No Justice, No Peace
What does "peace" mean to you?
I use the word "peace" quite a bit in relation to my work and my process. Art has helped me to find my inner peace. Art is something I also share in the hopes of bringing others a similar semblance of peace in their own lives.
I hope that these peaceful paintings can offer you an ephemeral moment of harmony with the world. I hope that through the chaos of this year, they can provide a moment of rest and of calm.
And while I do wish to offer you these moments of peace in your day - the moments I truly believe we all deserve - I also believe that peace can be longer and truer than a fleeting moment if we allow it.
But right now in our country, peace is a privilege.
If we want true, enduring peace, we must be willing to fight for it.
57 years ago this week, Martin Luther King Jr. led a March on Washington where he gave his famous "I Have a Dream" speech. And while his message was a message of hope for future peace and for harmony, it's important not to merely cherrypick the quotes that fit into the narrative that passivity and tone policing lead to any sort of real change.
Real change comes from unrest. Any real change that has ever been achieved in this country came from disturbing the peace. So while it's important to allow yourself those moments of recharge - those moments of calm and of rest, remember that it's even more important that we get back up and keep fighting.
If there's no justice for Black lives, then there's no true peace. So when you see protestors in the street demanding justice, when you see posts like this one that may make you feel uncomfortable, understand that this disturbance of the peace is not meant as an attack, but as an act of love and of hope that one day we can transform ephemeral moments of peace into enduring peace for all.
As a small act of love and support, I’m giving away free magnets of my work for donations to organizations associated with the Black Lives Matter movement. Each of the three paintings below are from Jacob Blake’s childhood hometown and my current home, Winston Salem, NC.
Here’s how to get your free magnet:
Donate any amount to a Black Lives Matter related cause. Here are a few organizations approved by the AntiRacism Fund that I recommend: The Bail Project, The Black Aids Institute, NAACP Legal Defense Fund, The Equal Justice Initiative, Transgender, Gender Variant, and Intersex Justice Project
Message me with proof of your donation
Select your magnet and give me your shipping address
That’s it! Thank you for contributing to the cause. Keep scrolling for other ways to help.
Here are just a few ways to continue supporting the Black Lives Matter movement:
Donate to Jacob Blake’s family
Support the movement in Wisconsin
Sign the petition to charge the officers who shot Jacob Blake
Email Jenosha Mayor John Antaramian, demanding justice for Jacob Blake
Demand justice for Breonna Taylor
Have uncomfortable conversation with family and friends of opposing views
Keep sharing BLM content
Diversify your feed - how many Black activists do you follow on social media?
Educate yourself
Listen without defensiveness
Support Black-owned businesses - today’s the last day of National Black Business month, so go support Black-owned businesses!
Support Financial Literacy in the Black Community
Learn what to do if a Family or Friend is Arrested