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Kathryn Mayer • Writing Out Loud

I write stuff down. writer • humorist • activist

Politics and art: don’t tell us to stop making you think

November 13, 2016 by Kate Mayer 2 Comments

don't censor artists for politics
image courtesy Pixabay

A couple times, long before Trump became president elect, people (aka Cousin Evie) asked me to keep ugly politics (and bad language) out of my blog and off my Facebook page.

“Facebook is supposed to be friendly and folksy, I wish you’d stop with all this political hogwash.“

With the country protesting the sexual predator-elect nationwide, and writers and bloggers flooding the internet, newspapers, and media with opinions of what this means and why it matters, the following Instagram posts are perfect examples of why the two are inseparable.

As seen on my favorite “writer who draws” Austin Kleon’s, Instagram feed. (You may know his fanfriggintastic little book, Steal Like An Artist, my favorite gift to give).

Apparently one of his fans does not appreciate his political commentary, which I did not read or see, because that’s not the point.

Nope! Sorry, bub. Not this week. (Link in profile.)

A photo posted by Austin Kleon (@austinkleon) on Nov 11, 2016 at 10:04am PST


Kleon: “Nope. Sorry, bub. Not this week.”

Best answer ever. Except maybe “baby koalas.*

Don’t censor the artist in times of pain, grief, chaos, or turmoil.

In fact, don’t censor them. Ever. Just don’t.

Artists are beacons who lead us into realizations there just might be other points of view, other vantage points, dark shadows revealed, alternate words not yet spoken, quiet voices amplified. Perhaps they might be considered if people knew they existed.

Or not.

That’s up to the viewer, the observer, the reader, the listener.

That’s up to you.

The artist puts it out there. It’s our job to take it in.

The artist might make us uncomfortable to try and make sense of what is happening in the world around us. Or behind closed doors. Or in the Washington DC.

Beautiful or painful. Peaceful or volatile. Politics or personal. Politics are personal. Or else none of us would care.

Don’t tell an artist to be quiet. Don’t tell them to be careful. Don’t tell them to get back to normal.

They create normal. Normal for somebody.

Maybe not you.

But somebody.

Healing in a bookstore. Elliot Bay Books, Seattle. Also, retail therapy.

A photo posted by Kim Tackett (@kimtackett) on Nov 12, 2016 at 2:08pm PST

 

If what you’re seeing is not the language you speak, look for an interpreter. Maybe it’s not what happens in your world, but it happens in somebody’s, or else it would not be there.

It would not be art.

Art heals. Art angers. Art forgives.

Art does not forget. It is a living breathing artifact of that moment in time.

Don’t ask artists to silence their remarkable talent to create what makes people feel.

Just don’t.

 

Sidebar: *My new best answer to naysayers, hater, or troll is now “baby koalas.” Here’s why:

 


Learning to breathe when the world is unraveling
Safety pins to the rescue, or just another feel good moment for white people?

Comments

  1. Alana says

    November 13, 2016 at 10:05 am

    Or maybe the response is “maybe not you, not now. But it may be, someday.” Think of the bravery of all the artists and performers (I am thinking now of Pussy Riot, for one) who have gone to jail (or worse) for their beliefs. Our comedians, especially, seem to be filling the role of National Conscious more than ever.

    Reply
    • Kate Mayer says

      November 13, 2016 at 1:22 pm

      Agree. Did you see Stephen Colbert’s monologue post-elect? Gotta find that and give it a share. Thx for the read and generous comment!

      Reply

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About Kathryn Mayer

Kathryn Mayer

An irreverent storyteller with a foul mouth and big heart, Kathryn Mayer (aka Kathy and/or Kate) is a writer, humorist, and (former) activist writing out loud with humor and grace about little life moments with big ripples, including the space between parenting and aging parents, social issues, angsty reflections of midlife, and, sigh, gun humpers. Still. Sometimes a big deal, sometimes not Mayer is a national award-winning columnist, according to the National Society of Newspaper Columnists, and her essays have been recognized as Voice of … Read More Here...

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