The Social Justice Review: Origins | Winter 2019

WINTER

2019

|

ISSUE

NO.

5

ORIGINS

THE SOCIAL JUSTICE REVIEW FRANCIS BY CHRISTINE SLOAN STODDARD

THE

USC

LEVAN

INSTITUTE

FOR

HUMANITIES

AND

ETHICS

DEDICATION "I can't breathe"

— Eric Garner, July 17, 2014

We dedicate the fifth issue of The Social Justice Review to those who have suffered at the hands of the state, to those who have lost their lives to police brutality, are currently in ICE detainment, are struggling to provide for their families and keep their communities safe, and to those who cannot catch their breath.

STAFF EDITORIAL

LAYOUT

ISABELLA CARR

HADIYA CULBREATH

JOURNAL DIRECTOR/LAYOUT & DESIGN

HAMEEDHA KHAN

NAVEEN DASARI EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

VICTORIA MARTINEZ EMILY PETRUCCI

SAMA SHAH

MILO SMILEY

DEPUTY EDITOR

MANDA BWEREVU EDITOR

Copyright 2019 the Social Justice Review

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the express written consent of the Social Justice Review.

Views expressed in this journal are solely those of the authors themselves and do not necessarily represent those of the editorial board, faculty advisors, or the University of Southern California.

Dear Reader,

It is my absolute privilege to present the Winter 2019 issue of the Social Justice Review.

The pieces in this issue are timely, eloquent, and moving in their sincerity. Works like “The Bone Clocks” and “Revitalize” highlight the pain and confusion that are so deeply interwoven into the daily experience of the oppressed. They offer small glimpses into the lives of people who live with—but who continue to resist and persist against—injustice.

The last year has seen a number of events that have challenged our assumptions about power and the limits of what some will do to maintain a system grounded in inequality and privilege. From the detention of children in facilities at the southern US border to the gaslighting of women brave enough to recount their trauma of sexual assault in the Kavanaugh hearings to the shooting of young black folks such as Markeis McGlockton, we have witnessed injustice in many of its most harrowing forms.

In the face of such events, however, the courage and hope—of Christine Blasey Ford, of the Parkland students, of the climate activists who participated in the Zero Hour March, of the #MeToo movement, and many others—teach us that there is something powerful and inspiring about the spirit of change, and that change is indeed possible.

The pieces in this journal contend with the nature of history and identity, and with how race has been constructed by the privileged for the purpose of sustaining oppression. Poems such as “Sankofa” and “Dear America,” however, give us strength in difficult times, reminding us of the power of resistance and the attainability of justice, particularly by and for people of color. Beyond examining racial inequality in its economic and social forms, this journal allows us to explore it in the context of its most vulnerable and human struggles.

I have always believed that there is something deeply healing about the process of writing and reading about issues of social justice. My greatest hope is that you, the reader, find yourself among these pages, that you discover stories which both anger and inspire you, that you learn to question your own understanding of the nature of history and of justice, and that you think more often and more deeply about the world and your own place in it.

Fiat justitia ruat caelum. Let there be justice, though the heavens fall.

In solidarity, Naveen Dasari Editor-in-Chief, The Social Justice Review

SAO CLI AEL TJ UTSET IRC E FRRE VOI EM W THE EDITOR

CONTENTS 1 7 13

THE BONE CLOCKS henry 7. reneau jr.

REVITALIZE: GENTRIFICATION IN GREENVILLE EPIPHANY KNEDLER

NO PARTICULAR SPECIES: A CRITICAL EXPLORATION OF THE AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY ZEV ALEXANDER

36 43

SOME PIECES ABOUT PROTEST JAHMAN HILL

ORANGE JUICE WITH A SIDE OF POLICE BRUTALITY MAI MIZUNO

54 57 64

MORNING LESSON LYNN TAMAYO

DEAR AMERICA POETRY COLLECTION ESTHER RA

RECIPE OF NACATAMALES: A TRADITIONAL HONDURAN DISH BESSIE F. ZALDÍVAR SHANTIH original publication rights

69

SUMMER IN THE CITY: INNOCENCE LOST AND FOUND JULIE LEOPO

74 76

DREAM LYNN TAMAYO

FRANCIS CHRISTINE SLOAN STODDARD

THE BONE CLOCKS henry

7.

reneau

jr.

Image: Replica of the NAACP's "A Man Was Lynched Yesterday" flag. The original flag was planted outside the window of the headquarters of the NAACP on 69 Fifth Avenue in New York in 1936.

White people are terrorists. Period.

—A black woman, heard off camera during a live CNN news report on the Charleston, S.C. church massacre.

1.

their animated clay heaves up a virus

the alabaster heart

that festers a tradition of hate a means to mask motive & perpetuate destruction that invigorates the hysterical strength that black people have had to harness like suicide Jesus wing-spanned wide as turn the other cheek to exist in a country that has for centuries tried (and failed) to kill them

our dextrous hand a balled fist of genetic memory & our sinister hand of RPG 2.

our content of character in solidarity with every person whose mere existence terrifies the powerful

invisible

between episodes of almost & spontaneous combustion the water stain bleeding through drywall like fractal patterns of scarring qualifieds a hidden genetic defect binding the helix of bondage with our upbringing our beliefs with our grasp fell short too soon sorrow lynched while seeking freedom so very many bombed in Bombingham so many one step forward but two steps disinherited behind a speeding truck in Texas chained & dragged to the feet of Confederate Jesus preyed upon &

gunned down while prostrate in prayer circle despite the Spirit moves amongst us we are only heroes of our own lives

so many

2

Top Image: Najee Washington holds a photo of her grandmother, Ethel Lance, one of the nine people killed in a shooting at Emanuel AME Church, as she poses for a portrait outside her home, June 19, 2015, in Charleston, S.C. Bottom Image: Allen Sanders, right, kneels next to his wife Georgette, both of McClellanville, S.C., as they pray at a sidewalk memorial in memory of the shooting victims in front of Emanuel AME Church Saturday, June 20, 2015, in Charleston, S.C. Credit: David Goldman/AP Photo. https://abcnews.go.com/US/photos/sadness-shock-charleston-church-shooting-31848275/image-31896213

searching for wherever

whenever

that somewhere could be ours

the rust of American dreams that slowly erodes

the burning crosses & Baptist churches the choke-hold semantics of snapped necks & fire-hosed justice marchers in retreat

the official rhetoric

in sound-bite increments of Whites Only their pliant justification cloaked in protocol & tradition

the wing-spanned badge of Law that demeans blackness to prey only praying to never be hunted as prey

despite hate has a history of plot & plan & perpetrate

wielding a grain of fabricated truth

like tear gas or rubber bullets to validate the stereotype the same static we’ve been hearing as long as we’ve been listening the convenient lie passing through the dense dolorous smoke of repetition what we’ve done to one another & what we think we deserve what we’ve gained & usually lost & where it touches down it turns to violence until one day we wake up & it just becomes part of our life the pendulum of thuds echoed in our bones our pain magnified & projected onto our face the enraged vexations of how? & why? feigning our tiny lives into order 3.

what beast must i adore when nothing shows me the image of myself?

4.

our invisibility is made manifest only in the discussion of our absence

where two black stand & act like we don’t see the blind stand together can damn sure be said about post-racial our insecurity minute

the minute to

meta-phor the gap in our lives

4

Top Image: Black Panthers line up at a Free Huey rally in DeFremery Park, Oakland, July 28, 1968.

Credit: Stephen James, Courtesy of Steven Kasher Gallery. http://www.anothermag.com/fashion-beauty/9194/retracing-the-creative-legacy-of-the-blackpanthers Bottom Image: I Am A Man, Sanitation workers assemble outside Clayborn Temple, Memphis, TN, 1968. Credit: Ernest C. Withers. Courtesy Panopticon Gallery https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/the-power-of-imagery-in-advancing-civil-rights72983041/#MlBZbX1O1U4DTbGH.99

& for a couple of hundred years we have been our own worst enemies: we die too easily

we forgive & forget

too easily makes further on a bastard life of disparity we seemingly trudge between this here & are we there yet? seemingly forever we sit spectator-ly on the edges of their US of Amerikkka a sleepwalker’s stupor synonymous with leaving it all behind & moving on letting go

to prove we are not who we would hate we to become

5.

i have a dream littered with bent & rusted nails poverty

with racist police &

an epidemic of subordinate bodies

a now traditionally cheap fuel for power

hyper-visible

only when thrown against a sharp white background we shrunk so much we disappeared

between erasure & empowerment

the anxious space of affirmative action subtracted by the shadow magic of hate radiating outward like perfect ignorance emanating the loudest caw in a language of crows that renders us second caste

the record skipping

on the same dust speck of history blackness seen as a citizen in name only but reaching beyond stereotypical to the strange forces inside our genes that space within ourselves

the hopeful once called souls our blackness becomes a sixth sense like lacerations on the bodies of the blind our identity

underestimated by those who dehumanize us but we be the grind & gnash of patient umbrage

the fire next time as we gather around ourselves & pray

Note: Incorporates an italicized fragment from a letter by George Jackson to Angela Davis—6/4/70, and an italicized quote by Charlotte Pence, from “among the yellows, the faces slack”

6

REVITALIZE: GENTRIFICATION IN GREENVILLE PHOTO

SERIES

EPIPHANY

BY

KNEDLER

Top Image: "Opacity" Bottom Image: "In God We Trust"

8

Top Image: "Construction" Bottom Image: "Paige's Barbershop"

Top Image: "Neglect" Bottom Image: "Facade"

10

Top Image: "Repossession" Bottom Image: "Church"

Top Image: "Lincoln" Bottom Image: "Pam + June"

12

NO PARTI

SPEC

CULAR

IES

NO PARTICULAR SPECIES: A CRITICAL EXPLORATION OF THE AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY ZEV

NEW DEPARTMENT UNDERGRADUATE

OF

ALEXANDER

YORK

SOCIAL

SENIOR

ADVISED

UNIVERSITY AND

CULTURAL

RESEARCH

BY

DEAN

THESIS

ANALYSIS SEMINAR,

SARANILLIO

Title Image: Hiroshi Sugimoto's Gemsbok, 1994 from the series "Dioramas" Credit: Hiroshi Sugimoto/The Pace Gallery. https://www.pacegallery.com/exhibitions/12709/still-life

2015

Abstract The American Museum of Natural History

is the product of a team of researchers, curators, historians, replicators, engineers, designers, and

(AMNH) is an iconic museum which contains

collectors. The intentions of these individuals

exhibits on biology, zoology, evolution, geology,

interact with existing discourses and public

biodiversity, and anthropology. In a close critical

understandings of the world as well as with the

reading of the anthropology exhibits within the

overall discursive meanings of the museum. For

context of the museum of a whole, questions

the purposes of this analysis, I will often refer to

regarding racist tropes, the visual languages of

‘the museum’; what I refer to is the hegemonic

colonialism, and the haunted space of the museum

power of displays of knowledge within this

are interrogated. A language for critically

culturally sanctioned physical space.

examining anthropology exhibits and natural

This analysis will also focus only on the

history as a field is developed through the use of

American Museum of Natural History (AMNH)

historical accounts of the roots of the

as a case study of questions of racial

ethnographic display as well as constructivist

representation in the anthropological exhibit. As

visual analysis. Later interrogation leads to

we untangle the narratives being reproduced in

questions regarding a historical narrative of

the space, we will wrestle with the past and the

nature and how to re-articulate objective

future. How did this museum come to be? How

educational spaces such as AMNH.

will we understand its narratives of race in the

Keywords: critical race theory, anthropology,

future? How are human beings and animals

ethnography, museum studies, American Museum

displayed differently and what connects them

of Natural History, natural history

into a single history? We will take a tour of the Museum, carried through the halls by its floor

No Particular Species: A Critical Exploration

plans and crowds. Beginning in the front of the

of the American Museum of Natural History

museum, we’ll enter through the Theodore

Every museum exhibit tells two stories. It

Roosevelt Rotunda. Next, we will explore the

tells one story out loud with written signs and

museum’s biggest attractions, the enormous

displayed artifacts and a floor plan that carries its

fossils on the fourth floor. This floor grounds the

viewers in and out of the exhibit hall. The second

rest of the museum in an evolutionary logic

story is a silent one. It is the story of the artifacts

which will color the experience of

locked away in collections for scientific study

anthropological halls later on. Next, we will

and how they got there. It's the story of the

examine the African Peoples and the Hall of

writing of the signs and the arranging of the

Asian Peoples, both of which are connected to

objects. These two stories push against each other

large halls displaying mammals of the same

in a way that reveals just how carefully

regions. In these halls, we will see the ways that

constructed the ‘truth’ being told in the museum

uses of the gaze and of written language assign

is.

displays to specific places in real or imagined This is not to say that the museum is a

historical time. My third section will take us

singular agent of knowledge production, or that

through Mexico and Central America and South

all museums engage in double narratives to equal

American Peoples, where questions of artifact,

or comparable extents. A museum is a building

photography, and reproduction will unsettle the

filled with objects. The process by which the

reality of representation. Fourth, we will follow

building comes to signify Knowledge or Culture

a hall from Primates to Eastern Woodlands

or History or whatever value a specific institution

Indians to Plains Indians to The Margaret Mead

lays its claim to is a complicated one, built over

Hall of Pacific Peoples. Here we will find

decades of financial planning, advertising, and

historical and analytical connections to the

self-representation. Each exhibit

United States’s history of World’s Fairs in the

16

late 19th century. Finally, we will head to the

colonialism and genocide. This is doubly ironic

first floor of the museum to its broad spectrum of

because of my position as a white American man,

subjects (from the Big Bang to gemstones) to re-

interrogating displays of traumas that are not my

examine the stated purpose of natural history

own. I will do my best, then, to let the museum

against the implications of the anthropological

speak for itself, while continuing to utilize the

halls. The organization of this exploration is

framework of exploration to ground my goals in

structured by the floor plan itself, [1] which helps

their bloodied past.

me to produce a new way of reading the contrived

The museum is a space that asks to be

objectivity that is the museum exhibit—the

observed only in particular ways. While AMNH is

history and power relations that it carries, the

a visual medium where we consume images,

double narrative of what is told and what is

words, and even film, the museum also resists certain forms of observation. I will read against

silenced.

