We’re having class later today, and as I was in my office checking my email, a news story came up with an example of a current-day attempt at conflict resolution in my community. In the aftermath of events in Charlottesville, two women –Susan Bergeron, who owns a local art studio–and Jennifer Graham–the director of our college’s Women’s Center–have created a project that allows students and community members to come together and paint a 3′ x 3′ canvas that will be displayed as part of a community art display. The idea behind the project, “Paint Against Hate” is to use art as an opportunity to have discussions about race, and the things that divide our community along racial lines. As Susan puts it, “Why not use my business and art to spark more conversation about race’? I wanted to shed light on the fact that maybe we’re not as progressed as we would like to be and kind of start that conversation, because you can’t improve on something unless you talk about it.” Of course, we know that just talking about a complex topic is hard–remember all the psychological reasons we as humans don’t like changing our minds or confronting information that challenges us. But it’s a neat example of an attempt being made to reach out to different groups of people and start dialogues. It’s hard to be mad while you’re painting, so maybe they’re on to something here! Susan points out that art has a long history of being connected with raising issues of social justice, and she views it as a “good gateway” for people to express themselves, both artistically and politically. Click the citation below for the full news story.
–Dr. Wallace
Citations:
“Local Residents Fight Hate with Paint,” The Moultrie Observer, August 28, 2017.