This week, I’ve added two books to my reading list (Target Practice, Target Practice EP, and Citizen: an American Lyric), made a list of museum exhibits I want to go see, and tried to nail down how I want to execute my concept/question.
It’s been a bit of mess, really, because the more I research, the more I find that interests me. It’s a good problem to have, I suppose. I started with (what I thought) was a pretty concrete idea of what I wanted to do, however its more fluid than I originally thought. I still want to explore the experiences Black children have as they learn to navigate their world, and I still want to include the talk as part of the concept.
However, I’m starting to think I didn’t do myself any favors by narrowing it down so early. Admittedly, the Black experience spans a lot of things, and focusing on a specific part of it is absolutely necessary for thesis. But, I’ve got a little more wiggle room than I thought. Or at least I do in this initial planning stage. Still, I’d feel a little more on top of things if I had a better idea of how I want to execute my thesis.
5 Questions I will investigate with my thesis:
1) What is the Black experience, specifically in the US?
2) How do unintentional biases affect everyday lives?
3) Why is the Talk important?
4) What’s the difference between being an ally and being a performative ally?
5) Why intersectionality matters
3 Possible venues for my work to be shown:
1) Studio Museum Harlem / inHarlem
2) Bedford Stuyvesant Museum
3)
Target Users:
1) Non-Black POCs & Immigrants
– While POCs experiences have some similarities, there’s a lot of experiences that are unique to ours.
2) Black Immigrants
– The experience I’m planning on focusing on is specifically the Black experience in America. I’m reminded of a conversation I had with a Black man who moved to New York at 16. He’d never had the talk from his parents, and wasn’t prepared for the racism he encountered here in America.
3) White people on both the left and right.
– Conservatives aren’t the only ones with biases
– Liberals can be guilty of being performative allies.
4) Ages 13 and up