As someone who considers themselves an artist, or at least a creatively-minded individual, a great deal of my work- be it drawing, writing, or photography- is born out of my own experiences or interpretations of the world, a world seen through the lens of a white, middle class woman. This week as protests and responses to the murder of George Floyd at the hands of the Minneapolis Police Department began in my home state of Minnesota and spread throughout the country, photos through my lens did not feel like the appropriate way to sum up my 11th week of isolation and what has become a week of action and outcry for many Americans.
I believe it’s critical for our communities- communities in our cities, countries, and even online communities- to include artists from a diverse range of backgrounds and identities and I believe there is a small place for my work within this tapestry of stories and experiences. However, too often white folks, be it unintentionally or not, find ways to revolve narratives about race, racism, and the associated struggles against violence and oppression around themselves. I’m culpable of this myself. This has been an emotional week and I feel the desire to raise my artistic voice, but I’m still trying to figure out how to create work that isn’t self serving or distracts from the critical work being done by activists, organizers, and artists of color.
Particularly in this moment, but also going into the future, white artists and white folks, including myself, need to listen and find methods of amplifying the voices of BIPOC people whose narratives and experiences, whose pain and anger and grief need to be acknowledged, and whose leadership is essential for charting the course towards an equitable and just future.
Here are links to some organizations that are doing meaningful work in Chicago. Donate and/or listen- they are presenting some incredible visions for Chicago:
https://www.blacklivesmatterchicago.com/
https://www.bravespacealliance.org/
https://www.assatasdaughters.org/
Yes, he’s a white guy, but photographer David Guttenfelder has been posting some powerful images of people and protests in Minneapolis: