Musings — Mother Mercy

On Continuities

In the 1st place:

Generationally (if such things truly exist), I was born on a cusp, on the edge, on a cliff. That sharp line has situated my intellectual and cultural understanding of Black: I belong to the post-soul, Trey Ellis-era of young black capacity (though that concept suffered its own limits) and the nebulous, clearly misunderstood object of obsession that is this long Millennial™ moment. This edge is chafing and difficult and leaves me specifically worried about black cultural and political futures. As a cultural studies scholar, and like, as a grown girl that came of age bathed in thick cultural coherence (even in my white town and my white school), I think about this all the time.

On Juneteenth 2019

I’ve witnessed ways words can carve direction, ways skilled speaking can conjure the conjuror within. I’ve learned that proper spelling is less about rule when meaning and intent come from the core. Time tells all and two years after What I Mean By Mercy (our first production), I have a fuller sense of what I was reaching for in those poems, and in the collaborative effort to make them into short films. Today is a relaunching of Mother Mercy online, a space that aims to reflect the birthwork of this community as we move toward our vision.

C2C Process Notes, Updates & ReflectionsJMEJune 19, 2019Comment

Reflections: Making Mercy

Making Mercy – A Screening and Celebration was a living reminder of the redemptive and healing power of forgiveness. As the first public event for arts incubator Mother Mercy, it was important for the screening and celebration to reflect the spiritual nature of the creator’s visual narrative. Through altar work it was intended that this event be a moment for not only celebration but also remembrance and reflection, through the What I Mean by Mercy series.