Each section of this paper will focus on groups of ethnographic exhibits tied together by their proximity and the analytical text that I will use to examine them. The titles of the sections are the Latin names of nearby iconic animals in the museum. This is a way of recognizing how this paper mimics structures of classification and generalization that I attempt to deconstruct. It is also to tie together the many objects of the scientific gaze and question the separation within Western ideology between humans and nonhumans. From the dinosaurs to the various anthropological exhibits to the first floor exit to the subway, each location functions as a case study of colonial knowledge on its own as well as a small part of a constellation of multiple forms of colonial knowledge. The museum’s floor plan as a whole is a complex array of racist epistemologies, and I will use each small space to develop a more thorough vocabulary for reading the AMNH as a whole. With this vocabulary, it will be easier to search for patterns within the large, chaotic floor plan. These patterns will then provide a broader understanding of the systems of power behind the museum's organization.

Throughout this essay, I refer to what we are doing as an exploration. I understand my use of this word to be necessarily ironic. First of all, much of the museum’s collections, including human remains and religious object were acquired

the grain of this space using a series of lenses provided by historians, theorists of visual media, postcolonial theorists, and critical race theorists.

These scholars create lenses for me to look through, one at a time and in combination, into the relationship between representations and realities. In each hall of the museum, I will rely on one analytical text most heavily. Alongside these theoretical arguments, I will also use simple observation to note patterns and racial tropes which go unnoticed by the casual viewer.

Observation and narrative require a certain trust in instincts, emotions, and the untrained eye.

I draw a great deal of this trust from the thinkers of Critical Race Theory, who argue that narrative and storytelling are essential to crafting new and less oppressive ways of understanding the world (Delgado and Stefancic, 2001). This and the use of Stuart Hall's work in Representation (1997), which lays out many of the definitions I will rely on when describing the visual spaces of the museum, ground the vocabulary and framing questions of this text.

What happens when an object is put behind plexiglass to be visually consumed by the museum-goer? What is a photograph, a story, or an artifact in relation to its origin? How does the racist history of natural history affect this relationship? How do we understand a continuous history from the Big Bang to neocolonialism, or at least one that allows these concepts to coexist in a

through theft under the guise of ‘exploration.'

single museum? How does the physical space of

Exploration and discovery have historically been

the museum itself inform what it means to be a

euphemisms for settler

viewer, moving through the physical space of an exhibit to look in at a culture?

1. Downloadable versions of the AMNH map are available at https://www.amnh.org/plan-your-visit/museum-map

The museum does indeed create its own

Mary Louise Pratt's Imperial Eyes (1992)

lenses. While the intentions of individual exhibit

is about the creation of meaning in colonial

designers and of other gatekeepers of knowledge

settings, focusing on travel writing produced in

inform the narrative of the museum, the double

contact zones from the end of the 18th century

narrative of intention and effect create a haunted

until the end of the 20th. I use the development of

space. There is a rift between the traumas of

this genre as a backdrop for my exploration of the

colonial history and the benignly produced public

museum in the same way that Theodore and

education. Narratives are laid into the floor plans

barosaur create a framework for the throngs of

and maps of the museum, created and re-created

daily museum attendants. The two primary

every time a visitor follows the prescribed path.

histories from Pratt that I will introduce are

We will read these narratives as their own

viewership and classification.

haunted visual language, built out of the paths

The viewer in the museum parallels Pratt's

along which ghosts wait, against which they

reader of travel narratives: a (white) European

struggle, through which they pass.

citizen engaged perhaps unknowingly in "creating the 'domestic subject' of Euroimperialism," that

Part One: Barosaurus To enter the American Museum of Natural

is, the person who is able to read and learn about a strange and unknown world outside of his

History, visitors ascend its large stone steps past

experience, one that was constructed rather than

the Equestrian Statue of Theodore Roosevelt,

described (Pratt, 1992). The process of othering,

built in 1939. Sitting astride his horse, Roosevelt

where a faraway exotic world is created to define

looks straight ahead at Central Park, ignoring the

the metropole as the default and the norm, is

headdressed Native American man on his right

obviously at work in the museum's

and the barely-clad Black man on his left. These

anthropological exhibits. These exhibits include

two figures barely reach the horse's shoulders and

Asian, African, Pacific, Plains and Northwest

the many visitors streaming are dwarfed below

Coast and Woodlands Indians, Central and South

the figures' knees. Few take a second glance,

American peoples. The question of why there

some pose for pictures. Already, a dynamic is

isn’t a Hall of European Peoples is not meant to

established where the white patriarch of the

be asked. The elsewhere produced by travel

nation takes a position of power over the racial

writing is taken for granted and reinforced by the

others. We are students of Teddy outside the

very existence (or lack) of exhibits in the

museum. When we enter, we will gain access to

museum.

his elevated viewpoint.

The next big sight (after museum security

The subject-object relationship is complex, never as simple as a single culture looking in

bag inspection, before paying admission) is

upon another. Pratt focuses on transculturation,

barosaurus, a huge plaster skeleton protecting its

"how subordinated or marginal groups select and

plaster skeleton baby from an approaching plaster

invent from materials transmitted to them by a

skeleton predator. What does barosaurus have to

dominant or metropolitan culture," as an aspect of

do with Theodore Roosevelt? How could there

the viewing relationship. While the relationship

possibly be a single natural history to encompass

was intended to be one of resource extraction

the halls at the museum? These questions belong

from colony to metropole, the colonized create

in a conversation about history rather than one

and reinvent the world through the lens of

about the sciences.

colonization.

18

Top Image: New interpretation on the glass of the 1936 Old New York diorama, which depicts a 1660 scene between the colonial Dutch and the Lenape, includes context and highlights clichĂŠs and inaccuracies.

Credit: M. Shanley/ AMNH. https://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/permanent-exhibitions/theodore-roosevelt-memorial-hall/old-new-york-diorama#fullscreen Bottom Image: Diorama depicts the Serengeti Plains of Tanzania in the Akeley Hall of African Mammals Credit: Wally Gobetz. https://www.flickr.com/photos/wallyg/32617771720/in/photostream/

Pratt pushes this definition by inverting it:

and phylogenetic classification, and this layout

'with respect to representation, how does one

seems intuitive. How else could these millions of

speak to transculturation from the colonies to the

years be legible? More importantly, this

metropolis?' I also ask how interacting with

organization reads as a natural, unavoidable and

information, knowledge, and culture from a

fundamental scientific truth. After all, isn't that

colonized site affects the self-understanding of

what museums are supposed to do? Tell us the

the idealized viewer in the specific forms of

truth?

representation present in the anthropological

Truth is a complicated idea: non-fiction

exhibits. I ask, as Pratt does, 'how subjects are

and narrative have a long and tangled history.

constituted in and by their relations to each

Pratt opens her first chapter with an introduction

other.'

to Europe's development of scientific In each exhibit, forms of representation

classification, showing how it was more than a

vary, altering how the colonial subject is

descriptive endeavor: ‘Natural History conceived

constructed. We can ask if transculturation is

of the world as a chaos out of which the scientist

acknowledged in a hall. What subjects are

produced order. It was not, then, simply a matter

permitted by this narrative? Which exhibits

of depicting the world as it was’ (Pratt, 1992).

demonstrate the copresence of the contact zone, a

From Linnaeus's seminal texts classifying plant

space where two subjects exist in the same

life to scientific racism, ‘the observing and

colonial space? Does the exhibit re-create or

cataloging of nature itself became narrative.’

challenge Euroimperialism's self-conception of

Stories to make sense of the world were wound

the metropole as the center of the universe? If

into the ordering of nature. The taxonomic

two exhibits allow different amounts of

classification that structures the fourth floor

transculturation, what does that say about

overtly is embedded into the rest of the museum

colonial knowledge itself? We will have to return

through anthropology. Classification from its

to these questions as we explore specific exhibits

inception was the job of ‘the (lettered, male,

more closely.

European) eye that held the system’ (Pratt, 1992).

This is a totalizing force, one that put the

The second major history Pratt defines which will center this exploration is at the roots

European in a position of power while

of natural history itself: that of classification. For

simultaneously re-creating him as an objective

this, it might be best to leave the Rotunda and

scientist. As museum viewers, we are invited to

follow the flow of traffic to the exhibits that most

occupy that same power position: ‘a utopian

commonly represent AMNH, the dinosaurs on the

image of a European bourgeois subject

fourth floor. The fourth floor is a museum unto

simultaneously innocent and impartial, asserting a

itself, creating a complete loop of prehistoric

harmless hegemonic [3] vision that installs no

animal life. Beginning in the Wallach Orientation

apparatus of domination’ (Pratt, 1992).

The paradox of a hegemony without

Center, hundreds of specimens are evolutionarily arranged into a ‘giant family tree’ (AMNH.org)

domination is all too clear. The power of the

[2]. An easy-to-follow thick line on the floor

museum is that it lets its ideal subject exist

guides the viewer through evolutionary time,

within that paradox. It is a fantasy world where

from the origin of vertebrates to dinosaurs and

our surroundings can be benignly classified,

wooly mammoths. Viewers move through the

where the order of civilization was simply

museum in a way that teaches us evolutionary

destined to emerge fully formed from the chaos of

history, the development of complex life,

the prehistoric.

2. Citations from AMNH’s website and exhibits do not include a date. This is because the dates are not available as a part of the displays, and while further archival research will show exactly when each piece of text was written, the lack of available context within the museum is a part of the structure of racism at work within the museum.

3. Emphasis mine.

20

Part Two: Loxodonta africana There are many pathways into the museum.

Donna Haraway takes a different path from the

Haraway argues, this viewer is an active, participating requirement.

Haraway identifies a pattern in the

Rotunda into the museum in her chapter, Teddy

relationship between the viewer and the animal

Bear Patriarchy: Taxidermy in the Garden of

dioramas. The animals mimic the heterosexual

Eden (1990). She, too, climbs the marble steps

nuclear family. There is also ‘at least one animal

and passes the equestrian statue. Her narrative of the Rotunda jumps past barosaurus to focus on Teddy’s quotes along the walls, narrating values of ‘Nature, Youth, Manhood, the State.’ Those viewers who, like Haraway, aren’t so tempted by the dinosaurs might take a different first step, into the Akeley Hall of African Mammals.

Haraway’s chapter is a close reading of the hall’s internal language of dioramas, its history of expedition and acquisition, and its politics as ‘a time machine’ (Haraway, 1990), able to transport the viewer to a specific location in time and space. Taxidermy’s connections to anthropology are pervasive in physical space as well as history.

In AMNH, The Hall of African Mammals is directly connected to African Peoples. Though these adjacent halls don’t overtly narrate continuity, proximity in the museum fuels narrative-building. Further, Haraway’s reading of the taxidermy dioramas applies easily to the anthropology exhibits, producing an eerie if unintentional narrative.

For this continuity to occur, we must understand three of Haraway’s key concepts: the

that catches the viewer’s gaze and holds it in communion’ (Haraway, 1990) in each diorama.

Usually, the animal that looks into the eyes of the viewer is also the male in the display. Haraway argues that the act of meeting the eye creates a unique moment between the viewer and the displayed: "The animal is frozen in a moment of supreme life, and man is transfixed. No merely living organism could accomplish this act… the animals in the dioramas have transcended mortal life, and hold their pose forever… Taxidermy fulfills the fatal desire to represent, to be whole; it is a politics of reproduction” (Haraway, 1990).

With their glass eyes, the dead animals amaze us in their ability to be more than their live counterparts are. In the museum, we are able to see African mammals better than anywhere else in our lives. The gaze of the exhibit allows taxidermy to transcend concepts of reproduction and display. Rather than being a representation of its (living) self, the taxidermized animal becomes an immortal, ideal self.

The relationship between the idealized display and the imagined white male viewer produces a utopic world—one where ‘man is not

intended audience, the gaze of the object, and the

in nature partly because he is not seen, is not the

envisioned utopia. We’ll explore Haraway’s

spectacle’ (Haraway, 1990), and man is white and

concepts in the Hall of African Mammals and

male, and nature includes the entire field of

carry them into African Peoples. The continuities

anthropology. If ‘dioramas are meaning-

and inconsistencies between portrayals of animals

machines,’ as Haraway argues, then what is not

and humans are some of the symptoms of the false

included is as important as what is displayed.

realities required to display othered peoples.

Narrative is how we understand the meaning and

We as viewers are the same character to

truths of our world, Richard Delgado writes of

Haraway as to Pratt. Haraway knows us to be

the foundational concepts of Critical Race

‘necessarily a white boy in moral state, no matter

Theory, ‘Our social world, with its rules,

what accidents of biology... might have pertained

practices, and assignments of prestige and power,

prior to the museum excursion’ (Haraway, 1990).

is not fixed; rather, we construct it with words,

An ideal viewer is always implied in visual

stories and silence’ (Delgado et al., 2001). The

displays, but in the Museum of Natural History,

strong gaze of a taxidermized animal is a statement, so an averted or disrupted gaze of a displayed subject is a form of silence. By walking the anthropology

halls, the viewer participates in a power

Nothing marks when an artifact was made or

relationship beyond the story of ‘history’ overtly

collected, when a diorama is imagined to take

displayed. This story allows the viewer to sit

place, or when the displays themselves were put

comfortably in their role as protagonist, as the

together.

armchair anthropologist of Pratt’s travel writings,

Perched outside of any diorama is a man

as the consumer of knowledge. Entering the Hall

in a leopard costume, looking dark and surprising

of African Peoples, we can begin to ask what

and animal with his face covered by a hood. A

visual forms make the protagonist/viewer

sign somewhere describes his cultural

comfortable in his role.

significance, but it is in shadow and hard to find.

In the Hall of African Peoples, the ceiling

He is a hooded Black man in the shadows, hard to

sits low and footsteps are muffled by glass

notice and ready to jump out [4]. The existence of

displays placed close together. African music, its

a display built to surprise, which reinforces

sources cited in small text towards the end of the

current racist visions of black masculinity, show

hall, plays. The organization of the hall is laid

how important it is to question how a viewer is

out at the entrance: ‘The hall highlights lifestyles

meant pass through this space.What moves us in

and customs—many of them disappearing—of

this space to stop or ponder or read?

peoples living in four environments: grasslands, deserts, forests, and river regions’ (AMNH.org).

