Banksy Says A White System Has Ruined Black Lives, As American Flag Does Slow Burn

Banksy has left his personal testimony against racial discrimination, in response to the death of George Floyd and protests that have spread all over the world. Publishing the new work for his 9.3 million Instagram followers, Banksy’s American flag is about to catch fire, lit by a candle placed next to a photo with a black silhouette.

In Banksy’s own words:

“At the beginning I thought of keeping silent and listening to black people on this problem. But why? The problem is mine, not them ". 

“The white system has ruined the lives of black people. It is like a broken pipe that floods the downstairs apartment. It's up to the whites to fix it. "

It Is Time for America to Confront Its Tortured Racial Past by Smithsonian's Lonnie G. Bunch III

By Lonnie G. Bunch III, SmithsonianMag.com

Like many Americans, watching multiple incidents of deadly violence against black people unfold before our eyes has left us feeling demoralized and distraught, aghast, and angry. Not only have we been forced to grapple with the impact of a global pandemic, we have been forced to confront the reality that, despite gains made in the past 50 years, we are still a nation riven by inequality and racial division. The state of our democracy feels fragile and precarious.

Once again, we struggle to make sense of the senseless. Once again, we bear witness to our country’s troubled history of racial violence, from Freddie Gray and Eric Garner to Sandra Bland and Trayvon Martin. Once again, we try to cope as best as we can, whether suffering in silence, participating in protests, or engaging in conversations that evoke all of our emotions. Once again, we try to explain to our children that which cannot be explained. Once again, we pray for justice and we pray for peace. Once again.

We express our deepest sympathy to the families and communities of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, and the far too many preceding them whose needless deaths were brought about by unjustified violence. We hope that their pain and sorrow compel America to confront its tortured racial past, and that this moment becomes the impetus for our nation to address racism and social inequities in earnest.

Although it will be a monumental task, the past is replete with examples of ordinary people working together to overcome seemingly insurmountable challenges. History is a guide to a better future and demonstrates that we can become a better society—but only if we collectively demand it from each other and from the institutions responsible for administering justice.

Frederick Douglass famously said, “Those who profess to favor freedom and yet depreciate agitation, are people who want crops without ploughing the ground…. The struggle may be a moral one, or it may be a physical one, or it may be both. But it must be a struggle.” At this pivotal moment when the eyes of the nation and the world are upon Minneapolis, will we join the struggle to seek justice and equality? Will we heed the call of courageous figures throughout history who spoke out against slavery, marched on for voting rights, and sat in for basic equality? Will we challenge the nation to live up to its founding ideals? In the memory of those taken from us and for the good of the country, I hope that we do.

To create an equal society, and to commit to making unbiased choices and being antiracist in all aspects of our lives, the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture offers the online portal, "Tips for Talking About Race."

Lonnie G. Bunch III is the Smithsonian's 14th Secretary and the founding director of the National Museum of African American History and Culture. He is the author of more than a dozen books on history, race and museum scholarship.

Hitler Cited America As A Perfect Example of White Nationalism

“How the Rebel Flag Rose Again—and Is Helping Trump” By Mason Adams for Politico June 16, 2016. Image by M. Scott Mahaskey/POLITICO

In the age of Trump, Charleston shootings, Charlottesville and most recently Ahmaud Arbery hunted, trapped and cornered like an animal before before being shot, this NYT Op Ed ‘Why Does the US Military Celebrate White Supremacy? is perfect timing.

Reading it -- 2-3 mos before my move to VA -- I am shocked to learn that Hitler more than once cited America as an example of a country that legally protected its white nationalism.

Hitler saw America -- yes "the shining city upon a hill" -- as an idealized example of white supremacy.

Photo by Jen Theodore on Unsplash. Civil War reenactment at The Wade House in Plymouth, Wisconsin. This is a huge, annual event that draws visitors from across the country. These images were taken in 2005, during which time I worked as a photojournalist for a local newspaper.

When I read a jaw-dropping statement like that one, Google is required. Those top links are also included here. For once, they appear before Wiki and the equivalent of whitenationalism.com.

That says to me that people are reading about this issue, even if it's not part of our national dialogue. I think Rachel Maddow should take up this topic and educate us all -- that Hitler repeatedly looked to the United States to justify his policy of rounding up the Jews and gassing millions.

Articles include How American Racism Influenced Hitler; Why the Nazis Loved America; and White Nationalism’s Deep American Roots.

It's been almost two years since I got it into my mind to move to Virginia with a keen desire to be part of the New South. That move is really taking shape now, finally, with the oppty to live in a brand new, super special set of buildings not in Virginia Beach but Norfolk, next door.

This move will allow me to become a swing voter in VA in time for the presidential election. While the move is inspired by VA's vibrant arts community in Norfolk, as well as in VB, I deliberately want to live where slavery first began in America. I want to soak up that poison and repurpose it, take responsibility for it and -- yes-- to fight for my vision of America.

As my friend Christine Turner said, "Honey if you want to confront the beast, you can't come to Alabama. You will lose your mind here. If I consider the options, I think Virginia is a perfect choice for you."

To read this morning that Hitler cited America as his idealized society, I am humiliated and heartbroken. But that is just another motivation to fight for my vision of what is right -- and especially in the time of Trump. ~ Anne