Nancy King, 78 and still scats!

On Saturday evening after the workshop in my last blip, I was asked to photograph a Latino Arts event, and it was sheer joy! All proceedings were in Spanish, and the music and art were phenomenal. There were songs about "La Migra" (Immigrations and Customs Enforcement [ICE], noted for their cruelty and for being the agency that strips children from their parents), but the songs were transcendently joyful. There was a sense of resilience, indomitability. People danced (salsa dance and line-dances). Children and grandparents cavorted together. It was grand.

On Sunday, there was an historic music event I was asked to photograph. One of the local jazz musicians collected fifty (wow!) jazz musicians who donated their services for a benefit performance to raise money for RAICES, the group in Texas that provides legal services for people detained by ICE. One of many stars of the evening was Nancy King, internationally recognized scat singer, seen here with Mel Brown (74) on drums and Rev. Mark Knutson in the background.

Another performer (first Extra) was Darrell Grant, jazz pianist, composer, professor, and political activist. Marilyn Keller (second Extra) performed excerpts of Grant's moving suite about the life of New Orleans child-activist Ruby Bridges. "The resulting multi-movement piece for eight instrumentalists, vocalist, and narrator is a powerful and poignant ode to social justice. Drawing on gospel and spiritual traditions as well as jazz and chamber music and weaving music and spoken word to illustrate an emotional portrait of a dramatic time in US history."  

Art and activism, or as one friend says, Artivism. Just what I love. I ended up making over 300 photos on Saturday and a record (for me) 600 on Sunday, so I have been processing every moment of the day and night since then.  Sorry I am still not commenting, but I do appreciate your comments and hope to get back to them as soon as I finish a piece of work due soon, a meditation for Antifascists I'm writing for a Zine published in the northeast.