Part Three: Elephas maximus

Already, this focus on geographical ‘habitat’

From the Rotunda, one could also enter

rather than cultural group or historical era

into Asian Mammals, which in turn feeds into the

reckons back to the organization of the Hall of

Stout Hall of Asian Peoples. Similarly as well,

Mammals. Further, the explanation of this

there are a handful of dioramas in Asian Peoples

organization describes the relationship of culture

with people in them. These people have either no

to land, stating that ‘man is an inseparable part of

eyes painted on or their eyes averted. However,

nature.’ This further emphasizes the dynamic in

there are distinct differences between the displays

anthropology between the exhibitor and the

of African Peoples and Asian Peoples.

exhibited, where the viewer is a part of the

Specifically, Asian Peoples uses many more

present/civilization, and the object is of the

dates, giving the viewer a sense of narrative

(disappearing/disappeared) past/nature. I will

through historical time. As we enter a close

return to this as we compare African Peoples to

reading of the Hall of Asian Peoples, I’ll focus on

later museum halls.

the ways that the gaze is similar, but the language

Most of the displays in this Hall are of artifacts, but the occasional diorama displays individuals or groups of people, all of whom have

and configuration different, between these two halls.

From Asian Mammals, we can hear the

averted gazes. Clearly, we are not meant to share

faint sounds of stringy music over the footsteps

the same transcendent, meta-representational

of tourists. Once we enter, the first display

experience with African Peoples as we are with

grounds us with a detailed map of the hall: first,

its mammals. And if the taxidermy dioramas, as

there is an orienting loop of general themes, later,

Haraway argues, freeze the reader and the animal

a complex series of paths depicting various

in transfixed, supreme life, then where in time

cultural traditions (some religious, some

and history do these human beings belong? The

national). The description of the orienting loops

answer is, apparently, nowhere: the dates in the

reads, ‘whether you approach peoples of Asia to

hall are rare and tend to refer to invasion from the

the left, through time, or to the right, through

outside rather than the history of object or cultures themselves.

4. Though outside the scope of this essay, the significance of this figure, especially in the specific historical moment during which I write, cannot be overlooked. The racial trope of a threatening Black man, especially young, hooded, and in shadow, is old, but young Black men continue to be murdered today. The museum is a supposedly objective place where tourists and school groups, children, come to learn how to understand the world, and this figure reinforces racist tropes and shows a long and bloody history.

22

Top Image: Hiroshi Sugimoto's Alaskan Wolves, 1994 from the series "Dioramas" Credit: Hiroshi Sugimoto/The Pace Gallery. https://www.pacegallery.com/exhibitions/12709/still-life Bottom Image: Diorama depicting Apache life in Arizona.

Credit: Department of Library Services, American Museum of Natural History. http://images.library.amnh.org/photos/ptm/catalog/desc/159845

space, you will find exhibits in the Hall arranged

Mannequins are less common, but they maintain

to bring out major themes of human activity.

the most eye contact here. Each section's system

Taken together, these themes interact to produce a

of display is complex and unique, but I will focus

characteristic way of life, or culture—the sum of

on the overall structure: how the two sections

all things that people do or believe.’ Already,

work together.

there are more ways to approach and understand

Haraway's analysis places the

Asian Peoples than African; in African Peoples

representational form of taxidermy within a

the only way to move was through space. Time

transcendental forever, where animals achieve the

did not exist there as it does here.

highest form of their own selves and maintain a

To our left are dioramas of life-sized

timeless, deathless, supreme existence. Following

humans of prehistoric societies, with their eyes

this logic, we can ask where in history the

averted or left off entirely. To our right, bones,

anthropological exhibits place their human

skulls, and artifacts, charts of prehistoric eras in

subjects. Both are anachronistic, creating peoples

various locations (including ‘Eurasia/Europe’)

who exist only in the past and have no bearing on

dominate one wall, while another shows dioramas

present life, who accept the gaze of an idealized

of miniature people, shelters, and animals. Key

viewer passively. However, the lack of dates and

points highlight ‘man's rise to civilization,’

the placement of people in geographical space in

marking a linear progression of time not

Africa creates a timelessness, a never rather than

demonstrated in the Hall of African Peoples or

a forever, while Asian Peoples’s reliance on

even the Hall of Human Origins down on the first

linear development and heavy dating, along with

floor. A wordy diorama in the section on

its transitions from a progressive discourse into a

civilization demonstrates the evolution of the

display of ‘traditional’ cultures, places the

written word, including alphabetic systems.

conceptual understanding of Asia in a fixed and

Mesopotamia, Greece, and ‘the near east’ have

ancient history, despite some dioramas showing

their own small offshoot with paintings of these

scenes less than two centuries old. The present is

‘great civilizations.’ The loop continues: Jews of

not meant to be breached any more from a

Asia includes translated and dated texts and

specific moment than from a never, [6] and while

descriptions of religious practices that avoid

Haraway's forever creates a place where the

language of mystification and superstition, [5]

viewer can reimagine himself as an ever-more

both rarities in anthropological displays.

masculine subject, the anachronistic pasts where

Alexander the Great gets a small wall, maps and

African and Asian Peoples are placed is forcibly

dates. After a section on trade, the first loop ends

discrete from our own.

and we enter a long hallway where major cultural groups are placed to approximate geographic

Part Four: Vultur gryphus

distribution.

The Hall of African Peoples and the Hall

This second, larger section of the Hall of

of Asian Peoples both lead into a spacious,

Asian Peoples is long and busy. At certain points

refreshingly well-lit and quiet hall: Birds of the

we can hear two different music recordings

World. The harmless avian dioramas are arranged

playing at once. Large glass displays tend to hold

by biome. If you enter Birds of the World through

brightly colored or gold artifacts. Texts use the

the Hall of African Peoples, this is a familiar

present tense and the word ‘traditionally.’

logic.

5. For reference, the description of a ketubah on display in this section. Note how words are translated and traditions set down in terms of history. This will stand out more fully after reading texts later in the museum. “Marriage in Judaism is called kiddushin, or holiness… Jewish law specifies that in order to marry, a man must deliver to his future wife a ketubah, a marriage contract… and that the contract must be signed in advance of the wedding by two witnesses. The ketubah is still written in Aramaic… according to a formula set down in ancient times.”

6. The differences between treatments of races understood through orientalism and through other forms of exoticization are fully fleshed out by many other texts, including Margaret D. Jacobs, White Mother to a Dark Race (2009) and Andrea Smith, Heteropatriarchy and the Three Pillars of White Supremacy (2009). For my purposes, note that there are differences between understandings of race. Some are ready for assimilation and some are seen as destined for extermination.

24

The hall is then broadly arranged by

Birds of the World then feeds into a journey through two halls: Mexico and Central

geographically constituted cultural groups, with

America and South American Peoples. Though

attention paid particularly to the ‘obscurity’ and

these halls are not meant to be continuous

‘unavailability’ of information. Whereas in

narratives, spatially they feed directly into each

African Peoples text is written in the present

other, once again fueling narrative by association.

tense, all text in Mexico and South America is in

Once you enter Mexico and Central America, the

the past tense, isolating these peoples from the

only options are to move forward or turn around,

current in yet another way. The focus on

and South American Peoples dead ends at its

archaeological inquiry and difficult-to-obtain

completion, forcing us to backtrack out. The

information sets yet another contrast. Despite

direct, unbroken spatial continuity between

using the past tense, Asia’s use of linear time and

Mexico and Central America and South American

the development of civilizations is wildly

Peoples makes the dissonance between their

different from the past imagined by Mexico and

internal logics particularly noticeable. While Asia

Central America. South America has a language

and Africa differ from each other in their uses of

distinct from any of the other halls, focusing

space, language, and dates, their attachment to

more on culture and ways of life, relying heavily

their own sets of mammals and physical

on photographs and dioramas of people. We’ll

separation allows the viewer to separate their

first examine Mexico and Central America as its

logics. In this new section, the closeness of the

own hall, then South American Peoples on its

halls makes an analysis of the internal poetics of

own, and finally, we will sort out more of the

the ethnographic exhibit most productive.

connections and dissonances between the space

The most glaring differences are literally

analyzed thus far.

In Mexico and Central America, the heavy

written on the walls of these halls. While Africa was arranged by geography and Asia by nation-

use of artifact brings up questions about the

state, the opening of Mexico and Central America

specific forms of display that contains them.

tries to explain a different, perhaps more

Henrietta Lidchi’s chapter, ‘The Poetics and

complex, geo/historical form of arrangement:

Politics of Exhibiting Other Cultures,’ [7] delves

"Within this hall an attempt is made to

into the history of ethnographic museums. She

illustrate the history of the civilization of…

refers to ethnographic displays as ‘an attempt at a

Mesoamerica—a task not easily done, for it is a

complete representation of the diversity of

history not recorded in written form… the map

existence in miniature—a “microcosm”’ (Lidchi,

and chronological chart seen here are meant as a

1997). A glass case full of pottery or sculptures

basic guide to this complex history. Each of the

or jewelry is an attempt to summarize the world,

regions listed had its own particular style,

to condense the totality—the chaos referenced in

apparent in the materials to be seen in the several

Pratt's analysis—into a bite-sized piece. And the

sections of the hall. The chronological chart

display is only a small section of the question of

explains the archaeologist’s attempt to identify

ethnographic museums: ‘The museum does not

the changes in culture that occurred through time.

deal solely with objects but, more importantly,

Each name refers to a cultural phase of a

with... ideas—notions of what the world is, or

particular site… Despite the sometimes marked

should be’ (Lidchi, 1997). Following this logic,

differences between the cultures of different

the existence of the ethnographic museum

regions, all are to some extent interrelated, and

specifically is a continued assertion of the false

we must think of them as constituting one great

world, the utopic benign hegemony, that has been

civilization."

reinforced over and over again in our journey thus far.

7. In Hall’s representation

As we wander through Mexico and Central

Put behind glass, a Koran has more in

America, the power of artifacts becomes clear.

common with the saddle with which it shares a

This hall is one of the most object-driven in the

display case than it does with Korans in use

museum, its focus on archeological finds rather

around the world. Alienated from its initial

than cultural heritages. Lidchi examines the work

purpose, an object ceases to be its own self. We

that artifacts do, arguing that the artifact is used

are looking at the ghosts of these objects,

as objective evidence despite its complex history

imagining their continued presence in reality the

of extraction and exploitation: ‘objects are

same way we imagine the assortments of bones

frequently described as documents or evidence

upstairs to be a proper encounter with a

from the past, and are regarded as pristine

Tyrannosaurus Rex. Objects represent and

material embodiments of cultural essences which

constitute reality in the same way words do. As

transcend the vicissitudes of time, place, and

Stuart Hall explains, green means go. It follows

historical contingency. Their physicality delivers

that bones mean T-Rex and artifacts mean dead.

a promise of stability and objectivity; it suggests

It would be nonsensical to display people

a stable, unambiguous world’ (Lidchi, 1997).

in this artifact-driven hall of obscure prehistoric

Artifacts are portrayals of stability rather than

artifacts, but as we examine it more closely, other

information, and these permanent anthropological

forms of representation show themselves. There

exhibits have remained unchanged for decades

are reproductions, where we are asked to trust a

while the Planetarium or Hall of Ocean Life

professional replicator to show us what something

undergo regular renovation and update. The dates

like the Aztec Stone of the Sun, stelae from

of these renovations are intentionally not given to

Guatemala, or other large architectural

the viewer, because dating the exhibit would

achievements look like. Walking past a life-sized

undermine the objectivity of its contents. If

reproduction makes the museum space seem less

something must be identified as having been

constructed, de-politicizing (mythologizing) the

written in a certain historical moment, then the

exhibit [9].

writer is identifying himself as being from that

South America has a very different setup.

moment, and therefore not perfectly objective.

Created to ‘highlight the rich mosaic of

AMNH depends on its status as an objective

archaeological cultures that developed in the

space, and to maintain that, its artifacts must also

Central Andes and those of the Native peoples of

remain acceptably objective. Lidchi continues

Amazonia as they existed when first contacted by

that the location of the object reinforces this

Europeans,’ South America is a labyrinth. Its

process of validation: ‘The status of the object as

stated purpose is to examine cultural practice

invariant in presence and meaning is underpinned

rather than archeological discovery. Music plays

by the popular representation of museums as

in South America (reckoning back to other

grand institutions... engaging in scholarly

anthropological exhibits), while Central was

fashion… the popular perception of curatorial

silent (much like the Mammal and Bird halls). It

practice as a descriptive rather than an

is brighter in South America as well. The hall is

interpretative activity lends further support to

broken into three sections. In the first, artifacts,

this elision’ (Lidchi, 1997). [8] Again, the

maps, reproductions, photographs, and notably

scientist is seen as a describer, rather than a

the first actual human bones so far work together

cataloguer, of information. However, the artifacts

to orient the viewer to different spaces in both

are far more complex. Lidchi points out that none

time (‘first arrivals’ ‘early peoples’) and space

of these objects were created with the intention of

(‘the Caribbean’ ‘southern South America’), each

being displayed.

of these a small display.

8. Emphasis mine. Note the connection to Pratt’s descriptions of scientists, drawing order out of chaos.

9. Lidchi (1997) discusses myth as a form of representation which uses constructed transhistorical values to justify its internal systems. She claims that ‘myth purifies its motivation.’ Origin and construction are erased by the myth.

