Can’t believe we made it. This is what we’re thankful for. The sound you heard emanating from Paris yesterday was the sound of something dropping. A new music video from the Carters – aka Beyoncé and Jay-Z. But also jaws. And facades. Veils. And masks. Old ideas of beauty. Ancient concepts of privilege. Velvet ropes and restraints. Inhibitions and constraints. And without a doubt, the mic.
It’s official: we have our first black British princess. And her Royal Wedding, on a picture-perfect brilliantly sunny day, signaled the continuation of an incredible stretch of successes for African-Americans the world over this year. Kendrick Lamar wins a Pulitzer Prize. Black Panther gives us a fictional black royal family and a superhero who looks just like us – and shatters ticket sale records worldwide. Director and writer Jordan Peele wins an Oscar. This week at Sotheby’s, Kerry James Marshall‘s panoramic painting “Past Times” sells for $21.1 million, a new record for a living black artist. After the 2016 election, who could have dreamed that 2018 would be The Year of Black Excellence? There are clearly forces afoot in the world that can’t be stopped.
