I never thought in my lifetime I would experience and see first hand the current level of outright racism and political upheaval that has engulfed the United States in this present time. It was something I learned about in school and in history books. I thought that society had progressed, both morally and socially. I was wrong. 

It has led me onto a path I never thought I would travel. I find myself recreating the ugliness and despair in my art, processing the emotions, mine and as a collective. In doing so, I found I was giving a voice to others that couldn’t be heard. Through imagery, I remind ourselves of what has transpired in our collective history, what we became, and what we have become once again. I pay homage to those who rose up to fight and those who sacrificed and were sacrificed through these unjust times.

The images I portray may include metaphysical or supernatural symbolisms and meanings. For example, in Blood Tears, black flames are burning the tablet (representing the concept of law) being held by the Statue of Liberty. In this context, the black flames represent destruction, chaos, and negative energy. However, they can be defined with other meanings depending on how the viewer sees the image as a whole. 

Everything that represents America - the ideals, freedoms, checks and balances, laws, and human rights have been thrown out and set on fire in Blood Tears. We, as a nation, are distressed and wounded. The sacrifices people have made (including soldiers) have been for naught as the values that represented our nation disappear. For now, we are still standing, sending out a S.O.S. Do we prevail or succumb?

The erasing of certain ethnic groups has occurred since before this country officially began and it still occurs today. Communities, individuals, and tribes have continually been burned down, incarcerated, lynched, murdered, and relocated, along with other acts of violence. The blood of their sacrifices and of those who fight with and for them stain the ground of this nation. We have bled looking for the freedoms, opportunities, and just trying to live our everyday life that we are told belong only to a select privileged group of people. We are up against white washing and denial of what truly transpired with the rewriting, twisting, and fabrication of past and current events, facts, laws, and communal histories. We have been erased from history books taught to children. We are still resisting erasure in all forms and bearing witness to the atrocities being done to us. We are bleeding, yet we are still standing, still here, fighting for our rights and our right to exist.