26

Top Image: Hiroshi Sugimoto's Neanderthal, 1994Â from the series "Dioramas" Credit: Hiroshi Sugimoto/The Pace Gallery. https://www.pacegallery.com/exhibitions/12709/still-life Bottom Image: The Spectrum of Life, at the American Museum of Natural History, an evolutionary trip through the amazing diversity of life on Earth. Credit: Matthew Pillbury

In the corner is a reproduction of an

to ask about AMNH and anthropology more

archaeological dig in Peru. Next, the largest

broadly. Using Lidchi’s vocabulary and

section of the hall displays first Andean culture,

knowledge, I extend her critique of the exhibit to

then Amazonian. The section on Andean cultures

the museum as a whole. The museum enacts

follows a somewhat similar format to Central

power by reinforcing certain truths rather than

America, but Amazonia provides another

through acts of domination, a perfect example of

divergence from forms of display seen thus far.

the Foucauldian framework of knowledge/power.

We walk down a slight incline into

There are some universals of knowledge/power’s

Amazonia, and the flute music of the Andes is

operation throughout the history of anthropology,

overtaken by recordings of birds and the rustlings

but there is also a conversation occurring between

of the rainforest. Here, we are welcomed by a

exhibits in this specific museum, showing how

series of portraits. The entire hall utilizes a great

different forms of knowledge and display

deal of photography, which Lidchi says ‘eases the

perpetuate and are born out of similar acts of

work of representation... by virtue of [its]

domination and exploitation.

verisimilitude’ (1997). Individual mannequins are

AMNH contains broad power dynamics,

seen in action, hunting and gathering. Practices

such as Teddy Roosevelt out front, alongside

around eating, drinking, marriage, death, travel,

smaller locations of specific understandings—

shelter, and more are closely examined in the

each anthropology hall describes the world

long, curving, and once again darkened space.

differently. Rather than formulating a single

Shrunken heads are displayed. There is a photo of

dynamic of power, the anthropology exhibits

a man using a snuff tube, a drinking bout is

reproduce overlapping and interacting inequalities

described in exotifying language [10]. A short

through the methods curators chose to make

documentary which is not credited as being made

certain people and cultures visible and others

in any particular time (but by the looks of the

invisible: not all colonial knowledge is the same.

film used had to have been made before the mid-

Summarizing what we’ve seen so far, different

1980s) plays in a pitch black room behind a

aspects of different cultures are made visible

reproduction of a giant tree that ‘does not

through a gaze (averted or challenging), a human

represent a particular species.’ In this space

presence (through photographs and

perhaps more than any other, we are allowed to

reproductions), or a recognized stake to time and

gape, to gasp, and to stare at a strange and

place (presence/absence of maps and dates).

unimaginable Other existing again in a mythical,

When these cultures are made visible or invisible,

undated, present tense. The tree’s lack of defined

the stakes lie in how they are then subjected to

species is a perfect example of the priorities of

power (Lidchi, 1997). This museum is a space

this display.

where discrete colonial epistemologies interact.

They shore up (purify/mythologize) broader

Lidchi discusses museums as a larger concept, describing them as ‘a historically

understandings of white supremacy and patriarchy

constituted space’ (1997) and showing how the

through their languages while deconstructing

objectivity of ethnographic displays is

(creating nonsense, decontextualize, undermine)

constructed as well. However, most of her work

individual discursive systems meant to uphold

focuses on case studies of individual exhibits and

that power through their contradictions. As we

forms of display. While I have pulled a great deal

enter more exhibits in the museum, we will

of analytical framework from her case studies, I

examine some of the history that created these

hope to use my close readings together

different forms of knowledge and seek out the echoes of the past.

10. ‘A drinking bout often accompanies ceremonies in Amazonia. But holding it requires no ceremonial reason: the prestige gained from giving it and the fun derived from participating are reason enough. For the occasion, the host family makes enormous amounts of beer, which they ladle out from large jars. Even after guests have drunk their fill, it is bad manners for them to refuse more, and they may induce vomiting to be ready to drink again. A mood of unrestrained joking, laughter and general merry-making prevails. Couples may sneak off into the woods for some extramarital sex. Passed over lightly at the time, it may later lead to quarrels. The partying continues day and night until the beer runs out.’

28

Part Five: Homo Sapiens The museum’s many modes of representation

worked with them were both educational and amusing white supremacist culture. Once again,

and forms of displays show it to be not simply a

scientists were organisers of chaos, this time

space where the idealized (white, male) viewer

using Linnean and Darwinian racial logics. The

comfortably observes an Other or has his

Chicago World’s Columbian Exhibition

understandings of the world around him

particularly consolidated these racial hierarchies

reinforced. Knowledge/power is not a universal,

into tangible forms, ‘defin[ing] social realities...

evenly enacted force and the stories the museum

into a realization of utopia’ (Rydell, 1984). This

tells have layers. These layers are well-utilized

utopia, as much a no place as a good place, is

by the museum itself. They are made of fantasy

directly related to the utopian vision of

and history. Some of the fantasy and history have

Haraway’s analysis.

roots that we can see most clearly at the 1893

As a eugenic, hierarchical understanding of

Chicago Columbian Exposition. The Exposition

race was presented in this space of so-called

included a physical utopia which will help

entertainment (Rydell, 1984), the central Midway

solidify my understanding of the utopia on

Plaisance hosted a series of educational/

display at the American Museum of Natural

recreational exhibits where living people from

History today. I’ll take this understanding into

around the world were displayed to be looked at.

the anthropological halls on the third floor,

Villages were set up where ‘primitive’ groups

directly above the halls we just explored, where

were organized along the hierarchy of

in the same configuration is a pathway through

evolutionary relationships. This hierarchy led to

Primates, Eastern Woodlands Indians, Plains

the main exposition—‘an image of utopia.' This

Indians, and Pacific Peoples. Once again, the

utopia, called the White City, was made of large

phylogenetically-arranged Primate Hall isn't

white plaster buildings modeled after Greek and

meant to narrate directly into Eastern Woodlands

Roman architecture and represented the end-goal

Indians, but it's difficult to make the separation.

of evolutionary racial science. This work made

Natural history museums in the United States have a history that is tied up with International Expositions. Robert W. Rydell’s All

racial exploitation around the world seem inevitable (Rydell, 1984).

At AMNH, primates lead into Eastern

the World’s a Fair: Visions of Empire at

Woodlands Indians, where the opening text on the

American International Expositions, 1876-1916

wall uses past tense and the passive voice when it

(1984) explores their history and hegemonic

states, "When the first European explorers arrived

functions. Rydell identifies concepts of

on the eastern seaboard in the very late fifteenth

classification similarly to Pratt, showing how

century, Indian culture was flourishing over all of

"Americans were engaged… in a 'search for

the Eastern Woodlands. In the succeeding 350

order'" (Rydell, 1984). With the publication of

years, many of the tribes of the Eastern

Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species, post-

Woodlands were annihilated by disease and

Linnaean classification in natural history gained

warfare; others were driven west of the

new justification for hierarchical reasoning.

Mississippi River. Later, a few tribes were

Racial scientists drew from Darwin’s writings to

assigned to reservations in their aboriginal

classify races along an evolutionary timeline.

territories… Although the bulk of Eastern

This timeline gave whites the ability to decide

Woodlands culture has vanished, the modern

who could and could not approximate American

Indians still maintain some of their old customs

modernity, a logic shored up by Darwinism.

and ceremonies which serve as reminders of an

Simultaneously, Darwin’s understanding of

ancient and proud heritage."

evolution utilized a language of racial hierarchy that already existed. The Fairs and museums that

This contextualizes the Eastern Woodlands people as having been annihilated not

by Europeans, but by disease and warfare.

displays are color-coded to demarcate locations

Everything that happens in this narrative lacks an

within the Pacific: Australia, Indonesia, the

agent; everything that happened was destined and

Philippines, Melanesia, Micronesia, and

fixed. One side of the hall is dedicated to ‘pre-

Polynesia. Another section shows some common

European times,’ the other to ‘late pre-European

themes: music, body art, batik, coconut, betel,

and historic times.’ This places any history and

exchange/money, and culture contact.

context in the hands of European

The section on contact continues to

settlers/scientists. The post-European side of the

reinforce the idea that native and indigenous

hall mainly displays articles of clothing hung on

people are ‘passive’ races. ‘CONTACT between a

eyeless mannequins or heads. The Indians in this

dominating, complex society and a less complex,

space are passive to their destined extinction,

native society inevitably leads to the latter

accepting their fates and our gazes. In Rydell’s

undergoing greater change,’ is written in this

discussion of displayed races at the world’s fairs,

opening section of the hall. This framing resets

he brings up 19th century ethnographer Gustav

the Pacific into the obsolete, where an

Klemm, who developed theories of ‘passive’ and

anthropologist made her mark, and

‘active’ races, where passive races were ‘assumed

where contact will slowly make everything on

to be on route to extinction.’ This way of thinking

display in the rest of the hall seem meant for

allowed certain races to be cast off or left to

display, meant for this cold and quiet hall.

extinction, while others were candidates for

Visitors generally go directly to the Rapa

assimilation into ‘advanced’ white culture, often

Nui Moai at the end of the hall to take photos and

through violence. Native Americans were (and

say ‘dum-dum’ (a Night at the Museum

continue to be) [11] placed as passive races which

reference), but the hall as a whole branches

had no ability to participate in modernity. In the

representational forms seen so far. It resembles

next hall, Plains Indians, the first explanatory

Amazonia in some ways, with texts that focus on

text on the wall reinforces this passive,

cultural practices as extreme and strange.

extinction-bound concept by narrating acts of

Physically, though, the space is more like Africa,

violence and genocide in vague, passive voice:

with displays primarily of artifacts, lowered

"The life of the modern Plains Indians...differs

lights, and color-coding. The heavy use of artifact

radically from what it was in buffalo days. Many

paired with the text allows exoticism to lift the

Plains Indians are now participating successfully

artifacts, already alienated from their origins and

in every aspect of modern American life, but

original locations, to leave the mapped locations

some, handicapped by poverty and inadequate

and simply become anywhere but here.

education, have been less successful. The

There is no White City inside of the

transition from a nomadic hunting culture to full

American Museum of Natural History, nor are

participation in a modern industrial society has

there live human beings on display. However, the

been difficult."

hierarchy of viewership, where the white male

The next hall is the Margaret Mead Hall of

ideal viewer observes the cultural Other, remains.

Pacific Peoples, where, as the title suggests, we

Therefore, there does not need to be a physical

learn about Margaret Mead, an anthropologist,

White City in the museum: its existence is

before we learn about any Pacific Peoples. The

implied by the viewer-subject relationship. The

texts alternate between past and present tense,

lack of a displayed White City in the museum

focusing mostly on contact and how it affects

carries a second implication. If the City is

Pacific Island culture. Photographs showing

implied but not displayed, then perhaps we are to

fishing, driving, building, and shopping [12] open

assume that the White City is the outside

the exhibit. In the main hall, the

11. See Philip J. Deloria’s Indians in Unexpected Places (2004) 12. A family just walked by and pointed to a photo of a man in Sydney purchasing food at a railway station. They commented, ‘isn't that funny!’

30

Top Image: Elephant display at the American Museum of Natural History.

Credit: Akeley Scott Frances / American Museum of Natural History Bottom Image: Gemsbok Deer displace from African Spectacle.

Credit: Arran Q. Henderson/American Museum of Natural History

world. This is the cruel utopia, a world where

What ‘appears to be not there’ are, in the

agency is the sole property of whiteness. The

case of the museum, the invisibilized thefts and

dissonance between the world the museum asks

murders and traumas required to catalogue and

the viewer to believe in and the world outside of

display artifacts. I’ve been looking for its

the European imperial legacy creates a space of

‘seething presence’ throughout this analysis,

theft and of murder, a space of ghosts.

looking into dark corners and flashy dioramas to interrogate the silent stories within. I am looking

Part Six: Ghosts My use of ghosts and haunting is drawn

into the space between the exhibit and its history, where a rift in reality was created by the repeated

primarily from Avery Gordon's Ghostly Matters:

lies and acts of silencing that build the discourse

Haunting and the Sociological Imagination

of white, Eurocentric history. My research has

(1997), where she explores the ‘animated state in

looked primarily at processes of invisibilising

which a repressed or unresolved social violence is

rather than the moments of theft, but the traumas

making itself known, sometimes very directly, sometimes more obliquely’ (Gordon, 1997). She discusses both emotional and physical manifestations of oppression, cruelty, and genocide. She utilizes fictions such as Toni Morrison’s Beloved to reconnect the narratives of ghosts with their own realities, allowing observation and stories to carry weight. This is relevant to my reading of the fictions of the museum. Similarly, the ghosts that I am looking for are in one sense theoretical—they represent the social trauma that is anthropology's invisible backdrop. Gordon makes clear, however, that ‘haunting, unlike trauma, is distinctive for producing a something-to-be-done’ (Gordon, 1997). Because haunting involves a tangible effect on the present and projects a need for change into the future, to understand what is to be done requires a belief in literal ghosts: "If haunting describes how that which appears to be not there is often a seething presence, acting on and often meddling with taken-for-granted realities, the ghost is just the sign... that tells you a haunting is taking place. The ghost is not simply a dead or a missing person, but a social

and genocides are real, and the rift is real. Then, so too must the ghosts be real for this examination to matter.

Between the moment of violence (lived historical reality) and the representation of it (that reality which is shaped by symbols, signs, and power), there is archive—the work that is done throughout the years to catalogue and create events. The museum is much larger than its open-to-the-public halls. Its archives of animals, plants, bones, and photographs are constantly in use for scientific research, field guide creation, public relations, and education. Most of the archive is inaccessible to the public, though staff members will welcome biology classes and postgraduates.

The research library, open to the public for reduced hours and by appointment, is hidden on the fourth floor behind the hall of Vertebrate Origins, where children and tourists rush from skeleton to skeleton, following its phylogenetic map, passing (as we did) right by the library. A locked door behind the circulation desk leads to Special Collections, where there is a single old PC where you can scroll through the scanned card catalogue to call various texts. Past the PC are

figure, and investigating it can lead to that dense

rows and rows of filing cabinets storing the photo

site where history and subjectivity make social

archives. Organized by museum department, the

life. The ghost or the apparition is one form by

photos show men building taxidermy exhibits,

which something lost, or barely visible, or

putting together reproductions, planning and

seemingly not there to our supposedly well-

arranging halls. In the anthropology section

trained eyes, makes itself known or apparent to

(multiple rows, countless photos), the

us, in its own way, of course."

organization is by voyage and location. Portraits of people, bodies, and lives. Individuals and families,

32

unnamed, long-dead. A rich trove of data. Behind

ceiling above us, a central passage of plantlife

the rows of filing cabinets are more locked doors,

and biota, a tiger staring us down [13].

more hidden texts, places harder and harder to

of Ocean Life is dark and cavernous, and families

access as a member of the public.

lie on the floor to stare up at the famous blue

Amongst the photo archives is a filing

The Hall

whale. Next we walk through North American

cabinet full of photos from World's Fairs.

