Ever since Angela announced the RSC color for June, I started noticing pink everywhere.
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| Hot Pink Blooms |
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| Kid Bike on a front yard |
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| Even the Garbage was Pink |
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| A lone blossom |
It was as if these blooms and bicycle were not there before. They were gentle reminders to me - work on your RSC blocks, Preeti. But it was difficult to look at fabric with swollen and teary eyes.
Me: I cannot stop thinking about those 9 minutes.
Paul: Babe!!!
Me: It wasn't just an impulsive decision. It wasn't the pulling of a trigger that happens in a fraction of a second. It wasn't the misstep of the moment. It was nine minutes of constant, deliberate pressure. What was he thinking in the third minute, fifth minute???
Paul: Will you please consider taking a break from the news?
Me: I don't want to forget it. I want to focus on it.
Paul: I understand. I am asking you to spend a few minutes with the news switched off and then when you have gathered yourself somewhat, think about what you can do to help the movement.
Me: OK.
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| Gathering/Auditioning |
I gathered my pinks, but continued listening to the news. I heard how the outrage and the protests spread to 700 cities in all 50 states and all over the world. There were protests in UK, Germany, Italy, New Zealand and Canada where thousands condemned racism and carried signs reading "Black Lives Matter". This was new.
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| Shortlisted |
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| For RSC Project #2 |
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| Doing the easy part first |
There were calls to defund the police. I didn't think that would ever happen. But 9 out of 13 council members in Minneapolis decided that previous attempts at police reforms had failed and that they would not just defund the police department but completely disband it and replace it with something else. This is revolutionary!!!
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| Love how the contrast brightens everything!!! |
I have seen what our combined energies have achieved in ten days. Worldwide protests were followed by several authorities announcing policy changes. Other police atrocities came under a spotlight leading to dismissals, arrests and charges. Several cities and states are revisiting their policies, banning chokeholds, requiring other cops to intervene when one is using excessive force, and insisting on accountability. Jurisdictions are pledging to divert funds from policing to education, neighborhoods and healthcare. Confederate statues are coming down. NASCAR prohibits the display of Confederate flags at all racetracks.
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| Using Paintbrush Studio fabric |
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| A touch of gold |
There is much hope and light at this moment. It has reaffirmed my faith in America. I am aware that this journey towards Equality and Justice has only just begun. We have ways to go and I promise to do my part.
I promise to stay engaged and vote. I have also set up a monthly recurring donation to the Equal Justice Initiative, a non-profit legal practice set up by Bryan Stevenson in Alabama, dedicated to challenging racial injustice and defending the wrongly condemned.
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| Fish & Bubbles |
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| Dark and Intense |
Bryan Stevenson's book, Just Mercy was made into a motion picture starring Michael B. Jordan and Jamie Foxx. Just Mercy is streaming for free (YouTube, Google Play and Amazon) in June 2020, so that we can learn about systemic racism.
Here are some other ways to learn about Bryan Stevenson and his extraordinary work.
Preet Bharara's podcast with Bryan Stevenson
Bryan Stevenson TED talk
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| Soothing Pinks |
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| Floral Pinks |
We all have work to do. If you feel uncomfortable about race and racism, it is time to self-examine.
I recommend the book "White Fragility - Why It's So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism" by Dr. Robin DiAngelo. This book has been so popular that it is currently out of stock on Amazon. Fortunately, you don't have to read the book - she has several lectures and presentations available on youtube. Start with this video, just under 4 minutes. My favorite is this one - What it means to be white in a society that proclaims race is meaningless.
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| Picket Star Quilt - June Blocks |
And finally, I encourage you to read this article about how protests in America sparked policy change in New Zealand!!! Yes we can and yes we did :-)
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| Baby Quilt - Almost Done |
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| A new quilt - coming soon |
If you came just for the pictures and skimmed over the text, I thank you.
If you read every word, I love you and I am thrilled that you are with me in this journey.
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| And so on... |
I will be linking with all my favorite linky parties including Angela's So Scrappy, see full list on the sidebar.
As always I welcome your comments - be they about my pink blocks or my thoughts on matters black and white.
I am with you on this journey, Preeti! Thank you for yor beautiful fabric photos and thoughtful information. Inspiration in multiple ways!
ReplyDeleteLongtime reader, I don;t think I've ever commented. Love your quilts, love your words, love your heart.
ReplyDeleteI read every word - I agree so totally but couldn't come up with the right words myself - we need change so desperately and I keep thinking we are on the right track and then find we aren't - I so hope we will have the right change this time - sometimes I think it is a Southern problem and then this murder of George Floyd happens in the north and I find it is a whole country, a whole world problem. Thanks for stating it so well.
