Dreamland

Donald Trump has decided to hit the campaign trail again with a rally in Tulsa Oklahoma on June 19, 2020 which happens to be Juneteenth or Emancipation Day, which commemorates the anniversary of the reading of the General Orders, No. 3, which officially informed slaves that they were free after the civil war. Tulsa was the site of one of the most vicious acts of racial violence in American history when, in 1921, a mob of white people attacked a section of the city known as Greenwood or “Black Wall Street” and murdered hundreds of African Americans. For a president who asserted that “both sides” were to blame for white supremacist violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017 this seems like a strange choice of venue.

This will be Trumps first time at a rally since March 2, 2020. He has desperately missed the rally’s, and fondly remembered the good old days. In a CNN national poll released earlier this week, 88% of black voters said they disapproved of the job Trump is doing in office. Ninety one percent disapproved of how he is handling race relations. And 88% said they would vote for Biden over Trump in a hypothetical general election match up. Trumps heavy handed actions on the issue police violence and racism speak far louder than any words he could at a rally.

Nation wide protests are bringing about change. Confederate statues are being topples and even NASCAR has decided to ban confederate flags, a symbol of hate from future race events. The Navy on Tuesday June 9, 2020 announced it would prohibit the Confederate battle flag from all its military installations, following the lead of the Marine Corps which last week began implementing a ban on its troops displaying the flag in any form. Elizabeth Warren, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, filed an amendment to the annual defense bill last week to rename all bases named for Confederate generals. Anthony Brown, a retired Army Reserve colonel, said in a statement that scrubbing the names of Confederate leaders who took up arms against the United States would help ensure “an honest accounting of our history.” Trump has decided to reject this idea.

Registration for the event requires would-be attendees to acknowledge “that an inherent risk of exposure to Covid-19 exists in any public place where people are present. By attending the Rally, any guests voluntarily assume all risks related to exposure to COVID-19 and agree not to hold Donald J. Trump for President, Inc liable for any illness or injury.” In other words, going to this crowded venue may result in death.Anyone who goes to this rally shouldl get tested for Covid-19 immediately afterwards to try and avoid infecting friends and family.

Tulsa has been under shelter-in-place orders since March 29th. One republican argued the case for going to the rally saying that protestors have been going to crowded demonstrations for some time. Tulsa has 986 confirmed cases of Covid-19 with 44 dead. Oklahoma state had about 7,626 confirmed cases of Covid-19 with 357 dead.

Juneteenth – Jazz Jam

Juneteenth is the oldest known celebration commemorating the ending of slavery in the United States. In honor of this holiday the Grand Bohemian (325 South Orange Avenue) hosted a Jazz Session Jam. Yvonne Coleman, the coorfinator of the event said, “Our Jazz Session Jam has been going on every Monday for almost two years and was selected to be a part of the Juneteenth event. The founder was the late keyboardist Billy Hall along with co-founder, saxophonist Don Black. The purpose of starting this awesome night of music was to have a venue to bring musicians together so that people could enjoy great music. Most important, proceeds in the tip jar goes toward needy families, and charities. ”

I dressed up for the occasion and headed downtown. The jazz was to be flowing from 8 to 11 PM. I parked across from City Hall and walked down Orange Avenue to the Hotel, my dress shoes snapping crisply on the pavement. I entered the Bossendorfer piano lounge and asked where I could find the Jazz. I was led to the bar area. I didn’t hesitate to find a place up front from which I could sketch. There was an empty table but it was being reserved for Dick Batchelor, a notable former Congressman and businessman and community leader, and his friends. I decided to place my small tripod camping chair next to a thick pillar and leaned back to start sketching.

There was much shuffling as people moved chairs from one table to another and at times photographers would stand in front of me to get their shots of the performers. Patience and perseverance paid off. I get a visceral thrill out of drawing while listening to jazz. The beat and rhythms add a spontaneous flow to the line work. The whole time I drew I was tapping my feet and swinging my body as I quietly let go to fully experience the flow and surge of the music.

People kept coming over to compliment me on the sketch. I’m always surprised to be complimented on something the is only half finished. I was talking to a woman on my right when someone tapped me on the shoulder making me swing around to my left. As I looked up at her my body kept falling to the left. My left leg had fallen asleep and I crashed to the floor. The woman tried to catch me but I went down anyway. I then tried to stand up to get some circulation back in my leg but then I stumbled again and began hopping up and down on my one good leg until I could do a sort of shuffle step to the beat of the music. When I had stopped my contortions, the woman said she had been watching me work the whole time I was sketching and she was amazed. I thanked her and then sat down to finish what I had started. I tapped both feet to the music to be sure not to loose them again.

Sultana Fatima Ali showed up for the final set, dressed in a black sequin dress. She and Washington-based Jazz musician, Marcus Johnson, both sat tapping on their respective cell phones with the warm glows from the screens illuminating their faces. I assumed they were tweeting or updating their Facebook statuses. I was shocked and delighted when I found out she had been inspired by the art-themed environment to write, and she shared her musings with me.  I believe through the visual elements and written word, an experience can truly be captured.