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The Lynch Quilts Project

This issue dedicated to all of my ancestors and elders on whose shoulders we stand to impact the future for those yet to be born. 
 
March 19, 2019
Like Early Spring 2019:  The Lynch Quilts Project on Facebook
www.TheLynchQuiltsProject.com

Greetings Lynch Quilts Project Community:
I was just about finished with the update when the tragic shootings in New Zealand took place. As such, I want to take a moment of silence for my Muslim family and brethren worldwide. 

30 seconds of silence.

As a person with several family members and friends that are Muslim, as well as one that often presents as a Muslim given my head is often wrapped, to say I am concerned is an understatement as this hits close to home. Don't get me wrong, the world is a virtual slaughter house as much these days as it has always been. But what makes this even more chilling are the many connections and points of inspiration this act of terrorism has to the USA and the potential for copycat shootings to again start popping up on our shores. When I heard that a worshipper said to the assailant moments before being gunned down, "Hello Brother,” I immediately thought of Dylann Roof, perpetrator, of the Charleston Massacre. Prior to killing 9 people on June 17, 2015 at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, Roof had the audacity to pray and worship with these individuals. A few weeks back here in Indy a colleague’s nephew was murdered in a racist, Islamophobic fueled road rage attack.

Wherever you are, whatever you do, we must stand united against all forms of extremism and brutality. For if it is not you today, it will be tomorrow. We don't have to agree with each other, or even like each other, but the moment we start spending our days vilifying the humanity of others, thinking we are sanctified in our belief that we are better than, above others, it is game over. PERIOD.

Each and every one of us can and could act on a small scale. I hope that you will. Somethings to think about are as follows:

Granted, the above resources will not stop a shooter. However, most acts of racism, racial violence and white supremacy happen right in front of us every single day. We all can act on a large or small scale. In the US think of events this past week with the community protests against the Sacramento, CA district attorney's decision not to bring criminal charges against the officers who shot and killed Stephon Clark who was in grandparents' backyard at the time. Or, Dyma Loving violently arrested after calling the police for help when someone pulled a gun on her and her daughter. Or, Willie McCoy who was shot to death while sleeping in his car by police. All of us, must stand up and do something - protest, bear witness, take video documentation . . . quilt.  I am not asking you to put your life on the line, as one mosque goer did to save others, and another chased the gunman off, saving even more. But we must do something. Our humanity and all of humanity depends on it here and now.

With gratitude,

LaShawnda



Navigation Links for the remainder of the newsletter . . .











Now back to our original update . . . 

I am not sure how you are feeling right about now, but I am ready for Spring!  Days flipping back and forth between rain, snow, sweat then torrential rains, followed by ice have made me ask the great mother earth, “What can we do to restore balance?” And Punxsutawney Phil, I think your prediction was waaaaaay off this time around. 

With that said, we hit 2019 running at a sprint pace on a marathon course. We've been working hard to bring awareness to the history and contemporary impact of lynching and racial violence over the past few months - how the past and present are intimately intertwined. Much of February was spent working directly with faith-based groups, youth groups and other community partners to facilitate community dialogues about these and other missing histories, as well as "prepare" groups to make trips down to the lynching memorial in Montgomery, AL.

March continues with a full steam ahead sprint as we build more community connections. We've been on the road quite a bit this year and looks like it won't be until late-April when are able to slow down a bit. At the end of April, we will be working with youth at the Community Theater for Social Justice Action Conference. I'm always excited about working with the youth as it is here that we have the chance to change the future for decades to come. Already we are scheduling projects out into 2020 with several multi-month exhibition opportunities.

With that being said, sewing sessions will begin again around until late-spring / early-summer. In the meantime, we are working out the next steps to move
Quilt V: The Making Quilt forward. The death of the grandfather of TLQP, Otis Grove, on Christmas Day 2018 has led to a pause for the past couple of months as we reassess. To be honest, a part of me cannot touch that quilt right now. And right in the middle of all this my cousin, a musical genius in his own right, also passed on. I am sure once spring has reached us in full force with its messages of hope and rebirth, the promise of gardens and butterflies, I'll be ready to jump back on the TLQP sewing wagon. But never fear, while not sewing, the process of supporting community awakening around change is where I am putting my energies right now, as well as thinking through many things that have found their way onto my plate recently. 

