“don’t give up” 24/03/2008
Posted by dlatman in "middle east", Graffiti, Jewish, anti-war, art, history, nc, queer, time, u.s..4 comments
Update 3/29: For more tranny performance, I was able to check out the Tranny Roadshow last night, during their US tour stop in NC. Highlights included the all-girl garage rock band The Degenerettes, which made a lotta people dance. For more on the Iraq War, read the recent New Yorker article on Abu Ghraib military officer and photographer Sabrina Harman. I learned that at least one torture technique used on Iraqis originated in Israeli prisons.
This stencil was found on the Carrboro bike path, spray-painted on back of a metal street sign. I recognize the image from Tim Tum: a trans jew zine, made by Micah Bazant back around 2000. It is a great zine, and I highly recommend people read the section on trans etiquette. (Note: the interlocking circles in the center of this person’s chest is the hobo symbol for “don’t give up”.)
In other gender-bending news, The Cuntry Kings based right here in Durham, NC are just about the sexiest, most fun, intelligent, thoughtful and dance-able drag troupe I’ve ever seen! They performed this past weekend at drag.esque, addressing a range of issues from factory farming to immigration, all while making the crowd dance to songs by Madonna!
I think we’re gonna need to remember to keep dancing while we learn, yearn and struggle… ’cause serious stuff is continuing to affect our world. As of yesterday, 4,000 US soldiers have died fighting the war in Iraq, just after its fifth anniversary. This year also marks the 60th anniversary of al-Nakba (the catastrophe), which created a homeland for Jewish people in Israel, while totally displacing and destroying the homes, possessions, trees and livelihoods of thousands of Palestinians.
But like Micah and the hobos say: don’t give up . . . . . . . . . . . .
bunny, Toronto 18/03/2008
Posted by dlatman in Graffiti, art, beauty, food, fun, shopping, travel, u.s..add a comment
This bunny was painted on a door on Queen Street, in lovely downtown Toronto. During my visit there last winter it was VERY cold, but girls still wore high heeled shoes with no socks to go out. In other fashion news, Toronto is also the home of one of my favorite lingerie stores. Check it out if you ever visit!
Even though it’s cold up north, we’re experiencing some early spring-like weather here in Chapel Hill, NC. The flowers are starting to bloom and it’s really gorgeous. Easter is also approaching, which is why I’m inspired to post this bunny graffiti… I know, I’m Jewish, but can’t everyone appreciate cute little bunnies? And chocolate Easter candy? I even ate a few Easter-inspired SnoBalls the other day, just for fun. Interestingly, a brief Google search revealed the existence of SnoBall flavored lip balm… as a die-hard lip-balm addict, I may need to investigate this further.
I’m here 06/03/2008
Posted by dlatman in "middle east", art, nc, peace, u.s., women, youth.2 comments
Update 3/18/08: Please read Bob Carson’s beautiful eulogy for his daughter.
Update 3/13/08: It seems that local police have found their guys. What a relief. Except, these kids seem more stupid than pure evil. I hope that they get a fair trial and punishment, because emotions are running really high in this case. I’m partly concerned because, until recently, NC was one of the few states who still punished youth with the death penalty.
Self-portrait (of sorts), 2000
Sometimes bad things happen for no apparent reason.
Today was such a beautiful, clear, sunny day; which made it even more surreal that a girl in my town was killed. Then my sister called from Jerusalem to tell me that several boys were shot to death in a nearby yeshiva.
It doesn’t make any sense, why someone would shoot a young person. Why end a life that is so full of promise?
I drew the above picture several years ago, after a few people I loved (also quite young) had died. It totally sucks. The only good that came out of it was learning to appreciate each day I have, and try to do all the things I wanna do before I die.
I’m not gonna stay inside just because I’m a girl and “it’s dangerous” to go out alone at night. I will also not let violence against “my” race/religion inform my view of other groups in a misguided attempt at regaining a sense of security, control or understanding. It was horrible for a Palestinian or Arab Israeli to kill kids, and it was just as senseless for Israel to kill over 100 Gazans (including many civilians, several of whom were children) last week.
Life is crazy sometimes, like a lightning storm roiling the sea. That’s why I learned how to surf.
people before chocolate 04/03/2008
Posted by dlatman in Graffiti, africa, art, food, nc, shopping, u.s., youth.add a comment
This stencil was found pasted onto a dumpster in the University Lake apartments parking lot, located in lovely Carrboro NC. The pixelated style is reminiscent of 1980’s video games.
This slogan reminds me of a recent front-page article in Fortune magazine, “Chocolate’s Bittersweet Economy,” by journalist Christian Parenti. Parenti visited small villages in the Ivory Coast last fall, where 40% of the world’s chocolate is grown, to investigate cocoa farmers’ working conditions. The chocolate industry had agreed to stop using child labor by 2005, but a recent report by Tulane University has found otherwise.
Unfortunately, both the chocolate industry and Ivorian government have allowed slave and child labor to persist. The chocolate industry and corrupt politicians profit from declining prices, while poverty frequently leads children to help their familes in the fields rather than attend school.
To complicate matters further, through the 1990’s the then-Ivorian president encouraged Muslims from neighboring countries to work in his nation’s cocoa farms, but did not grant the immigrants citizenship or equal rights. Their ostracization led to ethnic conflict and a civil war from 2002-2004, further destabilizing the government and economy.
I love chocolate as much as the next girl, but a sense of ethics will have to pervade my next ravenous pre-menstrual craving for all things cocoa. Some little kid’s life is more valuable than two minutes of sensory stimulation.
Here’s a list of companies that sell fair-trade chocolate.
