I don’t know what keeps you up at night, but I worry deeply are about the massive changes in our treasured constitutional democracy. It is the many changes of just about everything, but especially the subtle, -or not so subtle-, changes in our American English language. It started years ago with forbidden books. In the 2023-2024 school year, PEN America recorded over 10,000 instances of book bans in US public schools, affecting at least 1,557 unique titles.
From day one, the new administration in the USA has been pressing the elimination of DEI (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion) in every aspect of life. The NSF (National Science Foundation) sounded alarm early on and published a list of the words feeding the search machines.
The search of trigger words in databases has been radical and guided by AI. Once trigger words are identified, a human eye supposedly is needed to follow up the red flag and discern the context of the word used. However, there aren’t enough eyeballs that could be directed onto the matter, whole volumes of documents in government departments are being deleted, employees are being fired and databases which were staples of research and history disappeared from the internet.
“404 Page not found” has become a repeated picture at searches at government websites.
For the background of this quilt, I used on purpose muted colors of mostly hand-dyed cottons to represent the mood of the times. All the narrow multicolored lines in color are the multitudes of humans we all are. The words are written by hand instead of using a printer, to give my thoughts a human touch instead the perfection of another computer. I used words from the list of the NSF, but more words have been added to the list for weeks by now.
Trigger Words
20″ x 40″
Hand-dyed cottons, silk organza, polyester sheers
Pieced and quilted by machine, hand stitched lettering and surface design
I think even “Black” is on the list — I saw somewhere. This is insane.
Yes, Martha, you are correct. There are many more words than I have space to write out here, and it is being added, or differently weighted as time goes on. Very disturbing.
Strong statement . . . Thank you!
Thank you, Carol.
Lisa, once again you have artfully and succinctly represented the truth of our times. I find that, seeing the message this way (rather than a printed news story) brings it home, not just to the brain but to the heart. It is both moving and motivating. Thank you.
When I traveled as a younger German, I remember I always felt uneasy with the German past of the Nazis. I could feel eyes resting on me with the underlying accusation how the Germans could ever let that happen. All of them must have been complicit…
But here we are, repeating history. It is the boiling frog principle. Democracy is fragile and built on participation and good natured, truthful humans and is poorly equipped to deal with malicious undermining.
So timely. Unfortunately, you have many more you could make.
My artmaking is one way to express my concerns, and YES, I know there need to be more of these reminders what is happening. Thank you, Lee.