Of which, the development of the quilt for Laura Nelson's son, Lawrence / LD is a top priority and has also begun in earnest. His is the first quilt in TLQP 2.0. This new series of quilts charts violence against black boys and is tentatively named
Angels in America: Boyhood in Red, White and Blue. More than two years ago, this quilt started out as one quilt, and in recent months has morphed into several. I am not sure how this is working itself out on a mental, emotional or spiritual level. But I feel the process must be allowed to run its course. Once it does, I'll share. It seems like mission critical now to move this first quilt which I have mentally played with and sketched for several years into action. To move from the back burner of the simmering creative pot to the front towards production for a lot of reasons. So that means, we may be actively working on 2 if not 3 quilts at once. 

Of all the quilts, this is the one that has mentally and emotionally brought me to my knees on more than one occasion. These quilts about the children are the ones that make me cry. And I mean real tears while walking through the aisles of the fabric store simply trying to pick swatches for the mock-up. I have not been able to fully wrap my head around this or how to proceed until recently, when I returned from my excursion in Tulsa, OK earlier this month. Funny how a 3.5 hr. layover in the Dallas, TX airport where I feasted on BBQ and listened to live jazz all afternoon created the mental and emotional space to understand what needed to happen next. Not to mention that going to Tulsa was a literal homecoming. In the past, it always felt like a pilgrimage. This time it felt like coming home.

But before we move too far afield with this, I must give a SUPER DUPER shout out to Tulsa, OK.! In all my days, in all my lives I never thought the words "I Love Tulsa" would cross my lips. THANK YOU, Tulsa Community, for showing up to support The Lynch Quilts Project. The quilts were embraced with love and I felt like I had returned home. Although a discussion for another time, Tulsa and the state of Oklahoma where one of our stops during my cross-country escapade the summer of 1997 with my old roommate, now turned film maker. During that trip, I tried to figure out if I should go into social work or the arts. I did them both in my own form of social justice, healing art. But that's a tale for another time. I digress.

A very, very special thanks to Alicia Latimer, African-American Resource Center Coordinator for Tulsa City-County Library, for inviting me back to Tulsa, then showing me the town and the many hours of laughter. Special thanks to Scott Stulen for giving me a tour of the Phillbrook Museum! I can't wait to see the continued changes under his tutelage. The new Kehinde Wiley painting is fabulous. And a thank you to Tulsa in general. This place felt like home, even though the McDonald’s closed at 9 pm!

As we move forward with the next round of quilts, I hope more Tulsans will be able to participate this time around, especially when working on the quilt for Lawrence / LD Nelson and his sisters. They've recently popped up in this quilt as well. Just two little pink hearts. In case you did not know, accounts have it that Laura Nelson had a two-year-old daughter and a two-month-old daughter in her jail cell when the attack occurred. Carrie, the two-year-old, was supposedly rescued by a neighbor / bystander. No word on the new born. But alas, both are now lost to history. Not a word. Not a peep on what happened next. So, here in this quilt, along with their big brother, we can love them too as I am sure all where on the mind of Laura in the end. That Lawrence / LD thought of his little sisters who he could not protect, even as he screamed . . .

Mama . . . Mama . . .  Mama. 


Ashe.

LaShawnda






With Rudisill Regional Library Staff - Chris, Alicia, me and Vonnie! Tulsa rocks!


Still at Rudisill Regional Library, but added Keith to this photo.


Gifted this beautiful block by a community member. Thank you Joyce!


Lawrence / LD Nelson died on May 25, 1911 beside his mother, Laura Nelson.
This is the quilt we will begin working on very soon.





UPCOMING EVENTS 

Hope to see you there if you can come out!

March 21-22, 2019
Time: Friday, 8 am - 4 pm

Artist as Community Problem Solver Part II
St. John's Episcopal Church
2600 Church Ave. 
Cleveland, OH 44113


* Click here to attend the events.

Presenting Quilt I: Her Name was Laura Nelson, Quilt II: RedRum Summer 1919, Quilt IV: Failed State (TBD) followed by community discussion.


March 30, 2019
Time: Saturday, 8 am - 4 pm

WOC (Women of Color) in Design Summit
Purdue Black Cultural Center
1100 3rd St.
West Lafayette, IN 47907


* Click here to attend the events.

Presenting a workshop with collaborator Phyllis V. Boyd on working with youth on design thinking and community-based community development.


April 27-28, 2019
Time: Saturday, 2-3:30 pm 

Community Theater for Social Justice Action Conference
Civil Rights Heritage Center 

1040 W Washington St.
South Bend, IN 46601

* Click here to attend the events.

Presenting
Quilt I: Her Name was Laura Nelson, Quilt II: RedRum Summer 1919, Quilt VI: Memoria: In Progress followed by community discussion. 

Hope to see you there if you can make it!

With gratitude,

LaShawnda





 
The mini shrine we made at the national lynching memorial in July 2019. Rest In Power Nelson Family.




