On the Impossibility of Freedom in a Country Founded on Slavery and Genocide 7 - 2014

Dread Scott made this image to explore the impossibility of freedom in a country founded on slavery and genocide. It’s a loaded title, right? It makes you want to look closely, to see what’s going on. The process here is about impact. It's a gesture, captured in a photograph. Water blasts against the figure, obscuring the body, the water frozen for a split second, almost like milk. It feels like an assault, a baptism, a cleansing. The man’s expression is a complex mix of defiance and pain. It is a potent image of resistance, not passive, but active. This photo shares something with the work of artists like Kara Walker, who also grapple with the legacies of slavery. Art doesn’t give us easy answers, but it can help us ask difficult questions, questions about history, power, and yes, freedom.