Forests, New York State Environment (where ‘the

Drawers are filled with photos from St. Louis and

forest primeval’ includes Algonquian peoples and

Chicago of their displays of cultures and bodies.

‘the settlement’ does not). This leads to the Grand

There are layers here: the museum, which is

Hall, where we can go to Northwest Coast Indians

meant to be observed by the public, hides an

[14] or a temporary exhibition hall. The Grand

archive of photos of displays (which were meant

Hall displays a enormous canoe [15] and, at the

to be observed), but which are increasingly hard

time of this writing, an origami Night at the

to find and see. The historical work of

Museum Christmas tree. The final set of halls

ethnographic representation is concealed in order

begins at the far end of the Grand Hall and is

to allow the viewer his fantasy in which scientific

directly underneath the two dead-ends we saw on

research, observation, and classification are not

the second and third floors (leading to South

acts of violence. Though it is hidden, the direct

America and the Pacific Islands up there), here

lineage from displaying living humans to

leading through the Hall of Human Origins, the

displaying cultures permeates the museum.

Hall of Meteorites, and the Hall of Minerals and

Exiting the library back into the Hall of

Gems. The floor is overwhelming. More

Vertebrate Origins is deeply unsettling. What is

information, space, and time is covered here than

all of this doing here? What does it mean to

in the rest of the museum combined. This begs the

include the animal in this narrative? How do these

question, what is the broadest perspective at

continuities and contradictions animate the

AMNH? What constitutes natural history? What

Museum of Natural History?

makes a display or exhibit relevant to this museum?

Part Six: Balaenoptera musculus

The anthropology sticks out as the most

I still haven’t touched an entire floor of

out-of-place amongst astronomy, geology,

the museum, containing a few billion years of

zoology, paleontology because at the surface,

history. After a brief documentary on The Big

anthropology is exhibiting people and cultures

Bang narrated by Liam Neeson, The Hall of the

rather than animals, plants, or oceans. But from

Universe takes us down to the first floor along the

the entrance to the museum, where Theodore

Cosmic Pathway of 13 billion years since the

Roosevelt sits above a Native American man and

beginning of the universe. Next to that is the Hall

a Black man, we have seen the ways that

of Planet Earth: geology and ice ages, volcanoes

whiteness is set to be the true human-ness. The

and climate change. Through that hall is the

contradicting ways that non-white peoples are

Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Hall (‘lifelong

displayed has shown the ways that purportedly

explorer,’ ‘conservation president,’ ‘young

lesser forms of human-ness are portrayed as

naturalist,’ ‘firsthand observer’). We cross

variable, some more human than others. However,

through the memorial hall into the Hall of

the full scope of the museum, from the Big Bang

Biodiversity, a gorgeous and chaotic display of

to Roosevelt, begins to draw into question the

the sum of life on the planet with the full

validity of the human/non-human divide

phylogenetic tree of life covering one wall and

necessary to classify some humans as less-human.

escaping so squids and jellyfish can swim the

In Jonathan Goldberg-Hiller and

13. Note that this hall, which encourages us to think about conservation in a personal way, includes a taxidermized animal which can look into our eyes.

14. Northwest Coast Indians is, of course, as complex and problematic as the rest of the ethnographic halls. Due to its location in the floor plan, I am unable to treat it to the full analysis the other halls received.

I leave it to future researchers and observers to apply my theories and others to the exhibit.

15. A kid walking by just said “look at the Viking Ship!”

Noenoe K. Silva’s "Sharks and Pigs: Animating

and life into the silent haunted space of

Hawaiian Sovereignty against the Anthropological

the museum.

Machine" (2011), the authors use cases of shark attacks and pig hunting in Hawai’i to show that Western colonialism’s conceptualization of

Part Eight: Ben Stiller Night at the Museum is a children’s comedy

humans and animals as separate categories is not

set at AMNH where a down-on-his-luck divorced

universal. They write that ‘animals, as a linguistic

dad played by Ben Stiller gets a job as the night

and cultural category, are often conspicuously

security guard at the museum, only to discover

absent’ (Goldberg-Hiller and Silva, 2011). So

that its contents, from the dinosaurs to the

while a non-colonial understanding of knowledge and life might place humans and nonhumans in the same narrative of history because of the continuity that the universe and the planet and all its inhabitants share, the colonial framework places only certain humans in the shared category of nonhuman, drawing a firm line between natural history and modernity.

Philosopher Takeshi Umehara writes similarly about indigenous Japanese spiritualities and their effects on current-day Japanese Buddhism, referring to the ways that anything, ‘mountains and rivers, grasses and trees, all can become Buddhas’ (Umehara, 2009) and connecting this to the forest-based spirituality at the roots of Shintoism. In this tradition as well, there is no hierarchy or division between human life and non-human life. He sets this in contrast to philosophies that seek to conquer and control the non-human, locating some roots of individualistic Western ideologies with the Descartian distinction between the rational, thinking mind and other matter. He shows the ways that Western ideology disregards the value of non-human life.

Knowing that these exploitative colonial ideologies are not the only framework for

dioramas, come alive at night. Stiller’s character eventually takes the sage advice of Teddy Roosevelt, impresses his son, saves the day, and brings peace to the raucous museum inhabitants so they can have nightly lobby dance parties.

Many of the characters are the butts of unfortunate racist tropes (Sacajawea is the only character who is locked behind glass, rendering her unable to speak or hear, though Teddy Roosevelt develops a crush on her and watches her with binoculars), and the main characters are white-washed historical figures who don’t exist in the actual museum (a Roman soldier and an American cowboy feature prominently) or animals. But what matters here most is the presence of an animated and alive AMNH in the popular imagination.

This picture of the museum as an animated space is at odds with the deadly epistemologies behind natural history collections. On some level it is evident that the museum should not be a dead and stagnant space, that it is in fact very much alive despite its best efforts. The very concept of a ‘permanent’ exhibition, especially one that describes interactions between cultures, is

knowledge production allows the colonial

nonsensical. And while Night at the Museum

framework to be more fully critiqued for its

portrays this rebellion against cultural death in a

inherent violence and its inconsistencies, many of

comedic manner, closer examination of the

which which are visible in the halls of AMNH.

histories and visual languages of AMNH shows

Umehara continues his analysis, arguing that post-

the trauma and violence that truly animates the

enlightenment thought is, therefore, a ‘philosophy

dead at the museum. Once we learn to listen to

of death.’ Silva and Goldberg-Hiller’s example of

the stories behind the displays using critical and

mass shark killings in Hawai’i show the most

intentional observation, we can begin to talk back

literal side of the death necessary to shore up

to this strange and haunted space. We can begin

human individualism. This ‘inevitable dead end’

to ask what life the museum wants. We can begin

kills knowledge the way it kills forests, sharks,

telling its silent stories.

and humans, forcing billions of years of energy

34

Postscript

References

The whole universe depends on everything fitting

Barnathan, Michael & Levy, Shawn. (2006). Night

together just right. If one piece busts, even the

at the Museum [Motion Picture]. United States:

smallest piece, the entire universe will get busted.

Twentieth Century Fox.

...If you can fix the broken piece, it can all go right back.

Delgado, Richard and Stefancic, Jean. (2001).

...Sometimes, you can break something so bad,

Critical Race Theory: An Introduction. New

that it can't get put back together.

York: New York University Press.

-Hushpuppy, Beasts of the Southern Wild

Goldberg-Hiller, Jonathan and Silva, Noenoe K. (2011). "Sharks and Pigs: Animating Hawaiian Sovereignty against the Anthropological Machine." The South Atlantic Quarterly 110:2, pp. 429-446.

Gordon, Avery F. (2008). Ghostly Matters: Haunting and the Sociological Imagination.

Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.

Hall, Stuart. (1997). Representation: Cultural Representations and Signifying Practices.

London: The Open University.

Haraway, Donna. (1984). "Teddy Bear Patriarchy: Taxidermy in the Garden of Eden, New York City, 1908-1936." Social Text. N o. 11 (Winter, 19841985), pp. 20-64.

Pratt, Mary Louise. (1992). Imperial Eyes: Travel Writing and Transculturation. New York: Routledge.

Rydell, Robert W. (1987). All the World's a Fair: Visions of Empire at American International Expositions, 1876-1916. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Umehara, Takeshi. (2009). "Ancient Postmodernism." New Perspect Q 26:0, pp 41-54.

Zeitlin, Benh. (2012). Beasts of the Southern Wild [Motion Picture]. United States: Cinereach

SOME PIECES ABOUT PROTEST JAHMAN

HILL

36

Sankofa

We’ve been here before This scene is nothing new This oppression has been pressed into our bones Our veins run with the struggle of my ancestors In their blood In my blood In this skin Cursed before birth I found myself drowning in a sea of my history Submerged by the call of reconciliation Choking on bullets and chains They say we the new slaves But being slaves is nothing new for us Tell me what do you know of this pain This skin What do you know of these roots What do you know of the suffering We have nothing to lose but these chains These shackles that grip us tighter with every Crispus, every Emmet, every Trayvon What do you know of being blindfolded with black skin Taught to hate your own complexion My children yearn for insurrection BUT NO This is not the fate Our ancestors did not die in vain We won’t stay silent We will dig until we find every unmarked grave, every forgotten bone every hidden history We will not leave a single stone unturned We will obliterate the blanket of ignorance from the American psyche We will be confrontational And confront our past Not a single eye will hide from this Sankofa This revolutionary renaissance This pedagogical past, agitated antiquity This effervescent enlightenment We will be heard We will be heard We will be Heard

Title Image: Protesters and counter-protesters embraced after a Black Lives Matter rally in Dallas. Credit: Carlo Allegri/Reuters Top Image: Church women of the Mt. Zion Methodist Episcopal Zion Church in Montgomery, Alabama who organized the Montgomery Bus Boycott in 1955.

Credit: Photo by Dan Budnik/Contact Press Images Bottom Image: Mothers whose children have died at the hands of the police. From left: Tynesha Tilson (Atlanta); Wanda Johnson (Oakland, Calif.); Felicia Thomas (Atlanta); Gwen Carr (New York); Monteria Robinson (Atlanta); Dr. Roslyn Pope, author of "An Appeal for Human Rights" (Atlanta); Dalphine Robinson (Atlanta); Patricia Scott (Atlanta); Montye Benjamin (Atlanta); and Samira Rice (Cleveland). 2019.

Credit: Sheila Pree Bright. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/29/lens/sheila-pree-bright-civil-rights-black-lives-matter-mothers-atlanta.html

38

Top Image: Police in Birmingham, Alabama take a group of black schoolchildren to jail on May 4, 1963, after their arrest for protesting against segregation. Credit: Bill Hudson/AP Bottom Image: Protestors participate in a vigil for Freddie Gray in Baltimore, Maryland. Gray, 25, died from spinal injuries on April 19, one week after being taken into police custody. Credit: Drew Angerer, Getty Images

The 5th Step (Octavius on Infinity)

All it takes is four steps for you to fire 8 bullets.

But before you point your weapon at me you will remember these words.

When my body is void of life and my casket is heavy with the weight of the world that I carried on my shoulders my black skin a symbol of death reincarnated the manifestation of some sick curse the white man’s target practice you will hunt the fire of my soul and be met with the ice cold bane of my existence what you fear is my ability to stand up to your oppression.

You will remember these words Because my name was destined to be preceded with a hashtag, just another step towards a revolution where our black men play the martyrs that my name is just meant for a tombstone too soon that the children that I wished for never got the chance to breathe because it's 2015 and I can’t breathe you put that on your t-shirt, I wear that on my skin tone if Cupid had a gun he would point it at my back and disperse the love America has for our black man You will remember this moment when I have graced the headlines of your news station, when they have cr-cr-cracked my spine and br-br-broken my spirit when all I have left is this moment when I look up to the heavens and ask Jesus why he has forsaken me I am not ready to go You will remember the silence

You will remember the silence

You will remember the silence

You will remember that I did not know how to love. That my heart was hardened by a world that taught me constant betrayal. That I learned from an early age to push others away so that when my time came it would be easier for everybody to stomach you will remember that I always ate my veggies. That I sang in the choir.

That I watched my baby siblings hoping one day to have my own beautiful black babies You will remember that I was scared.... that by the time I turned 18 I ran out of tears so the only thing left for me to do was to write.

That I feared that if I were to ever bring kids onto this earth that I feared that they would hate me, because how could a father with so much love force a kid to live in this much hate.

You will remember that I tried. And that I always knew that I wouldn’t be good enough. I prayed for an ocean of acceptance

40

Top Image: Mamie Till Mobley at the funeral of her son, Emmett Till, in Chicago in September 1955.

Credit: Chicago Sun-Times/Associated Press. https://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/22/magazine/the-condition-of-black-life-is-one-of-mourning.html Botton Image: Men mourn the death of Freddie Gray in West Baltimore, April 28, 2015 by Yunghi Kim. Credit: https://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2015/06/police-deaths-baltimore-ferguson-james-wolcott

and I was met with an array of bullets that my senior year of high school I hid from cops in a ditch for three hours and the only thing I felt was that I belonged.

You will remember how the sun etched its existence into the left side of my face as I lay sprawled out on the concrete with 8 shots lodged firmly into my back forming a constellation made out of stars like Trayvon Martin stars like Michael Brown stars like Eric Gardner stars like Walter Scott just another hashtag hero for the new millennium.

You will remember my smile as the police searches my history for a reason to paint me as a deserving villain the same way ignorance has painted my posterior something scarlet.