FEEDBACK ON WEBSITE


The Lynch Quilts Project website needs an upgrade. I'd greatly appreciate it, if you could please take this quick 3 minute survey to provide feedback so we can make the website the best it can be. 
Thank you so very much for your assistance!

With gratitude,

LaShawnda


 






NEXT QUILT STEPS
 
Quilt V, The Making Quilt has come center stage to move into maximum overdrive production! We will begin to tentatively start sewing in May 2019. Currently, we are prepping fabric. What is needed as the sewing begins:
  • We need your words, prayers and symbols for power, transformation and healing to incorporate into the stitching of the quilt. Email them to me at info@thelynchquiltsproject.com.
  • We are accepting indigo and charcoal fabrics, as well as batiks and printed fabrics in the same vein of coloring. Fabrics can be both dark and light. Click to get a sense of the range of blue and indigo fabric.
  • Community members can also participate by embroidering symbols into the fabrics of the stars.
  • If you are in the area of the following communities we'll also have opportunities to assist with hand stitching: Chicago, IL, Indianapolis, IN, Louisville, KY, Cincinnati, OH and Columbus, OH.
 
Phase II Quilts, Angels in America: Boyhood in Red, White and Blue
  • Donate Fabric: children, juvenile fabrics, all the colors of the rainbow
  • Sewing Fabric: Not sure yet.
  • Brainstorm: Send symbols, words, objects that represent healing and justice to you that will be incorporated into the quilts, as well as explore of the idea what does it mean to be wrapped in love.
 
Mock-up of Quilt V: The Making Quilt (c) 2004 - present




 
Continue to spread the light.


 
 
Tess Asplund, with Fist Raised Against the Leadership of The Nordic Resistance Movement (Nrm). (Twitter/David Lagerlöf). Click here to learn more about her simple, but powerful stand against injustice and hate.
 

 
RESOURCES TO GET YOU STARTED
 
As we continue to do our work in the world, here are some additional articles and resources to assist us in having these conversations.

First, I will direct you here to
The Lynch Quilts Project website, which has a list of organizational resources to help you get ready.

Second, I direct you to the site
#CharlestonSyllabus, which has resulted in a nearly 20 page bibliography of articles, books, research, etc. that explore race in America. In addition, you can click here to purchase the book (Charleston Syllabus: Readings on Race, Racism and Racial Violence), which is a condensed version of the on-line syllabus.

Finally, below are a series of articles that explore these issues that have become more focused on the national spotlight in regards 

History
Understanding the past persecution of black Americans is crucial to understanding the racism that pervades the country today.
 
Artivist Work
 
Insight, Violence and Resistance
 



Yeah, we are kinda crazy!

PROJECT PROGRESS REPORT


Here is where we stand so far with the quilts. We'll be focusing on Quilt V and Quilt VII for the next few months. As well, figuring out which of the other quilts make sense to "officially" get started.

I say official because that is when my focus will shift directly and primarily here. If you are interested in working on any of the quilts just contact me and I can tell you where we are specifically on a particular quilt and how you can participate. Unless the quilt says "complete," there is an opportunity to participate. In the mean time, click here to checkout how to help get things started for the various quilts.
  • Quilt I: Her Name was Laura Nelson, Completed May 2004
     
  • Quilt II: RedRum Summer 1919, Completed July 2014
     
  • Quilt III: A Partial Listing, Completed November 2017
     
  • Quilt IV: Failed State (TBD), Completed November 2016
     
  • Quilt V: The Making Quilt, actively in progress, ETA Spring 2020
     
  • Quilt VI: Memoria: In Progress, On-going process, 2010-present
     
  • Quilt VII: The Ties that Bind, actively in progress.
     
  • Quilt VIII - XV: Angels in America / Boyhood in Red, White and Blue, Quilt one is actively in progress now. 


SPECIAL THANKS

The Lynch Quilts Project is also supported in part by grants from The Indiana Arts Commission, The Puffin Foundation, Creative Renewal Grant from The Arts Council of Indianapolis and of course ALL OF YOU!!!

ARTICLES ABOUT LQP

WTHR-13
Indy Reacts to the Quilt
Indianapolis Recorder
Clutch Mag On-Line
Madame Noire
Maybe Someone Should Write that Down
Beautiful Horror of History

TEDx INDIANPOLIS

 

Creative Power for Social Change!

 

Fighting for a racially healed and just future, since 2002.
 

Copyright © 2019 The Lynch Quilts Project, All rights reserved.


Our mailing address is:
LaShawnda Crowe Storm
The Lynch Quilts Project
P.O. Box 90348
Indianapolis, IN 46290

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