CREATIVES

Words by Habibah Jaghoori

It is no secret that the creative space has always been a diverse and extremely vast one. It is no secret that art is a universal phenomenon and a big reason for why humans are distinct from other species on this earth. Creativity is what has held cultures, societies, groups and individuals in safety, in adventure, in thrill, in romance, in solitude and in unity. Art and creativity are the creation of human beings in their purest and highest form and because of this it holds the power of influence.

When expressed freely, art and creativity will be the wave of radical transformation, of love unbound and of healing. Art and creativity are celestial gifts that need to be valued and treated as sacred. Real art and creativity can never be commodified and will always be inherently anti-capitalist. Artists are those who don’t make art for the sake of business, but rather for the sake of expression. There is the fine line between an artist selling art to support themselves and escape the dictatorship of the bosses and a trend where art is only produced to turn a profit and instill ruling class ideals.

Here lies an essential reason for the importance of art and creativity. It instills ideals into society.

Art and creativity need to be cultivated as tools of resistance so they can perform their duties of healing. Which is why, everyone should engage with and consume Black art and creativity.

Black art and creativity are a direct rebuttal to a capitalist and white-washed form of art and creativity. Such a form of art only exploits, manipulates, degrades and humiliates the journey of being a human being. It’s a tool used to lie about the world. Art and creativity should never be a privilege reserved for upper class folk, as it is currently within capitalist culture.

In a capitalist world where freedom is not free, where love and healing have been nullified, where human nature has been harassed and distorted, Black art and creativity has been the radical shield and the prevailing fightback. Indigenous and Black cultures and communities have used their art to heal, to connect, to teach, to empower and to change the hearts of people. It has never been used for vanity or wealth. This is why engaging with it is like taking medicine. Engaging with and consuming such works means coming back to one’s core, nurturing one’s inner child, tending to the soul’s wounds and gearing up one’s mind and heart. It means experiencing love in the fashion of resilience.

The creative works of black artists such as Audre Lorde, Yrsa Daley-Ward, Toni Morrison, Neiel Israel, Jasmine Mans, Manal Younus, Aza Ismail and Chris Best are political because they speak the truth. They defy their tyrants. They point out racial oppression and they bring shame to it. But their art, in whatever form, is so beautiful that it hurts. The works of these artists have awakened people. Engaging with Black art and creativity is a political act. It’s a defiance to the system. It’s an act of love.