#3: Imagine the Future
Look at what’s around and imagine what could be.
Instructions
Look around your neighborhood. Notice what’s available and what’s not.
Finding a place to rest for a while, imagine what could be possible in the space.
Draw an image of what that could look like.
Research what work is already being done in your neighborhood, including any mutual aid, and decide how you can participate and support new visions.
Image: imagined Wifi booths for people who need internet access during remote learning.
Who the Hey?
Today marks the MLK holiday in the United States, honoring the life and work of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. In American mythology, MLK’s life is often reduced to his “I Have a Dream” speech in 1963 at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom (funny how we drop the “Jobs and Freedom” part from the soundbite—also, check out some deeper reflections on his legacy). And we tend to focus on only the second half, instead of the first half that speaks the truth of the moment:
“Dr. KING: We have also come to his hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism.”
That speech highlights the importance of seeing clearly and also visioning, even in the midst of violence. As we continue to find ourselves fighting the flames of racism and white supremacy, the same call is being issued to both deal with the history and present conditions, while also helping to support new visions.
Artist, educator, and organizer Patrisse Cullors spoke on a recent podcast with teacher and facilitator Prentis Hemphill about the power and necessity of reimagining our present and future in the lens of justice and equity.
“All it takes is imagination. That’s literally what we’re asking for people to do, just to be in their creative minds and imagine a different kind of world and what the possibilities are. And so that practice really does looks like spending time—whether it’s writing, journaling, daydreaming, talking to other people about like, ‘okay we live in this community, what would it look like if there were no police here and there were other things like jobs and housing and abundance of human services—what would our world look like?’”
In the midst of the pandemic, it’s been heartbreaking to witness the devastation. A bright spot has been seeing existing mutual aid networks getting strengthened and shared (for those in America, search mutualaidhub.org; for New Yorkers, check out mutualaid.nyc).
What exactly is mutual aid? Here’s a definition from the Mutual Aid NYC website:
Times of crisis make existing inequalities worse and hit vulnerable communities the hardest. The COVID-19 crisis has emphasized the failure of government and social service institutions to meet the needs of those who have historically been most neglected. It has also emphasized the need for people to work together to create larger structural changes.
Marginalized communities have long relied on support practices at the very local level for sharing resources and skills. These practices are now often referred to as mutual aid, and historically range from indigenous lifeways to mutual support in enslaved communities, to the Black Panthers community support programs, to queer communities surviving the AIDS crisis, to pod mapping for chronically ill people.
Community fridges have popped up, and even the occasional destruction of them has spawned a strengthened return. Young people have especially shown up in the movements for racial justice in creative ways, such as the Black Chef Movement feeding peaceful protesters and offering support in communities. ).
Image: the Gowanus Community Fridge in Brooklyn.
There are a lot of things to be worried and scared about in our world and we should honor and heed those emotions. But looking, listening, and imagining offer a lifeline from existing only in the despair and heartbreak.
When we practice looking at the world closely, we can see what’s present.
When we engage with creativity and community, we see what’s possible.
Take care of yourselves and each other out there!
***** The bottom part *****
Check us out on Instagram and #lookandmakeart3
Want to share what you did? YAY!
Email lookandmake.art@gmail.com with your name as you want it to appear.
Archives of some or all messages will live here.