You will remember that I told my little brothers not to come to my funeral. Because I did not want them to see their future. I did not want that to be their future. As my brother sits there detained and realizes he fits a description destined for him to match my brother of 11 years wrote a poem this winter about how racism and prejudice is destroying our nation. I am hurting.

And you will remember this pain. If I have to force it down your throat you will swallow the fear of my black body and birth magnificence. I am a king. I am king. I deserve to exist. You deserve to exist. You deserve to exist you deserve to be you. You get to be you. You get to be you and I get to be black.

And that means that all it takes is four steps for you to fire 8 bullets.

42

ORANGE JUICE WITH A SIDE OF POLICE BRUTALITY MAI

MIZUNO

In 1984, a black man by the name of Dethorne Graham felt a diabetic insulin reaction coming on. Graham had his friend, Berry, drive him to the nearest convenience store to purchase orange juice to counteract the reaction. Graham ran into the convenience store and saw that there were a number of people waiting in line for the cash register. Rather than risk waiting in line for his orange juice, Graham decided to go elsewhere to get the sugar he needed instead. Graham hurried out of the convenience store and got into Berry’s car, instructing him to quickly take him to a friend’s house.

A city policeman, Officer M. S. Connor, happened to see Graham rushing in and out of the convenience store from his parked police car. Officer Connor deemed the behavior suspicious and followed Berry’s car while simultaneously radioing the convenience store to see if there had been a robbery. Connor eventually pulled Berry’s car over to make an investigative stop and instructed the two to wait until he found out what occurred at the convenience store. Graham, who began suffering from the insulin reaction, opened the passenger door and exited Berry’s car. Graham stumbled around the car twice before sitting down on the curb. His body started going into shock. Graham lost consciousness right as four backup officers arrived at the scene. The officers handcuffed and arrested Graham, thinking that he was drunk and out of control.

At this point, Graham began going in and out of consciousness and attempted to tell the officers that he was a diabetic. Graham wildly waved his arms to try and communicate that he had a medical card proving his diabetic identification in his wallet.

The officers ignored Graham, instead slamming his head on a car as his behavior

44

behavior became more erratic before throwing him in the back of one of the police cars.

Graham sustained head and shoulder injuries, along with scratches along his wrists and a broken foot. Once Officer Connor learned that nothing had occurred at the convenience store, he drove Graham—still handcuffed in the back of his police car— back to Graham’s residence and left him lying on his front lawn. Graham decided to challenge Connor’s use of force in court, a decision that would soon be at the crux of shaping the outcome of all subsequent police excessive use of force cases.

Graham v. Connor (1989) took place under the looming spectre of the long history of police brutality against communities of color in the United States. In the decades prior, the 1965 Watts Riots in Los Angeles and the hundreds of race riots that occurred during a period known as the Long Hot Summer of 1967 were all ignited by instances of police brutality against African Americans. [1] Tensions between the black community and police officers continued to boil over from the Civil Rights Era into the 1980s. Graham v. Connor took place during a time when many people of color were fed up with the lack of accountability within police forces. Police officers benefited from a nearly 100% rate of acquittal when complaints of excessive use of force were brought to trial. [2] Prior to Graham v. Connor, excessive use of force cases were determined by a standard of malicious intent under the Fourteenth Amendment. Plaintiffs had to prove whether or not the officer in question acted with the specific purpose of causing harm in order for the officer to be indicted. The high rate of acquittals was indicative as to how this was a near impossible standard to meet—even in the case of a police officer beating up a diabetic undergoing an insulin reaction and leaving him unconscious without medical care.

Graham’s case eventually found its way to the Supreme Court. The facts of the case were clear, but determining malicious intent was murky. It was only when Thurgood Marshall, the first and only black Supreme Court Judge at the time, asked, “What reason was there for handcuffing a diabetic in a coma? What was he doing that was so violent that he had to be handcuffed?” with such incredulity that it became clear that a new standard needed to be established. Marshall’s questioning guided the Supreme Court to unanimously side with Graham. In writing the majority opinion, Chief Justice William Rehnquist outlined that all claims of excessive use of force by police officers during an arrest, investigatory stop, or other form of “seizure” of a person must be analyzed under the Fourth Amendment’s “objective reasonableness” standard, rather than the standard of malicious intent.

The Supreme Court’s decision was seen as a breakthrough for those who were fighting police brutality; for civil rights advocates, Graham v. Connor seemed to mark the dawn of a new era of justice in the United States. An objective standard was in place to determine police use of force cases for the the first time in U. S. history. It appeared as though victims of police excessive use of force could now depend on a new, universal standard that merely required an objective analysis of the facts of the case and a comparison to what a reasonable officer would do in that scenario.

Title Image: (From left to right) Sandra Bland, a 28-year-old woman who was found hanged in a jail cell in Waller County, Texas, on July 13, 2015, three days after being arrested during a traffic stop, Eric Garner died on July 17, 2014 after a New York City Police Department officer put him in a chokehold while arresting him, and Michael Brown Jr., an 18-year-old, who was fatally shot on August 9, 2014, by a police officer in Ferguson, Missouri Credit: https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2018/11/218115/sandra-bland-hbo-documentary-true-story-jail-murder-case, https://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/eric-garner-mom-calls-ag-lynch-move-chokehold-case-article-1.2869877, https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/mike-brown-notched-a-hard-fought-victory-just-days-before-he-was-shot-adiploma/2014/08/12/574d65e6-2257-11e4-8593-da634b334390_story.html?utm_term=.a66eeaabef08 1. “50 Years After Race Riots, Issues Remain the Same.” U.S. News & World Report, U.S. News & World Report, www.usnews.com/news/nationalnews/articles/20170712/50yearslatercausesof1967summerriotsremainlargelythesame.

2. “Radiolab Presents: More Perfect Mr. Graham and the Reasonable Man.” Radiolab Podcasts, www.radiolab.org/story/radiolabpresentsmoreperfectmrgrahamreasonableman/.

Image: Alton Sterling, a 37-year-old man, was shot at close range by two police officers in Baton Rouge, Louisiana on On July 5, 2016.

Credit: Photo via Alton Sterling / Facebook

46

After Graham’s victory at the Supreme Court level, the case was sent back down to the trial court to determine whether or not Connor was guilty of excessive use of force under the new standards. A new jury was selected and the facts of the case were presented again. This time, in accordance with the Graham v. Connor decision, the jury was asked to assess whether or not Connor acted as a reasonable officer would have in that exact situation. The jury was instructed to follow the definition of “reasonableness” laid out by the Graham v. Connor decision. Chief Justice Rehnquist stipulated that the “reasonableness” of force “must be judged from the perspective of a reasonable officer on the scene, rather than with the 20/20 vision of hindsight.” Furthermore, the reasonableness standard must allow “for the fact that police officers are often forced to make split-second judgements—in circumstances that are tense, uncertain, and rapidly evolving—about the amount of force that is necessary in a particular situation.” [3] In other words, the jurors had to put themselves in Connor’s shoes in the split-second before his use of force with the understanding that the situation was unpredictable and Connor was under significant pressure. The jury decided in favor of Officer Connor.

The Graham standard had established the opposite effect of what many had hoped for, and perhaps even against what Thurgood Marshall had intended. By focusing on what a reasonable officer would have done, the Supreme Court decision narrowed the scope of analysis to only an officer’s point of view of the situation. In this case, Officer Connor had seen a black man running in and out of a convenience store into a waiting vehicle that subsequently sped away. When Connor stopped the vehicle, he experienced a man acting erratically and incomprehensibly. The jury inferred that a reasonable officer could assume the man to be dangerous and would reach the conclusion that there was a need to subdue him. Furthermore, in that pressure-filled split-moment, Connor had no way of knowing that Graham was a diabetic suffering from an insulin attack and had no intent of harming him. Therefore, Connor acted reasonably. He was off the hook.

No case has subsequently overturned the Supreme Court ruling in Graham v.

Connor. Today, the reasonableness principle set forth under Graham v. Connor still stands as the universal standard for excessive use of force cases. Ironically, the very standard meant to hold police officers accountable would soon be known as the “first amendment for cops” within police forces, a protection that would reliably hand down acquittal after acquittal for officers. [4] In fact, Graham v. Connor is widely studied during police trainings, with some police departments even listing the Supreme Court case in their officer handbooks.

POLICE Magazine, a popular magazine for law enforcement officials, published an article in response to the shooting of Michael Brown in 2014 stating that “every American law enforcement officer should have a sound understanding of the Graham case and what it means.” The magazine goes on to describe how “a generation of officers has been trained in the case's practical meaning and has spent decades applying it to every use of force decision.” [5] Three decades later, Graham v. Connor has stood as the silent giant in the backdrop of recent cases of police brutality and the birth of the Black Lives Matter movement. In July 2014, an unarmed black man named Eric Garner was placed in a

3. Supreme Court. Graham v. Connor. 1989.

4. “Radiolab Presents: More Perfect—Mr. Graham and the Reasonable Man.” Radiolab Podcasts, www.radiolab.org/story/radiolabpresentsmoreperfectmrgrahamreasonableman/.

5. “Understanding Graham v. Connor.” POLICE Magazine, Oct. 2014, www.policemag.com/channel/patrol/articles/2014/10/understandinggrahamvconnor.aspx.

chokehold by Officer Daniel Pantaleo during an arrest. Garner pleaded eleven times to Officer Pantaleo that he could not breathe. Garner was pronounced dead one hour later from the chokehold. A grand jury decided that Officer Pantaleo acted reasonably and he was not indicted in Garner’s death. The following month, an unarmed black man named John Crawford III was shot and killed by Officer Sean Williams inside of a Walmart.

Crawford was holding a toy BB gun, which Officer Williams mistook for a real weapon.

A grand jury decided that Officer Crawford acted reasonably and he was not indicted in Crawford’s death. Four days later, Michael Brown, an eighteen-year-old unarmed black man, was shot and killed by Officer Darren Wilson. Officer Wilson was chasing down Brown for stealing cigarillos from a store when he shot six bullets into Brown. A grand jury decided that Officer Wilson acted reasonably and he was not indicted in Brown’s death. Two months later, Officer Timothy Loehmann shot and killed twelve-year-old Tamir Rice. Officer Loehmann shot the boy because he mistook the airsoft gun in Rice’s hand for an actual gun. A grand jury decided that Officer Loehmann acted reasonably and he was not indicted in Rice’s death. Alton Sterling was selling CDs when he was shot and killed by police officers for resisting arrest. Both the Justice Department and Office of the Attorney General of Louisiana decided that the officers had acted reasonably and they were not indicted in Sterling’s death. The next day, Philando Castile was driving a car with his girlfriend and her four-year-old daughter when he was pulled over, shot seven times and killed by Officer Jeronimo Yanez.

Officer Yanez claimed that Castile was reaching for a gun, rather than his ID. A grand jury decided that Officer Yanez acted reasonably and he was not indicted in Castile’s death. Officers were also acquitted in the deaths of Jamar Clark, Terence Crutcher, and Keith Lamont Scott, to name a few more black men who were recently shot and killed by police officers. Graham v. Connor was cited in the officers’ defenses in all of these cases.

The continual acquittal of police officers has infuriated civil rights advocates and Black Lives Matter activists alike who see police brutality as today’s preeminent racial justice issue. Interacting with the police remains a high-stakes game in which police officers hold a get-out-of-jail-free card. Encountering even the most well‐ meaning police officer becomes dangerous due to implicit bias structures in American society. The American Psychology Association states that “one of the most well‐ demonstrated types of implicit bias is the unconscious association between black individuals and crime.” [6] Joshua Correll, PhD, a professor of psychology at the University of Colorado, developed a paradigm known as “the police officer’s dilemma” that illustrates the impact of implicit bias on the black community. Correll tested this paradigm through a first-person shooter video game in which participants were shown pictures of both black and white men holding either a gun or an object such as a cell phone. The participants were tasked to shoot the pictures of men holding guns. The peer-reviewed study revealed that participants shot pictures of armed black men with more frequency and more immediately than armed white men and refrained more often from shooting white men. It also found that the most common, consistent mistake was shooting an unarmed black man and failing to shoot an armed white man. Furthermore, the study found that the participants’ race did not impact their level of implicit bias, and that bias reflected perceptions of cultural stereotypes rather than personal racial prejudice. [7]

6. Wier, Kirsten. “Policing in Black & White.” Monitor on Psychology, Vol 47, No. 11, American Psychological Association, Dec. 2016, www.apa.org/monitor/2016/12/coverpolicing.aspx.

7. Correll, Joshua, et al. “The Police Officer's Dilemma: Using Ethnicity to Disambiguate Potentially Threatening Individuals.(Abstract).” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, vol. 83, no. 6, 2002, pp. 1314–1329.

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Image: (from left to right) Trayvon Benjamin Martin was a 17-year-old African American teenager from Miami Gardens, Florida, who was killed by George Zimmerman on February 26, 2012, Aiyana Mo'Nay Stanley-Jones, a seven-year-old who was killed during a raid conducted by the Detroit Police Department on May 16, 2010, and Tamir Rice, a 12-year-old boy killed by police on November 22, 2014, in Cleveland, Ohio.

Credit: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-36273488, http://blackyouthproject.com/national-sayhername-day-acknowledginginjustice-against-black-women-girls-and-femmes/, https://www.gq.com/story/tamir-rice-story

It did not matter that someone was racist or not; they still acted on their implicit bias.

A follow-up series of studies found that special unit officers who routinely interact with minority gang members were more likely to shoot black men—both armed and unarmed—in the first-person shooter simulation. The training and experiences that the officers received exacerbated the likelihood of exhibiting racial bias in their decisions to shoot. [8] These findings reflect real-world statistics in which an unarmed black person is three and a half times more likely to be shot by police on average than their white counterparts. [9] This statistic fluctuates depending on the locale. For example, unarmed black people in Oklahoma are seven times more likely to be killed by police officers than their counterparts in Georgia. [10] More disturbingly, though black people bear the brunt of a significant racial disparity in police use of force cases, there is no correlation between police use of force and the crime rates of black individuals. A variety of studies produced by University of California, Los Angeles’s Center for Policing Equity reveal how black people are more likely to be targets of police force after adjusting for whether or not they actually engaged in crime. In other words, crime rates are not driving police behavior. This conclusion is supported by other data. A study conducted by psychologists at Stanford University found that black men are four times more likely than white men to be stopped and searched at a traffic stop, even though black people are no more likely to be found with contraband than their white counterparts. [11] These studies re-emphasize how policing is an issue of civil rights, and providing a fair trial for victims of police brutality is an issue of justice.

