Pieces

I’ve been feeling inspired lately. By others, to share more. So things I want to talk about that I haven’t talked about during my experience in Coimbra Portugal.

So here are some pieces:

I was walking around Coimbra one day with a good friend and he pointed out that these

They used these in the past to either hang slaves up or chain them in a line.

Living in a country where the history of slavery existed and was very prevalent it never seemed to leave my eyes as I walked through the city.

Another piece I want to share-->

So in this very popular mall called Doce Vita in Coimbra were I go frequently. They had an art exhibit of President Obama. When my friend told me I was surprise and said stop lying why would they have an art exhibit of a President of the U.S. here in Coimbra of all places? I mean maybe they would have one of the President of Brazil Dilma Rousseff, she is the first female president of Brazil. Anyways, I was curious and wanted to see it so we went down stairs and sure enough on the floor there it was. As I walked around the pictures, I was shocked and affected by the images and the negative messages spread.

I didn’t find any of the cartoonish funny

Majority of the pictures had him depicted as a slave or had some connotation to slavery.

Unfortunately my camera died that day so I couldn't capture them all. But they have a website for more information (http://www.cartoonvirtualmuseum.org/i_galobama_f_i.htm)

I know art is a freedom of expression and everyone is entitled to say and share whatever they would like. I guess I just wondered why there were none that expressed positive messages? Or perhaps those artist weren’t chosen.

It was crazy to me that when I had read that the pictures were from all over the world. Canada, Brazil, Japan, Hungary, Russia,Unites States, just all over. And they all shared the same the same sentiment: a negative image of President Obama. To think that this is spread all over the world, this is not how I want people to know my president or think of him. I mean in the states I remember in the political section they would have a political comic sketch but those as well were never really funny to me. They elongated his nose, or gave Obama big lips and pictured him eating watermelon. I remember even seeing a cereal box created called Obama O’s. It’s interesting to me that people in the US want to say/think America is in a post racial era since President Obama is the first black president (but being a black person in power, will not magical change hundred years of institutionalized slavery thats been embedded throughout the US), but there’s nothing post-racial about making racialize jokes/drawings at the past/present. Double lives=double lies.

and another one--->There was a store in Amsterdam that made me laugh