ReplyDeleteLove all the quilts too
As for the pictures, my favorite one is the last one of you layering your quilt. :-). My heart and my mind are on the same roller coaster of emotion as yours, swinging wildly from outrage over videos of brutality to joy and hope when I see glimmers that maybe, finally, something will change. But my creativity has stagnated. Instead of listening to audiobooks or podcasts while creating, I've abandoned my creative work altogether as I struggle to understand the what, where, how, and why of systemic racism in America. I had already read White Awake: An Honest Look at What it Means to be White by Daniel Hill a few years ago, which helped me to understand the concept of white privilege. Now I've been reading The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander and No Ashes in the Fire: Coming of Age Black and Free in America by Darnell L. Moore. The New Jim Crow is particularly devastating, because the author makes a convincing case that the entire criminal justice system, at every level of justice from initial encounters with the police all the way up to the Supreme Court, is unfairly targeting and destroying black lives, futures, and communities with hope of legal redress all but extinguished, under the guise of supposedly colorblind Tough On Crime, War On Drugs politics that were intentionally, cynically used by leaders of both political parties to exploit the racial fears of poor white "swing voters" so they could win elections. Although the New Jim Crow book was written 10 years ago when Obama was President, it is helping me to understand the despair and rage that has built up over lifetimes of oppression to erupt in occasional rioting violence amidst the mostly peaceful protesting in our cities. I highly recommend this book to you, perhaps an audio version that you could listen to while you are creating. Although I haven't touched any fabric in several days, I did spend some time in EQ software revising a patriotic American quilt design, exchanging the red/white/blue palette for all of the different skin tones that make up the color of our country, and even found some Black Lives Matter and racial justice themed fabrics on Spoonflower to incorporate. But I ultimately abandoned it because it felt small, paltry, and restrained -- and none of those adjectives describe an appropriate response to the magnitude of systemic racism in America.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing your feelings, insight and hope for the future. And for showing your lovely pink blocks in black and white, which are so much more interesting for richness of varied backgrounds. I hope the world is a better place when 2020 is done, and we have grown in wisdom and justice; how can it not be? Thanks as well for my weekend entertainment suggestions. I'm on it.
ReplyDeleteI love pink, but didn't really pause to look at the pictures. Preeti, your posts always capture my attention with your words. Don't ever stop! It's time to change the world!
ReplyDeleteIt is indeed heartening to see that the protests are making a difference. I hope this trend continues and our society makes a course correction that is long overdue.
ReplyDeleteLove reading your words and looking at the pretty pictures. That last quilt with the orange star points is stunning!
PINK blocks for the RSC, a nearly done baby quilt, something new, AND a top being basted?!? SEW productive, Preeti!!
ReplyDeleteLoved all your pinks!
ReplyDeleteAlways enjoy your thoughtful posts, as well as your quilt projects. I'm particularly fond of the fish & buttons block :-) Best of all, though? The photo of you at the end!
ReplyDeleteYour blocks look great. Your commentary was also great. Here's to change!
ReplyDeleteI always read every word. Sometimes you have hints, sometime you make me giggle and often times you make me think. This time however, you made me pump my fist through my tears! Thank you, thank you! I have to keep working on being the change, even in my little corner of the red state I live in. It’s not easy! But when I read that there are others in my quilting world, who share my thoughts, I am more hopeful! Ps: your pink blocks are wonderful!
ReplyDeleteThank you for your your words, thoughts and giving heart. And for the links as well. I'm a long time reader, and it is wonderful that you are not just breezing by these horrific events, and their history.
ReplyDeleteI love you and your heart. And your eloquence. George Floyd’s needless dearth (and Ahmaud’s and Breonna’s and Michael’s and Trayvon’s, etc etc) are just TOO.MUCH. I’ve been sick this week fighting an ear infection, and have taken the time in bed to think and cry and read. To despair and then to take heart in the hopeful signs of real change. I don’t have the stamina to protest in the streets now, but I wholeheartedly support those who are doing the “heavy lifting”. That includes writing thoughtful posts, like yours always are.
ReplyDeleteOf course I read it all and totally agree. I, too, have trouble ignoring the news even though it thoroughly depresses me. I've found many resources to help me educate myself. It's time for white America to face the fact that things must change and justice and equality must prevail.
ReplyDeletePat
I too read every word and, as we say at home (Newfoundland), your heart is in the right place Preeti. As well as being a terrific quilter.
ReplyDeleteI like your lovely pink blocks in black and white, but to be honest I more interested in reading your words. The photo of you at the end is my favourite.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your thoughtful words and your pictures.
ReplyDeleteWell said, Preeti! What ever happen to live and let live? I don't see people's colour. To me a man is a man is a man and yet, with all that is being said lately, I see that I have some growing to do too. We should all reset our way of seeing and thinking. I just can't get that video out of my mind either. I pray that his death will start some beautiful changes through out the world. ;^)
ReplyDeleteThank you for the link to the New Zealand article. I am a great fan of their Prime Minister. I like her straight forward approach, but I also appreciate her compassion. I was in college in the late 60s and feel as though I have seen it all before. At the time, it seemed as though America was poised for change. I hope this time, we finally get it right.
