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“All this talk about “founding fathers” and the building of America by hard work without handouts…
This country is great because it was built on the backs of slaves. What better handout than to start your businesses with free labor.”
Daaaaaaaaaaamn… talking about ALL of our history, even the ugly parts, does not make me unpatriotic. I am proud of our country and of our President. No apologies.
Download, share, repost… speak up…vote!
~ Onjena
“The Problem We All Live With” by Norman Rockwell
“Mother hunger — to be one or have one”
~ Toni Morrison
… the desire to protect and be protected… to be seen as a human worthy to be celebrated… admired…forgiven…
It’s not about celebrating one over another. It’s about equal protection for a chance to get it right… or to get it wrong…
I think President Obama got it right when he honored the bravery of a six year old girl named Ruby Bridges by hanging Norman Rockwell’s painting “The Problem We All Live With” in the White House. Many thought the President got it wrong by choosing to highlight such an “ugly” part of American history. I see the image of Ruby shielded by several U.S. Marshalls and my heart aches and swells with pride. I guess we all have a right to choose what we will never forget…
Perspective…
Here we are in 2012, and some of the American media seems to have a tough time celebrating certain people’s achievements… Sometimes it is just the tone of the reporter… sometimes it is the persistent questioning of mental strength and preparedness… as if to diminish the hard work and mental toughness en route to becoming an Olympic champion twice over… (Thank you Gabby Douglas).
I understand that because Great Britain was the host country of the Olympics, the American media was keen to follow and celebrate their team’s wins (mainly when the American teams were not in medal contention)… however, as a multi-national patriot, I felt something else was going on… An air of exclusion that I have unfortunately grown accustom to…
Who do we readily accept as our heroes? And if someone who looks like Gabby Douglas (or Serena Williams) is that hero… do we explain it away by saying they are exceptions and not the rule (quite different from being exceptional, mind you)…? When the American flag fell during Serena’s medal ceremony, I felt a slight twinge of anxiety for how some would interpret it as a bad sign… But Serena’s response made my heart soar:
“…it was probably flying to come hug me because the flag was so happy.”
~ Serena Williams
The flag was not the only happy one, Miss Williams. (And while I’m celebrating Serena’s win, I’d like to congratulate some of my other favorite Olympic athletes… Michael Phelps, Ryan Lochte, Missy Franklin, Allyson Felix, Misty May-Treanor, Kerri Walsh Jennings, Samuel Mikulak and Usain Bolt).
The problems we all live with… we may not agree on what they are or how to solve them, but I can say this… I believe President Obama is the right one to deal with the problems of America.
Having a colorful past is about as American as it gets. (And just an FYI to Team Romney… America’s “shared heritage” expands well beyond the borders of Great Britain…). I designed my first multi-national symbol for my mom’s “seoul food” eatery… but it seems to have resonated with many people… so I designed a few more variations. I am posting it on CANVASS 44…to represent all multi-nationals who support President Obama.
Representing the change in America that has been here all along… From left to right: Americans from Cape Verde, Israel, Canada, Ghana, Japan, Korea and China. More to come…
A portion of proceeds from all merchandise on the CANVASS 44 store will go to the re-election campaign for President Obama, Partners in Health and the BVSJ.
Please share your art with us in support of the President via twitter @CANVASS44.
Thanks for reading!
~ Onjena
#sayitLOUD #registertovote #neverforget #spreadLOVE
Ruby Bridges Hall now serves on the board of Norman Rockwell Museum and founded The Ruby Bridges Foundation in 1999 to promote the values of tolerance, respect, and appreciation of all differences. She commended Rockwell for having “enough courage to step up to the plate and say I’m going to make a statement, and he did it in a very powerful way.”
Norman Rockwell received letters of both praise and criticism for depicting such direct social commentary in his painting “The Problem We All Live With.” Rockwell continued to revisit the theme of civil rights in several other of his illustrations from the period.
*A very special shout out to @problemwthat for encouraging me to share my American story.
When asked by sports journalist George Plimpton,”What would you like people to think about you when you’ve gone?”, Ali responded:
“I’d like for them to say he took a few cups of love, he took one tablespoon of patience, teaspoon of generosity, one pint of kindness. He took one quart of laughter, one pinch of concern, and then, he mixed willlingness with happiness, he added lots of faith, and he stirred it up well, then he spread it over his span of a lifetime, and he served it to each and every deserving person he met.”
~ Muhammad Ali
Grey Williamson cites Muhammad Ali as an inspiration for the pose of his Renegade Obama bust… a fighter’s stance.
This concept graphic was created by onjena, Kilroy III and Grey Williamson.
Who hasn’t been inspired by Muhammad Ali? A fighter in the ring and for all of humanity.
To support Ali’s legacy of respect, confidence, conviction, dedication, charity and spirituality, please visit The Muhammad Ali Center. Located in his hometown of Louisville, Kentucky, the Center pays tribute to The Champ’s legacy.
To support President Obama, please visit Organizing for America.
Thanks for reading!
~ Onjena
#sayitLOUD #registertovote #spreadLOVE
Grey Williamson has worked as a writer, artist and designer for almost every major comic publisher in the comic industry. He formed Carbon-Fibre Media as a home for his entertainment properties and productions.
Kilroy III makes his professional debut at Carbon-Fibre Media with his work on the Apollo, Val-Mar and Renegade busts. He has multiple projects under development that can be viewed on his blog, Kilroy’s Attic.
Onjena makes her professional debut at Carbon-Fibre Media with her line of toy robots called “O’BOTS” and a line of political t-shirts for CANVASS 44. She is also an amateur scrapbooker.
The “Say It Loud” Designs are dedicated to my father… who blasted James Brown’s “I’m Black and I’m Proud” around my campus quad during parent’s weekend oh so many years ago… in New Hampshire…
I’ve happily seen variations of “the fist” being used by the Occupy and Pro-Labor movements. I do believe it stands for power to all the people.
Say It Loud 1.0
When I released the “Say it again, Sam 1.0” image, I was told that Uncle Sam appeared too devilish… Hmmm… I can see that…
Say It Again, Sam 1.0
Here is the same design in black. Less devilish?
Say It Again, Sam 2.0
The head scarf on any other woman would have meant something else.
Maybe this one should be titled “Rosie Fisticuffs”…?
Rosie the Renegade
All designs are available on t-shirts and various accessories on our CANVASS 44 store for the benefit of Organizing for America, Partners in Health and BVSJ.
Thanks for reading!
~ Onjena
#sayitLOUD #registertovote #spreadLOVE
Onjena makes her professional debut at Carbon-Fibre Media with her line of toy robots called “O’BOTS” and a line of political t-shirts for CANVASS 44. She is also an amateur scrapbooker.
CANVASS 44 