@divadoesdivinity first shared this(thank you!), so now I am sharing too. #sallyhemings #tituskaphar #AmericanHistory #blackhistorymonth2020 #presidentsday Reposted from @revjacquilewis What is Presidents Day? Is it possible to really look at the true story of the presidents that we hold in such high esteem in this country? To see that their legacy is complicated at best? A total lie at worst? I LOVE this Painting by Titus Kaphar. It’s called “Behind The Myth of Benevolence.” Kaphar plays with what is behind the facade of greatness and benevolence of our country’s “founding fathers.” A portrait of Thomas Jefferson has been “peeled back” to show a black woman behind him- a slave who represents Sally Hemmings, Jefferson’s slave. “This painting is about Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings, and yet it is not. …The woman who sits here is not just simply a representation of Sally Hemings, she’s more of a symbol of many of the black women whose stories have been shrouded by the narratives of our deified founding fathers.” -Titus Kaphar Today we have a President in office who many are choosing to support and deify because his agenda maintains the power dynamic that they are most comfortable with- white people, white men, specifically in power. America- this story is not working. Colonialism and slavery built this country, it’s true, but the country it built is broken. If we are going to do better, and we must, we have to wrestle with the ugly parts of our history, the, imperfect truths. We have to insert back into the story those who have been erased- Native Americans, black people, Latinx people, Asian people, Jewish people, Muslim people, Sikh people, LGBTQIA people, differently abled people- ALL THE PEOPLE who don’t fit into the narrow idea of what America is. Let’s strip back the canvas. Happy Presidents Day. #BlackHistoryMonth #MoreThanBlackHistory #SallyHemmings #TitusKaphar #PresidentsDay - #regrann https://www.instagram.com/p/B8r7jZMpO7G/?igshid=2f9wjl3sbc7a
