to nonprofits like the Sunlight Foundation, which promotes transparency in government. And Temkin said the company's pranks on Black Friday have a philosophical driving point -- the group simply doesn't respect a day that glorifies consumerism after the day when people are supposed to give thanks for what they have.
On Sunday, Temkin said he has a few questions of his own for the 2nd Ward candidates, including their thoughts on making city elections financed publicly and how to regulate food trucks in a way that will help them flourish.
When asked if the audience can expect any Cards Against Humanity-like crudeness, Temkin quipped, "Nothing more obscene than you see day-to-day in Chicago city politics."
The event will be held at 6 p.m. Sunday at 1917 N. Elston Ave. The event is sold out, according to the website.
The debate's online link can be accessed Sunday through the group's Twitter account, @CAH.
mmanchir@tribpub.com
Twitter @mmanchir
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