1968
Today.
6:01pm,
April 4,
is the anniversary of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s
assassination in Memphis, TN.
X
X
X
On that day in 1968,
he was in the city to lead
a peaceful march
of striking city sanitation workers
and
headed from there to
Washington D.C.
to launch his
“Poor People’s Campaign.”
X
X
X
2012
Trayvon’s father Tracy Martin,
family attorney Benjamin Crump
and
mother Sybrina Fulton
at the ‘Million Hoodies’ protest in
Union Square, New York
X
X
X
“Thank God for the media,
because I’m not sure we ever
would have gotten the truth out.”
The speaker was Benjamin Crump,
attorney for the parents of slain
Trayvon Martin.
X
X
X
X
X
X
“I have a dream
that my four little children
will one day live in a nation
where they will not be judged
by the color of their skin,
but
by the
content of their character.”
Martin Luther King, Jr.
X
X
“The ultimate measure of a man is not
where he stands in moments of
comfort and convenience,
but
where he stands at times
of
challenge
and
controversy.”
Martin Luther King, Jr.
X
X
“Faith is taking the first step even when
you don’t see the whole staircase.”
Martin Luther King, Jr.
X
X
X
“Darkness cannot drive out darkness;
only light can do that.
Hate cannot drive out hate;
only love can do that.”
Martin Luther King, Jr.
X
X
X
“Human progress
is neither
automatic nor inevitable…
Every step toward the goal of justice
requires
sacrifice, suffering, and struggle;
the tireless exertions
and
passionate concern
of
dedicated individuals.”
Martin Luther King, Jr.
X
X
X
“A man who won’t die for something is not fit to live.”
Martin Luther King, Jr.
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
What does
“ENOUGH IS ENOUGH”
mean?
What does it mean when it is spoken
from multiple points of view
of an event,
of a beholden value and belief system,
a relationship,
a social contract,
an institution?
X
X
X
Does
ENOUGH IS ENOUGH
mean:
This is the last straw, no further discourse?
I do not want to listen.
I do NOT want to be bothered,
I do NOT want to break open
and
be asked/need
to change?
I cannot afford to revolutionize
the practiced, habitual way
I have acted and/or reacted in the world?
X
X
X
Is it a code, a threat? Does it instill fear?
Is it a bully’s chastisement?
X
X
X
Is it a surrender?
I am opened and I ask for clearsight?
I am humbled.
I need a new path, I cannot do this alone?
X
X
X
Is it a rally call,
where you step up
because you must
and
a moment, an awakening,
becomes a movement;
becomes a paradigm shift;
becomes a tectonic plate shift;
becomes a tsunami;
becomes a new Universe;
becomes a new world;
becomes a new nation;
becomes a new city;
becomes a new community;
becomes a new neighborhood;
becomes a new friend;
becomes a new blueprint;
becomes a new template;
becomes a new practice;
becomes a new pattern;
becomes a new social choreography;
becomes a new prayer;
becomes a new vision;
becomes a new reality;
becomes a new you;
and
you possess the moral courage
to ride out the ambiguity
and
the uncertainty of change
and
you choose to dedicate yourself
to the on-going improvisation
of
an authentic renewal and r/evolution?
X
X
X
And, you break open
and
leap into the experience,
the energy
and
volume
of:
faith,
grace
and
love.
X
X
X
I have been threatened for standing my ground
for my upcoming multi-media art installation!
X
“…YOU better get security around YOU!
YOU racist!
YOU race-baiting racist.
YOU call yourself an artist?
Enough is enough, YOU…”
X
X
X
It is my heart,
the sacred breath,
in me
that must be
the clarion
that blows the
walls
of
Jericho
down.
X
X
X
My
upcoming
THE HALL OF LAMENT:
STAND YOUR GROUND
FOR
TRAYVON MARTIN
installation
is
NOT
a
memorial.
X
X
X
It is a CALL OUT!
X
X
No one can now
H E L P H E L P
Trayvon’s
unheeded wails.
X
X
X
He is dead.
X
X
X
He is in God’s hands.
X
X
X
We can say
ENOUGH IS ENOUGH
and resolve
to create
a NEW blueprint, a NEW template, a NEW model
to imprint
new neuro-pathways*
as
freeways
of
civility
and
the content
of
your
character
prevails
and
THAT
energy
fuels
the
future.
X
X
X
The brain is made up of cells called neurons.
These cells have nerve endings called synapses and dendrites.
Nerve endings release chemical and electrical stimuli
to communicate with each other.
This brain communication forms neuro-pathways
in the brain and is the basis for how the brain works.
X
X
X
When you initially learn something the pathway
or connection is weak.
X
X
X
The more frequently you think
a particular thought
the stronger the pathway becomes,
forming an automatic habit of thinking.
We call this brain training.
X
X
X
THIS IS POWERFUL!
THE BRAIN IS PLASTIC!
X
X
X
I HAD TO TEACH MYSELF HOW TO WALK
WHEN I WAS AN ADULT
AFTER MY HIP WAS REPLACED.
X
X
X
I HAD TO CRASH HABITS
AND
BE ENTIRELY WILLING TO LEARN
A NEW WAY OF WALKING.
X
X
X
MY BODY HAD WALKED THE SAME WAY
SINCE
I LEARNED HOW TO WALK AT 3 YEARS OLD
IN CRUTCHES WEIGHED DOWN
WITH A HEAVY
PLASTER CAST ON MY RIGHT LEG.
X
X
X
I PRACTICED
THAT SAME HABITUAL WAY
OF WALKING
FOR DECADES.
X
X
X
MY HIP WAS REPLACED
( my 39th reconstructive surgery)
ON 26 MAY 1999.
X
X
X
MY BODY WENT INTO TOTAL SEISMIC REVOLT.
X
X
X
SEVERAL YEARS LATER,
WITH
DETERMINATION, BELIEF, FAITH
AND
VISION
COMPOUNDED
WITH A SUPPORTIVE,
TRUTHFUL CIRCLE
OF
FRIENDS AND ADVISERS,
I MOVE IN A NEW WAY.
X
X
X
YET,
IT IS AN ON-GOING PROCESS
AND
IMPROVISATION
OF
MY
COMMITMENT
TO
CONTINUOUS
AWAKENINGS.
X
X
X
THE R/EVOLUTION
WAS
AGONIZING
AND
LIBERATING.
X
X
X
I BELIEVE
WE ARE NOT FALLING.
X
X
X
WE CAN CHOOSE
TO
RISE,
TO
RISE,
TO
RISE.
X
X
X
AMERICA MUST RISE TO INSTITUTIONALIZED RACISM.
X
x
X
PRIVATE RHYTHM: BEAUTIFUL FORTITUDE Catherine L. Johnson 2009
CATHERINE L. JOHNSON 
Leave a Reply