Photo by Sabina Rivera
“Brick x Brick is a public art performance that builds human “walls” against misogyny.”
Last year we marched in D.C., here's last year’s post.
This year, Brick X Brick held simultaneous walls against misogyny beginning at 1:00 p.m. EST, in 12 cities across the nation: San Francisco, Los Angeles, Austin, St. Louis, Nashville, New Orleans, Greensboro, Columbus, Providence, Boston, Montpelier, and New York City.
Facing 6th Avenue, about 60 of us stood in silence holding hands, for well over two hours. I think I lasted 2:15 minutes. The initial intention was 1 hour. We began our silent stand before the marchers passed. It was quiet. People were walking up and down and taking pictures, but it was mostly quiet. When you know you have at least an hour to go in silence, you start thinking. To my left was a beautiful woman named Solange and to my right another beautiful woman named Carolyn. I kept thinking of them. I wondered about their lives, their mothers, grandmothers, aunts, sisters. I wondered where they came from, the root of us. I thought about my two sisters, Sabina at the wall site taking pictures and Ariana in Mexico. I thought about Mom, who’s in the hospital, hating it, and insisted Sabina and I go to the march for all the woman nurses and doctors that work in New York Presbyterian. I thought about Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico, and the faces and hearts of so many people I love who are living a new existence on the island and abroad. Hurricane María changed the tide forever, and tears just flowed. And in the absolute concentrated state, I suddenly noticed the men and women in wheelchairs and walkers with signs of protest and I wanted to cry harder. My heart gripped with sadness and pride for their vulnerability and invincibility.
The frail dignity of us all hanging on a string. I practiced breathing. I looked at a capital letter “A” across the avenue on the window display and began thinking of affirmative words - Access, Almighty, Amorous, Action, Accomplishment, Awesome, Adventurous, Amiable, Accepting, Adoring, Adorable, Astounding, Assemble. Then came the drums and the thunder of the people. For two hours I stood in silent and watched as the marchers passed. And they saw us, the wall of love, assembled, accepting, accomplished, astounding, and adoring the almighty people coming together.
I loved many of the signs, some great new ones. I could not take pictures, but two stand out for me:
“If you think you’re too small to make a difference, try sleeping with a mosquito.”
“When Voldemort is President, we need a lot of Hermiones.”
Amen.
Thank you, Brick X Brick (NYC) Sarah Sandman, Andrea Lauer, Katy Kirby, Jeannette Subero
In Solidarity,
Sol