Though Graham v. Connor was meant to impose integrity on police accountability against excessive use of force, in practice it became a protectorate of police misconduct. The Fourth Amendment reasonableness standard was intended to provide an objective analysis based off of facts on the ground, but it instead prioritized the police officers’ perspective of the situation over that of the victims’. As a result, black and brown communities have continued to suffer at the hands of police brutality and an unjust legal system. As a society, we must ask what possible solutions may exist to the legal conundrum that has followed in the wake of Graham v. Connor.

Excessive use of force can be addressed, to some extent, from a policy standpoint. Implicit bias trainings paired with bias assessments in police departments should be one component of addressing the issue. [12] Mandating sufficient deescalation training for police officers is also important. President Obama’s administration released a report in 2015 stating that deescalation training should be the top priority of all police departments. [13] Currently, thirty-four states do not require deescalation training at all, and a larger number of states do not provide sufficient enough deescalation training sessions. While support for the implementation of deescalation training exists amongst a fraction of police chiefs, there is a much larger faction of police chiefs who denounce such programs. Those against the programs

8. Sim, Jessica J, et al. “Understanding Police and Expert Performance: When Training Attenuates (vs. Exacerbates) Stereotypic Bias in the Decision to Shoot.” Personality & Social Psychology Bulletin, vol. 39, no. 3, 2013, pp. 291–304.

9. Ross CT (2015) A MultiLevel Bayesian Analysis of Racial Bias in Police Shootings at the CountyLevel in the United States, 2011–2014. PLoS ONE 10(11): e0141854. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0141854 10. Saul, Josh. “Police Killed More than 1,100 People This Year and a Quarter of Them Were Black.” Newsweek, 29 Dec. 2017, www.newsweek.com/policeshootingskillingsusunarmedblackreformmichaelbrown764787.

11. Hetey, Rebecca, et al. Data for Change: A Statistical Analysis of Police Stops, Searches, Handcuffings, and Arrests in Oakland, California. Stanford Social Psychological Answers to Real World Questions, June 2016, stanford.app.box.com/v/DataforChange.

12. James, Tom. “Can Cops Unlearn Their Unconscious Biases?” The Atlantic, Atlantic Media Company, 23 Dec. 2017, www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/12/implicitbiastrainingsaltlake/548996/.

13. United States. President's Task Force on 21st Century Policing, Executive Office of the President. Final Report of the President's Task Force on 21st Century Policing / President's Task Force on 21st Century Policing. 2015.

50

Image: Korryn Gaines, a 23-year-old woman was killed by police in her home on August 1, 2016, in Randallstown, Maryland, near Baltimore.

Credit: https://twitter.com/bmorebloc/status/956911254605586432

argue that deescalation requires all participants in a situation to participate in said de‐ escalation, which cannot be controlled by police officers. However, supporters point to the need for change in how police are trained to act in different scenarios with the purpose of giving officers tools to relieve tensions for the overall benefit of everyone’s safety. [14] Beyond policy, there are legal battles being fought in the lower courts over the current interpretation of Graham v. Connor, which constrains the reasonableness standard to a sliver of time, prioritizes only what the officer is feeling, and rejects the consideration of hindsight in making a decision to convict or acquit an officer. Several plaintiffs are presenting cases that point to a different section of Rehnquist’s majority opinion, which tempers—and even contradicts—the previous interpretation by stating that the question of reasonableness should rest on “whether the totality of the circumstances justif[ies] a particular sort of...seizure.” The lower courts have so far been split in their interpretation: half are interpreting the “totality of circumstances” to mean whether or not the officer would have been fearful based off of what that officer would have known during that split-second moment before making the decision to use force, and whether or not the use of force was reasonable based off of the officer’s fear. The other half of the courts have decided upon a wider interpretation that includes the totality of what attempts were made to deescalate the situation or nonviolently subdue the individual leading up to the moment when the officer used force. In the latter interpretation, the factors that were previously left out of the picture would be allowed for consideration. In the case of Graham, these factors could include how there was no indication that Graham carried a weapon or how Connor did not attempt deescalation tactics before arresting Graham. In the case of Graham, these factors could include how there was no indication that Graham carried a weapon or how Connor did not attempt deescalation tactics before arresting Graham. This new focus on the “totality of circumstances” within the majority opinion delivered by the Supreme Court Court is seen by civil rights lawyers as a path towards requiring objectivity under Graham v. Connor. [15] Graham v. Connor is a prime example of the timeless, far reaching and often unpredictable consequences of the law. While Graham v. Connor may morph in legal interpretation, certain things remain steadfast: making a trip to the convenience store to get orange juice, playing with a toy gun in a Walmart, or driving around with loved ones in your car should not be scenarios of life or death. We should work towards living in a society where, when asked whether or not an officer was reasonable in shooting twenty rounds of bullets into a young man standing in his grandmother’s backyard with nothing but a cellphone in his hand, the law compels a jury to respond with a resounding “No.”

14. Jackman, Tom. “DeEscalation Training to Reduce Police Shootings Facing Mixed Reviews at Launch.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 15 Oct. 2016, www.washingtonpost.com/local/publicsafety/deescalationtrainingtoreducepoliceshootingsfacingmixedreviewsatlaunch/ 2016/10/14/d6d96c74915911e69c85ac42097b8cc0_story.html?utm_term=.4948b86223e9.

15. “Radiolab Presents: More Perfect Mr. Graham and the Reasonable Man.” Radiolab Podcasts, www.radiolab.org/story/radiolabpresentsmoreperfectmrgrahamreasonableman/.

52

Image: "White Arches" Credit: Abraham Garcia

MORNING LESSON LYNN

TAMAYO

If you ask, and if they are honest, most people will tell you that they believe those who are homeless got that way because of mental illness or because of their own bad decisions. I work at a school of social work at a major university. I was told that homelessness could also be caused by the loss of a job along with the lack of a strong personal network. I was unconvinced until I met Grace.

She stood beside me at the bus stop, and asked me

Grace said that she had been an accountant in a

if I was on my way to work.

manufacturing plant. “Before that, I was a typist.”

Her loose brown pants were torn and stained. Her

I told her that I was.

once-white blouse matched the greyness of her once-white sneakers. Her wavy brown hair was

“What do you do?” she asked.

pulled back tight, revealing a dirt smudge on her forehead. But her eyes were vivid green and

“I’m an administrative assistant,” I said and

sparkled with clarity.

adjusted the lapel of my periwinkle suit jacket.

I stepped up to her. “What happened?” I asked.

She looked me up and down. “I used to be

The expected stench of stale alcohol was not

something too.”

there. Neither was the dull stare of an addict.

Instead, I was accosted by days of unbathed skin

I fought the urge to look her up and down. I

and unwashed clothing.

wanted to tell her, “But you are something.” I checked my watch.

“Company closed,” she said, and bent over the trashcan. “I looked for a job. Sent out my resume.

She told me that her name was Grace and that she

Got tired. Lost my house.” She examined the

had a degree from a junior college. I was sure her

trashcan’s contents, opening Styrofoam

comment was inspired by the USC logo on my

containers and paper bags. “Got more tired. Got

carryall.

hooked. Got clean. Came here.”

My cell phone buzzed a text from the

The chicken pesto sandwich in my carryall tugged

receptionist. He was taking a sick day. He thought

on my shoulder. I relieved myself of the burden.

it was a stomach flu, or maybe he ate something bad.

54

Top Image: Los Angeles' Skid Row. Credit: AFP photo/Robyn Beck/Getty Images Bottom Image: A bus at dusk. Credit: Pau Casals

She thanked me and put it into an old blue denim

The bus door opened and unenthusiastic workers

backpack.

lined up and trudged in. A short stocky woman doused in cheap flowery perfume pushed up

I asked her if she had family. “My sister died. Car

against my back. She smelled like a funeral parlor

accident.”

filled with dying flowers. It was worse than the body odor and the open trashcan—combined. I

“I’m sorry,” I said, and stared down the perfectly

crinkled my nose and put my index finger under

tailored man who looked at me in disbelief. He

my nostrils.

clutched his Brooks Brothers briefcase, dusted a non-existent speck from his navy blue trousers,

Grace squeezed her nose, smiled and nodded in

and stepped away. Maybe it was the odor or

agreement. Her teeth were slightly yellowed, but

maybe it was shame. He grimaced and stepped

her smile had the wide flat perfection of a mouth

into a taxi.

that had once known the torture of braces.

“I think I have some cousins in Chicago,” she

“How about friends?” I asked as I joined the line.

said. “My parents got divorced when I was a kid.

I thought, maybe a different time, a different

I don’t know them. You know what I mean?”

place.

“I guess so,” I said. I thought about my own

“I’ve always been kind of a loner,” she said. “I

distant cousins and wondered if I could still find

was always so busy working, I forgot to work on

them. A panicked feeling welled in my stomach,

my friendships. You know what I mean?”

but I took solace in the existence of social media.

The smudge on her forehead caught my eye again.

I took the last sip of my coffee cup and tossed the empty cup into the trash. “I know,” I said.

“Do I have something up there?” she asked. She opened the small zippered pocket of her backpack

She picked out the coffee cup, took off the plastic

and took out a compact mirror. The cover was

lid, looked inside and tossed it back into the

inlaid with mother of pearl. She shook a once-

trash. “You sleepy?” she asked.

white handkerchief and wiped off the smudge. I noticed the handkerchief was embroidered with

“I didn’t sleep well,” I lied. “Caffeine addiction”

the letters “G-M-A.”

would have been a truthful answer.

My eyes involuntarily scanned her clothing again.

“You like your job?”

Despite my best efforts, I was not able to hide the judgement behind my glances.

“I guess so,” I said. “But I’m going on an interview later today.”

“I signed up at the women’s center,” she said, and checked the buttons on her blouse. “They said

Her expression hardened. “I used to dream,” she

they can help me.” She paused and looked more

said and turned away.

like a candidate replying to an interviewer than a homeless woman standing over a trashcan. “I also

Dream? I wanted to follow her and ask, “Dream

have a storage unit,” she said. “I still have my

in your sleep or dream in life?” I was late for

work clothes. They’re a little big for me now, but

work. I stepped into the bus. I wish I could meet

they’re still in good condition.”

Grace again. I would tell her that she is something—a teacher.

“That’s wonderful,” I said.

56

DEAR AMERICA/ BEAUTIFUL COUNTRY ESTHER

RA

When I first learned you could murder, I cried.

tight as a noose on some necks,

I wanted so badly to believe in you, in your

where freedom rubbed raw on wrong skin.

American dream, which placed shining words

Yet you placed eloquence in my mouth,

on my tongue. Migak, sense of taste, sweet

gave me the tongue with which I condemn you.

as apples. Country, I thought, with a conscience.

I became full of life, other, daughter—

In Korea, we called you Migook, beautiful country.

O my mother, allow me to speak:

Meaning we saw you as buffalo, full of dark strength,

from my migoo, my fragmented body,

roaming prairies of vast possibility.

let words flow like rivers of stone.

You fed us cigarettes and salt crackers during the war,

How long will you hide the bloodstains

snapped chocolates as easily as limbs. We became

on your cloak, build floorboards over

your bargirls and babies, eager for one glance from your

your dead bodies? Migook, O America,

eyes.

Be consistent with grace: Your arms enveloped me, foster child

Your own children lie shot in the streets.

from an ancient and terrified land, and my past

Migook, my America, do not belch out with

learned to clutch at your sleeve. I loved you, America,

pride,

with your sky large enough to hold every race

but swell with the warm yeast of mercy.

Be bread in the pockets of the hungry,

and your story so brazenly young, everyone could tell

and rise like fresh dough to your name.

where it began to go wrong. Misook: your ignorance, or mine. You swaggered that God was on your side.

And I clutched you like a hope. Like a rope. A rope

Image: Child refugees during the Korean War. Credit: Wikimedia Commons.

58

ONE STAR REVIEWS OF THE

ESTHER

RA

One-Star Reviews of the DMZ

“What was it,

Not worth the money. You can

a found poem; after Aimee

what have we just seen?”

access it online. Overrated: THERE IS NOTHING

Nezhukumatathil Hurry, hurry, hurry…

We lived to regret it.

Hardly exciting.

There were too many stops At the restaurant in the tour,

to go shopping.

TO SEE!!!

and wait!

We never got to do the tour.

my bibimbap was cold.

You can’t take pictures. Not

The rice dried up.

Unfortunately,

very scenic. And we were

We saw North Koreans working

this was just the beginning.

NEVER ONCE told

on a field.

that the drinks were extra.

Too many restrictions We shuffled on and off

for safety. Doesn’t allow you

the tour bus, from building

to walk into North Korea.

to building. They play

BORING!

on perceptions of danger.

Armies of tourists.

A waste of time.

Title Image: South Korean soldiers stand guard at the Military Demarcation Line in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) in the border village of Panmunjom, South Korea.

Top Image: A Korean People's Army guard watches as preparations for a repatriation ceremony are made Nov. 6, 1998.

60

(HAN)NAM / KOREAN BOY ESTHER

RA

“Korean boys will be Korean boys.”

—my male South Korean friend

“I suspect he has a Korean fuckboi hidden in him somewhere.”

—my friend, joking about her half-Korean boyfriend

A Korean boy is composed of a mother’s tears.

Sometimes, a mother’s bright fists.

A blow cracks across his face in the dark, like lightning splitting a dry sky.

Korean boy learns that the sky is a bruise under which fathers shrivel like snails.

Korean boy saunters the hallways of school, picks up the jargon of wit.

He jingles a new vocabulary like coins, tastes their taut texture in his teeth.

Crock pot for brain, wet rag for girls.

Penis a universal adjective.

Korean boy chucks a girl under her chin, calls her a hog, buys her ice cream.

