Per my former boss' suggestion, I have decided to start writing brief articles based on topics of interest that I have encountered in either the news, my community, or my interactions with friends and loved ones. I anticipate some pieces to be more sophisticated, riveting, and/or humorous than others, but the need to keep up with writing is undeniable.
1. NPR article
http://www.npr.org/2013/02/14/171912349/artist-works-to-keep-immigrants-in-the-picture
This article talks about the efforts of a California artist to spread the word about immigrants' rights. The artist, Ramiro Gomez Jr., has created life-size cardboard cut outs that are meant to resemble immigrant workers that he has encountered. He then has set up temporary displays of the cut outs in places where they cannot be missed, such as the most wealthy of Los Angeles neighborhoods and the White House. Gomez claims that by standing the cardboard people up in such prominent places, he is sending a clear message to passersby that immigrant workers are people too and deserve dignity.
I admire Gomez's passion and his belief that all immigrants should be respected and acknowledged by those with whom and for whom they work. However, I have to question the effectiveness of his strategy. Obviously creating the cardboard cut outs and situating them in various places has helped Gomez gain attention. He was even been asked to lead an art workshop at the United Workers Congress and was featured in the above NPR article. And while I would never deny the importance of national attention to an issue, I think that Gomez's depictions of the immigrants may actually serve to separate immigrants further from their U.S. citizen counterparts in the workplace. It was my impression as I read the article that Gomez was hoping to bring about a change in the way that U.S. citizens and immigrants interact in work settings. He was upset by the fact that undocumented workers tend to receive disrespectful treatment from their employers in the form of verbal abuse, disregard for human needs (breaks, paid time off, etc), and low wages. However, by only putting images of the immigrant workers on life-size cardboard pieces, he is accentuating the difference between those who he paints and those who he doesn't.
What I would like to see Gomez do is try cutting out life-size images of the U.S. citizens with whom the depicted immigrants work. Perhaps showing scenes of the two groups of workers together would encourage a more egalitarian relationship between them. If a U.S. citizen (whatever that looks like) is painted and stands holding hands with one of the workers that Gomez has already painted, I would like to think that the image would represent improved worker relations. If the artist is looking to add a "human element" to his art, then why not start by drawing all humans as equal?
