Jaki Shelton Green, “Oh My Brother”
Words of protest, perseverance and power by Jaki Shelton Green; press photo courtesy of the artist.
In times of confrontation, uprisings, conflicts of consciousness as our broken system faces itself and its own fears — it is the light of the arts that illuminates the narratives that need to be told. It is the aura of the arts that accentuate the stories that have never been told (or only related in half truths). It is the spirit of the arts that give a voice to those who otherwise do not have a platform, or whose trajectories have been criminally cut short.
Iconic poet laureate of North Carolina, Jaki Shelton Green, publisher of eight poetic books, SistaWRITE owner and Dream Yourself Awake and Vertikal Creative Ventures co-owner announces the long awaited debut album The River Speaks with an intimate poetic visual for “Oh My Brother” directed by Alec Ferrell. A poem initially written in 2017 for the Poetry of Lamentation anthology — the elements of stories witnessed on the international media stage of brutality, racism, senseless murder, abuses of power and more are witnessed in new visceral poetics of love and mourning. Shining a light on the incendiary events leading up to the deaths of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, Calvin L Horton Jr, Chris Beaty, David McAtee, Dave Patrick Underwood, Italia Kelly, James Scurlock and the names that have yet to be written — Green’s urgent treatise of grief and calls to arms begins with:
Oh my brother, for Eric Garner, Trayvon Martin, nameless brothers, all of my brothers who have been silenced…
Jaki Shelton Green shared the following preface to her poetic work “Oh My Brother”:
I wrote “Oh My Brother” several years ago. An invitation from a poet in New York invited other poets nationwide to submit poetry for the Poetry of Lamentation Online Anthology created to memorialize the murdered and symbolize solidarity with grieving families across the United States whose love ones are being murdered by law enforcement.
Again, writers, musicians, dancers, sculptors and all artists are called upon to use our creativity to declare, agitate, and resist. We will not perish as long as we remember the righteous fire and light inside our artistic utterances.
Much peace and wonderment,
Jaki
Jaki Shelton Green's The River Speaks of Thirst will be available June 19 via Soul City Sounds.