Racism: The Other American Pandemic, July 15 – September 8, 2020

“Racism: The Other American Pandemic” is an online exhibition of artistic voices inspired by blatant systemic racism, police brutality, political outrage and resurgent white nationalism. The exhibit, on display from July 15-September 8, 2020, seeks to capture this moment in real time, through an intensive curation of the unprecedented online archiving of artistic responses to the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis on May 25.

With more than 20 visual and multi-media artists, poets and performers from the United States and abroad, “Racism: The Other American Pandemic” reflects the abundance of stirring visual and literary responses that have dominated the national conversation since May.

The resurgence of BLM protests during the COVID-19 pandemic has made clear something we have failed to acknowledge until now — racism in America is a pandemic. By every standard of social well-being, Black Americans have been disproportionately disadvantaged. The number of lives lost or diminished over 400 years by virtue of this pandemic far exceeds that of COVID-19, yet after just a few months, we have already committed trillions of dollars to finding a cure for and treating COVID.  We must make the same commitment to the cure for racism. 

“Racism: The Other American Pandemic” joins the world outcry against racism.  It is a “rapid response” document, archiving these exceptional calls for racial and social justice in the desire to offer our community a space to share emotions and opinions through art. We especially want to highlight the role artists are playing as the vanguard in the struggle against racism. This exhibition also supports the efforts of of Eastern’s student chapter of the NAACP to support equity and inclusion on campus. Ultimately, these artists communicate a ferocious love for the values our country proclaims, and a vision for the role it will hopefully play as a beacon of justice in the 21^st century. 

Yulia Tikhonova, Art Gallery coordinator

'Racism: The Other American Pandemic' virtual exhibit at ECSU looks at persistent crisis