A Helping Hand
I’ve been grappling with everything going on in the world, especially the genocides in the Congo, in Palestine, in Sudan.
It’s easy to feel helpless in this current moment and that’s because the system wants us to. We’re isolated, we’re subjected to horrific crimes against humanity and we’re left wondering what one person can do. Is it enough, would it ever be enough? Is it even worth it to say anything when we experience repression at the level that we’re seeing it?
My short answer; yes. I’m a Superman fan, and good guys get involved.
My long answer; also yes, but with more nuance. I don’t believe everyone is meant to do everything. I do believe however that everyone is meant to do everything they can.
“Everybody got they role don’t be an opp, everybody got they role, Imma play mine”- Namesake (Noname)
For me personally, I keep sitting with what the role of the artist is and I keep wondering if it’s enough and it’s not, not by itself at least. Not in a vacuum. It’s no surprise that I’m a Superman fan. My Master’s thesis was about how important the archetype is, and to that point I think about the circumstances that saw the character created. The Great Depression, The Holocaust and here we are seeing the same contexts. Superman provided hope during bleak times and was an instrument of social change. I want my hands to be a tool for progress, I want my art to touch people and make them think, make them feel.
“The role of the artist is to make revolution irresistible” -Toni Cade Bambara.
The landscape of media is constantly changing and comics aren’t anywhere near as widely available as they were in the 1940s but on my website, my books are always going to be free because I want them to find their way to whoever might need to see them. I want my work to be an extension of my being involved and standing up to injustice because that’s what Superman would do.
Obviously inspired by Superman and living in the archetype, I figured Monumental would be the best character for me to work through some of the feelings around what’s happening. I have heard the hope of returning home, of being able to rebuild and I share that hope and want to amplify it.
