"It was Jesus on the lynching tree, strange fruit."
During The Ripple Conference in February, J. Kwest, a Christian rapper and friend of Joel Harter (our Associate Chaplain for Protestant Life), came to speak about his prophetic art, including his video "Strange Fruit" which won an Emmy Award. I think it fits well into our discussion of The Color of Christ as it brings up many of the things we've discussed over the course of the semester.
It is about ten minutes long and very powerful. Watch HERE.
How is narrative functioning in this piece? How does the artist parallel biblical texts with the story of Thomas Shipp, Abram Smith, and James Cameron?
For reference, J. Kwest uses the following texts(phrased differently in his script):
"And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil." (Genesis 2:9)
"Pilate said, "Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law" "But we have no right to execute anyone," they objected." (John 18:31)
"Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations." (Revelation 22:1-2)
How does race function visually in the text(video)?
How does the artist use ideas of truth, power, age/innocence, and progress?
How is this an example of liberation theology?
"Each and every one of us is made in the image of that boy, of that singer, of the one who flips the script."
This piece was SO powerful! I had to take a couple minutes to actually process it. I was struck by a lot in this video, but one of things that impacted me the most was how J Kwest seamlessly integrated lyrics from Strange Fruit; the story of Shipp, Smith, and Cameron; and Bible verses from Jesus' passion. The way the presenters move between the story of the lynching and the Crucifixion make a clear point; the boys were sacrificed just as Jesus was. This connection also points to how this piece relates to liberation theology. While J Kwest is not explicitly imaging Jesus as African American, he is directly comparing his life to the lives of the three boys, making him the suffering savior like the marginalized group. One verse that struck me was when he said that the "piece of rope was the most valuable souvenir from that night," just as the cross is often the most valuable relic from Jesus' Crucifixion. I wonder why people have such a fixation of the objects that directly contributed to the deaths.
ReplyDeleteI am in another religion class - Racism and Black Theology - and we have recently begun to talk about how music relates to religion and also to protest. Strange Fruit- this piece, the original poem, and the Billie Holiday song - definitely fits into this category. Not only does J Kwest relate the lynching, but he also powerfully addresses the fact that the United States, while no longer operating under Jim Crow laws, still lives in the legacy of them. This link between past and present is so, so important, especially since many people do not seem to realize how many structural problems are related to America's segregated and racist past. Further, I think song and spoken word as a form of protest is unique and captures the audience, and because J Kwest adds shocking visuals (he shows a picture of the lynching, which made a deep impact on me), I believe this piece sticks with his audience and imprints a picture into their mind, helping them to better remember and understand his point.