For every Korean boy who tells me how he gets girls drunk to fuck them,

Another Korean boy runs out in the night to watch over his friend when she’s wasted.

Korean boy knocks down noodles and beer, conquers kingdoms in the space of his screen.

Korean boy plays soccer till dawn, tears chicken wings like a wolf cub.

When flirting, Korean boy calls himself a wolf on the prowl, threatening to eat the girls up.

Korean boy longs for a horizon called worthy, stays adrift in saltwater for centuries.

Korean boy says that most stories of rape are inventions to gain easy money.

62

Korean boy isn’t sure how to define rape.

Korean boy cups his fist and thrusts in his fingers

to introduce his lover to his friends.

Korean boy shimmies when he walks or talks to the script of his private K-drama.

Korean boy hurls chairs at a cowering girl.

Somewhere else, he comforts her fears.

A Korean boy dies in the army.

Another is injured for life.

Korean boy fragments his youth for a country that seldom remembers his name.

Korean boy returns with a body sky-blue with beatings and a mouth rot with anger for years.

Sometimes the dam in Korean boy’s throat is floodwater damn near to bursting.

Korean boys fall from the sky like hailstones and glass. Nobody looks up to catch them.

Somewhere, a broken gingko leaf grazes Korean boy’s face.

For a moment, he raises his palm in a gesture of wonder, only a boy,

only Korean, only a fatherless child in the war,

unable to start or stop crying.

RECIPE FOR NACATAMALES: A TRADITIONAL HONDURAN DISH BESSIE SHANTIH

F.

ZALDÍVAR

original

publication

rights

64

Ingredients:

It is time we share the recipe for nacatamales; it

4 tomatoes

is time we share what life as Honduran is.

3 green chilies 1 white onion

1.

Place 4 tomatoes, 3 green chilies, and 1

2 potatoes

white onion (2 if small) in a blender. Liquefy

2 ½ lb. chicken or pork

until completely liquid.

Salt and pepper for seasoning ½ lb. lard

“You gotta hook me up with some Ecuadorean

4 cups of water

girl or guy,” Tiff says in between bites, “they’re

2 ½ tbsp of margarine

fineashell,” the last three words mushing up into

½ cup of rice

one, as she tries to swallow and talk at the same

12 cups of corn flour (MASECA)

time. “I don’t think I even know any Ecuadorean

226g of tomato paste (NATURAS)

people,” I say, confused as to where this is

5 oz. annatto powder

coming from. She frowns, “Wait, aren’t you from

3 bags of plantain leaves

Ecuador?” “I’m from Honduras,” I say, not annoyed nor upset. “Yeah, yeah, that’s what I

I stopped thinking of my birthplace as a country

meant. It’s the same thing, the Hispanic people.”

and allowed it to become my identity. I’m not

I laugh; it wasn’t malicious, and at least she

from Honduras, I’m Honduras. It is easy, and

didn’t say we’re all Mexicans. Ecuadorean,

tempting, to disassociate. I need not to sit

Honduran, Mexican—we’re as different and

thousands of miles away, far from the night’s

similar as tomatoes, chilies, and onions. But

gunshots and hungry babies’ screams, to do so. I

we’re blended all the time. Liquefy into one

could stand right in the center of Tegucigalpa and

single substance. Eventually, only through careful

believe myself to be far, very far, from the

smelling and tasting could anyone guess what we

morning smell of coffee dancing in the air with

use to be— what we really are. I smile, “Yeah, I

that of death. Death. The smell of death in

suppose I know a couple of Hondurans you could

Honduras is not that of a rotting corpse. The

be interested in.”

smell of death in my city is that of routine, of triviality. Thus, it is a smell that stirs no one, that

2. Clean and cut 2 ½ pounds of either pork or

hurts no one, that moves no one. A much more

chicken (according to preference) into small

powerful smell is that of the nacatamales, and I

pieces.

don’t say just because of all the starving faces pressing against car windows at every stoplight.

“In immigration they won’t ask you: Where are

Nacatamales are more Honduran than the five

you coming from? Where are you going? Why?

stars in my flag. It is a smell every Honduran

How? With whose money? How long will you

knows, every Honduran craves. The rich buy them

stay? No, no, you’re too white for that,” Ligia

by the dozen in the corners of busy streets. The

tells me. She’s right; they have never asked me

poor prepare them by the hundreds every night

anything at all, and I had always wondered how

and dawn, before daybreak comes, requiring their

come everybody else in front of me in line

swollen feet and hands back at their corners. It

seemed to take forever to be allowed into the

was in the process of preparing them for the first

country. “I’m light skinned, not white,” I say,

time this previous Christmas that I realized just

defeated. But she’s wrong. They can see my

how much nacatamales relate to my Honduran

passport, they can hear my accent, they can read

identity. Each step, each ingredient, is also a

my last name. Light skin doesn’t make me white.

facet of my everyday life as a Honduran woman,

It's pork or chicken. White or not. It can’t be

especially upon moving to America to study.

both.

3. Once clean and cut, place meat inside a

5. Place mix from step 4 on a stove burner at

container and season with salt, pepper, and a

230 degrees Celsius and continue to stir slowly.

little of the mix from step one. Set aside for the time being.

I wake to images of my city, Tegucigalpa, literally on fire. Riots, the media calls them.

“I love Cinco de Mayo,” my first college roommate tells me. I nod, not really sure of what I can say to that. I’ve seen her tweets about the “#TrumpTrain.” My family was very clear: It’s not your country, so don’t say anything about the election. Leave it be. Her retweets about building the wall and getting rid of all the “illegals” plague my feed. I keep my mouth shut, as she yells at the T.V. on the nights of the debates. A piece of a chicken nugget flies from her mouth as she screams, “Fucking Crooked Hillary wait 'til we drain the swamp, bitch.” On May 5th, she uploads pictures wearing a sombrero, along with some caption in faulty Spanish and the taco

Delinquents, drug dealers, gang members trying to destroy the country so they can rule free of the law. The U.S. government backs up the media by recognizing the tyrant’s reelection, the reason of the so-called riots. This city has always been on fire. In public schools, the children have always sat on bricks. “See, it’s a model of the Norwegian education system,” says the minister of education, “kids don’t have chairs so they can feel more comfortable working in groups.” His kids, of course, don’t sit on bricks nor on the floor. His kids probably don’t fear the school may crash down on them, leaving a pile of stone, chalks, and bones. This city has always been on fire. We have been stirring slowly.

emoji. On May 5th, she doesn’t mind the salt and the pepper and the mix of tomatoes and chilies and onions. She can embrace these things for one day. The next 364 days though, she sets aside the seasoned meat. She forgets she owns a sombrero.

6. Add ½ a pound of lard to the mixture on the burner. Boil and stir until it has a thick consistency. This may take several minutes.

This will be the white mix.

I hit unfollow and move out.

“How are things?” I ask Katherine via WhatsApp

4. Mix 6 cups of corn flour (preferably Maseca), 2 cups of water, and ½ of the mix from step 1 in a pot. Stir until liquid; the mix must be thin, not thick.

shortly after the protests break out. She responds by sending a one-minute video she recorded from her car. The street is full of burning tires and rocks. “I saw a man get killed the other day,” she adds. “Heard the gunshot first.” I wait for her to

I unroll my R’s. I read. I watch all movies in

type, mostly because I don’t know what to say. “It

English. I look for words in the Webster

was right in the head. His brains all over the

Dictionary app on my phone, and hit the play

sidewalk.” I wonder if brains on a sidewalk, like

button so the machine voice can confirm my

in Hollywood movies, resemble the consistency of

pronunciation is the right one, just in case I have

lard. I wonder for several minutes. Katherine will

to read it aloud in class or something. “Where are

know all her life.

you from?” my Uber driver asks. “Honduras,” I say, “Central America.” Surprised, he answers

7. Repeat steps 4 and 5 with the remainder of

“Really? You got great English. That’s good. I

mix 1.

hate when people can’t speak right. It’s like, speak American or get out.” I nod in response.

I’ve stirred my tongue in training throughout the years to make my accent thin, not thick.

Sometimes it slips. Sometimes, I wish it had slipped.

66

Title Image: Nacatamales / iStock Top Image: A market in Honduras.

Bottom Image: A man carries a boy across a burning barricade erected by supporters of Salvador Nasralla. Credit: Rodrigo Abd./AP

8. Pour new mixture into another pot, and

Every headline cuts her into a smaller piece.

place on a stove burner. Add 2 sticks of

“Stop reading that stuff, Ma. We just don’t know

margarine (226 g), 2 bags of Natura’s tomato

what’s true anymore. Don’t torture yourself,” I

paste (226 g), and 5 ounces of annatto powder.

hear her daughter tell her. Still, in the morning

Boil and stir until it has a thick consistency.

she will rise. Rise and work. Some things have to

This may take several minutes. This will be the

be set aside to survive. And rising—well, rising is

red mix.

just what you do.

It’s December and everything is red. The Santa

10. Wash plantain leaves (3 bags) with water.

Claus in the street ringing his bell and asking for

Make sure to clean both sides of each leaf.

money. The string that goes around the Christmas tree in the middle of the mall, which has not been ransacked because it’s too close to the presidential plaza. And the streets, of course, running red with the blood of over 40 young women and men.

Alexia comes over a whole day. She brings bags and bags of dirty clothes. Hers, Joseph’s, her boyfriend, and Dana’s, her 7-month-old baby.

“We have not had running water for two weeks,” she tells us. We don’t ask how they manage their bathroom situation, especially considering they

9. Cook ½ a pound of rice and add ½ a stick (56.5 g) of margarine, and 2 potatoes cut into small pieces. Set aside.

“Temporary Protected Status is going away,” the news says. Go back to your shithole countries.

Ligia’s mom, who has been working and paying taxes in Florida for 20 years, cries until she doesn’t even care about the migraine she’ll have to endure the next day, while working from 6 in the morning to 10 at night. This is her life. The first ones to lose it are the Haitians. It’s just been

live with 8 other people. Or how they cook. Or how they shower. These are things we'd rather not know.

11. Build the nacatamales by placing two or three leaves as the base. Adding two spoons of the white mix to the center, two spoons of the red mix on top, two or three pieces of meat, and finally, rice. Fold edges of leaves up and wrap using the strings that accompany the leaves.

Repeat process until running out of leaves. Boil nacatamales in a big pot of water at 230°C for 2-3 hours.

too long since the earthquake, the government explains. The Nicaraguans come next. There’s only about 2,000 of them, we reason, perhaps it's understandable. But then, the Salvadoreños, all 200,000 of them lose it too.

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. “Well—what did you think “temporary” stood for?” the government says.

At night, thinking about TPS going away is not what makes it hard to sleep. It’s not DACA either.

It’s not the protests. It’s not the fires. It’s not immigration’s questions to those who are two tones darker than me. It’s not Alexia’s neighborhood without running water, that is not a

What’s not temporary is countries run by drug

neighborhood, but a whole country. It’s

cartels. TPS is renewed for Hondurans 6 months.

everything. It’s everything on top of everything

But, retire now, the news now says, or else we

on top of everything boiling at a million degrees

won’t give you any of that retirement money.

every hour of the day.

Ligia’s mom, who has been counting on that retirement money, cries again.

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SUMMER IN THE CITY:

INNOCENCE LOST AND FOUND JULIE

LEOPO

Image: Emily, Artesia Pillar neighborhood A soul filled with undeniable charisma, Emily only demands a couple of things: attention and her daily allowance of $1 to purchase ice cream from her neighbor.

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Top Image:

Christopher, Central City neighborhood. “My name is Christopher, this is my gun.� He is shy but has no problem sharing his toys. He runs around the neighborhood shooting at imaginary targets.

Bottom Image: A young girl, Artesia Pillar neighborhood. She sits on her porch, barefoot and happy. She's only allowed on the front steps of her home while her grandfather watches from afar. She takes her dog everywhere she goes.

Image: Nata, Central City neighborhood. Nata is a quiet presence in the neighborhood—perched in her bedroom window.

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Image: (From left to right) Suzy, Robert, Arleen, Central City neighborhood Arleen: "Sometimes I’m scared to come outside, there’s drunk people.”

DREAM LYNN

TAMAYO

Dream of life, of love, of family, of friends, of shared joys and comforted sorrows, of belonging Dream of gatherings, of parties, of being in love, of being alive, of being Dream Dream of the time clock, of timecards, of paychecks, of purpose, of pride in a job well done Dream of co-workers, of lunch hours, of happy hours, of happiness Dream Dream of a home, of a key, of tables and chairs, of windows and doors, of personal space Dream of walls that surround, of a roof that shelters, of shelter Dream Dream of the familiar room, of the warm bed, of the soft pillow, of sheets and blankets Dream of the nightlight’s glow, of a calm night’s sleep Dream Dream of mealtime, of the pantry, of stocked shelves, of fresh food, of frozen food Dream of running water, of food, of nourishment Dream Dream of a bath, of a sink, of a toilet, of toothpaste, of hand soap, of dish soap Dream of clean clothes, of clean skin, of clean Dream Dream of a funeral, of a misplaced word, of a hasty move, of a last farewell Dream of the lost connections, of feeling lost Dream Dream of the rumors, of the broken promises, of the tempest lying in wait Dream of factories closing, of jobs vanishing Dream Dream of boarded up buildings, of pink slips, of unemployment lines Dream of lives uprooted, of hope destroyed Dream Dream of the ever-dwindling want ads, of “No Help Wanted” Dream of rejection letters, of rejection Dream of the last payroll check, of the last unemployment check Dream of the torn eviction notice Dream Dream of the long lines, of the shelters with “No Vacancy” Dream of the waiting, of wanting Dream Dream of the car, of windows closed, of eyes closed Dream of the vinyl’s cold touch Dream

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Dream of the last gallon of gasoline, of emptiness Dream of the impound yard Dream Dream of concrete, of dumpsters, of strangers Dream of sleepless nights Dream Dream of fading dignity Dream Dream of hunger, of thirst, of pain “Will Work for Food” Dream Dream of worry, of despair Dream of fear Dream Dream of loneliness Dream of need Dream Dream of survival

FRANCIS CHRISTINE

SLOAN

STODDARD

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