My melanin is not your target practice. They kill our fathers, then mock us for being fatherless. They say we have freedom but I don’t think we do.
I don’t like this feeling. I always start crying. I must be so weak. I feel the racism. History repeats itself. We’re raised to trust them. They can’t be trusted, with anyone. They’re inhumane. When you walk around with a hoodie on you could get shot. They’re still killing kids. I’m staying positive. I’m TRYING to stay positive. All these black people they killed for no reason. The word that comes to mind is ‘Accountability.’ The system is rigged, but still we rise, we will have compassion, we’re still here!
Zoey, Carly, Lily, Yahanna, Samie, Aten-Wa, Henry, Lucy, Essence, LaReina, Reed, R.J., Kayla, Martell, Seth, Brandon, Mana, Staressa, Asiya — students from the Visual Arts Literacy Training course at Juxtaposition Arts — collaborated on a large scale drawing in response to the extrajudicial killing of Philando Castile. Photos by Drew Peterson, VALT Lead Instructor.
Hosted by Juxtaposition Arts, VALT is a FREE program for youth participants with priority given to young people who live, go to school, or are otherwise connected to North Minneapolis. Students may participate in VALT over multiple years or use the training program as a pathway to employment in one of our apprenticeship studios.