ReplyDeleteAmazing heart and words. I am with you. It is an interesting time.
ReplyDeleteYour thoughts are my thoughts. However, it really doesn't do a body good to be so absorbed with all the events of the day - we have SO much news information at our fingertips, that it creates an Information Overload. To help me step away from the distressing current events, I found this YouTube video to be very relaxing. It's not really a video, but simply records sounds of birds making their way through the day. I thought maybe you might enjoy, too. It's lovely, soothing and rejuvenating. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=30LMV2LW8pQ&t=386s
ReplyDeleteThe flowers are beautiful, your blocks are beautiful, your quilts are beautiful, your thoughts are beautiful, and you are beautiful. Hang in there. Many virtual hugs!
ReplyDeleteI will come back to admire more closely your pink blocks, they look very pretty at the first glance. I totally agree with you about the world situation, France is raising against racism too, and it's a very good thing. I hope all of this will open a new way to live all together, with equity and equality.
ReplyDeleteI did read every word you wrote and am sending you lots of love.
ReplyDeleteThe good people of the world did revolt and showed up to protest by the thousands, even at the risk of getting covid. They will not allow this happen and stand by quietly anymore. So proud of everyone's efforts to do better. Sending you socially distant hugs!
Preeti, I love you.
ReplyDelete(while I read I remembered our pres saying confederate generals were "winners" and protestors with guns over masks were "good guys" while peaceful protestors were "terrorists"
We're smarter than that though.
I cry each day, and have to try to take time away from thinking about how humans spend so much time hurting each other. Your pinks are hopeful. Pink is healing, used in mental situations to uplift. Let pink rule this month. Love, LeeAnna
Beautiful post..... I read it all. So well said where I have been unable to put that into words. I am trying to raise my children to judge a person based on their words and deeds. Beautiful pinks in your post as well. Stay safe.
ReplyDeleteI, too, am struggling right now. I'm a scientist at my core and want to know how to fix it. How it works and what I should do. But humanity does not work that way, so I am listening and learning, but had to turn away from the news and Facebook, as there was so much negativity. Too much effort to make me feel guilty that I wasn't doing enough, fast enough. I want to be better. I want to change. But not because someone bullied me into it. Posts like yours are so much what we need right now. Links to sources where information and education can be found. Kind thoughts. So thank you. And quilt photos always help...much like kitty pics...they remind me of the good things in life, amid the chaos and anger. So thank you for being a ray of sunshine despite your worries and frustrations. Now I will go pet the kitties and have a better day!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the links. I watched a few already and will watch and read more. Many hugs! xo
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for your thoughtful post, and your courage. I am so grateful to be alive today, even with all our struggles. I am hopeful that real change is coming at last. Even in our little red-state town, we had a march yesterday for racial justice. Yes we can.
ReplyDeleteIt is time for change! I hope people start voting out those not wanting to move forward. I just hope with all of my heart that this issue just doesn't fade away. Make demands on your government - both local and federal!
ReplyDeleteExcellent post -- thoughtful and beautiful quilts. I am finally less immersed in the news than I have been over the last many months. Or at least I am trying to read less. I am discouraged by this administration's action. I am especially encouraged by the sheer number of white people standing with people of color. To me that is an immense indicator of our future hope. Now, if we could get the whole federal government to actually do what is best for the country.
ReplyDeleteA good post. I've watched several videos by DiAngelo and also a short one by Jane Elliott's Classroom lecture. Very pointed.
ReplyDeleteI was thrilled to move to Colorado decades ago because there weren't Confederate statues there. I have voted in almost every election and hope these protesters will commit to voting for years. It will take a while to dismantle all the road blocks to voting as well as the racist structures. Lots of reading, listening, thought, and action ahead for everyone.
I read every word, Preeti, and I thank you for them. I am hopeful that this will spark real, deep, lasting change in our country. To see all the support from across the world is also a comfort, and signs that in so many ways our world is one world and feels all things as one.
ReplyDeleteHi Preeti, I have been following your blog for a very long time - you are an accomplished, beautiful artist.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if you identify with the Indian American community (as I do - if you don't, feel free delete; just here to share). Racism against Black people sometimes manifests in different ways within this community than ways mentioned in White Fragility (though there is obvious overlap). Letters for Black Lives for the South Asian US community has good links in case you or another reader is interested:
https://lettersforblacklives.com/south-asian-us-edition-d2819da03774
Thanks for the link to the article about New Zealand. I hope they do the right thing even without the right data. And I’ll be watching Just Mercy. Also free on YouTube is 13th, about the line from slavery to over imprisonments to shootings. Just watched it.
ReplyDeleteYour pinks are gorgeous! And your words on the current times resonate. It's so overwhelming what needs to be done, but hopefully if we each do something to help, maybe the sum will add to change.
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