Diaspora People’s Month 2020
Week 2: Heritage and Identity
On July 8, 2020, SAMASAMA x SCL hosted a discussion on Heritage and Identity featuring artist and MC Nate G, painter and organizer with Anak-Bayan, Ina Padua, and illustrator Muriel Villalobos.
Read about the artists and their reflections on diaspora below, and browse works for sale as part of the Diaspora People’s Month Gallery.
Nate G, born in Washington D.C., creates a unique Uptown sound that vividly depicts the art, music & subcultures of the city. Mixing the classic sounds of hip hop, from rappers like Tupac to DMX, with the distinctive polished sound of Northwest DC, Nate G., a trained painter & illustrator, has, been the embodiment of DC's art and music scene since 2010.
Nate has performed in DC, Maryland, Virginia, New York, North Carolina, Austin and Atlanta collectively. He's opened for popular artists like Cappadonna, Tabi Bonney, Talib Kweli, Dead Prez, & Logic and has been an inspiration for many artist in the metropolitan area. The rapper and illustrator has released an apparel collection entitled "NIGA", 6 EPs, 5 LP's, and his self illustrated comic book series "Uptown Story"(Chronicling the life of superhero Cap'n Uptown as he protects the residents of D.C.) His new album "CAP' UPTOWN" is set to debut in fall 2019.
Ina Padua
As someone whose home islands (the Philippines and Puerto Rico) have been scarred by colonization from the time of the Spaniards conquest up to the current US Imperial regime, it is important to recognize art as a record of our existence in a time in which marginalized communities are being forcefully erased and exploited. I think it is crucial for diasporic communities to recognize their role in educating, organizing and mobilizing their communities on the ways in which the US government has both oppressed them here and their homelands. My pieces aim to address current political tensions within myself and body as well as how I view my political agitation as a young brown queer non-binary person. Painting has not always been something I considered a main focus in my life as someone who organized within the Filipinx movement. But I find cultural work through art and expression vital. I began painting out of a place of anger, and now it is of self discovery and a place in which I reflect and find peace.
Muriel Villalobos
Lo que empezó siendo una forma de matar el tiempo haciendo dibujitos divertidos se transformó para mí en una forma de visibilizar distintas problemáticas sociales, entre ellas el patriarcado y el racismo. Siendo mujer latina viviendo en EEUU, conozco de cerca esta dos últimas. También, en Octubre 2019, mi país Chile inició un estallido social en contra del abuso sistemático que ha sufrido la clase media y obrera en favor de los más ricos durante décadas. Yo emigre en Mayo 2019 por lo cual no estuve presente durante este periodo tan importante para mi país, lo cual me hizo sentir muy lejana a mi pueblo. Mi forma de conectarme con ellos y demostrar mi apoyo fue comenzar a realizar ilustraciones relacionadas al estallido. Al compartirlas tuve una excelente acogida en mis amigos y amigas chilenos lo cual me impulsó a seguir haciendo ilustraciones relacionadas al tema.
Con mi trabajo busco dar visibilidad a nosotros las minorías: mujeres, migrantes, latinos, afrodescendientes, indígenas, LGTBI,personas con discapacidad, etc. Más allá de las etiquetas, somos personas y como tal sujetos de derechos. No pueden haber diferencias a nivel de Derechos Humanos. No depende de tu color de piel ni de la cantidad de dinero que tengas en tu cuenta. Los derechos humanos no son para los ricos y blancos, fueron creados precisamente para proteger a las minorías de los poderosos. Y eso es algo que no debemos olvidar.
Con todo, me gustaría hacer conciente que la vida real no está en redes sociales. El "activismo-pasivo" que nos entrega redes sociales no es más que un placebo. Postear cuadrados negros, compartir hashtags y hacer dibujos sólo nos ayudan a visibilizar lo ya obvio. El desafío para todos, me incluyo, es hacer cambios reales enfocados en la obtención de un mundo justo y seguro para todas y todos.
