As the US continues to grapple with the death of George Floyd, art has become a key method of protesting and showing support.
In Wisconsin, local artists came together to create a “Muslims for Black Lives” mural at East North Avenue and North Holton Street.
The effort is part of a series of murals across Milwaukee supporting protests for racial justice.
“Art is inherently revolutionary,” said Aminah Green, a 19-year-old art student at UW-Milwaukee who worked on a portrait of James Baldwin, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.
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Fanana Banana, a Milwaukee Muslim art collective, organized the event on social media. Co-founders Amal Azzam and Nayfa Naji coordinated with local artists to plan the mural’s design.
Aminah Green, left, works with others on a collective mural for Black Lives Matter
Mario Hamilton works on the outline of a Malcolm X face
Photo: Mike De Sisti / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
Photo: Mike De Sisti / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
The artists used paint to draw pictures of many children of different races and backgrounds. Next to the faces they wrote: “Our kids will not be next.”
“I think seeing all these faces and figures super big blown up in the city gives a voice not only to them but everybody else in the community,” said Olivia Vazquez, a 19-year-old art student who worked on a portrait of Shukri Abdi, a 12-year-old refugee from Kenya who drowned in England last year.
Muslims Fighting Racism
The Black Muslim community in the United States has always been at the forefront of the fight against racism.
From Malcolm X and Muhammad Ali to Dawud Walid, American Muslims have fought for social justice and police brutality end.
Other forms of support were also offered by Black American Muslims.
In Brooklyn, Muslims Giving Back (MGB) gave out over 100 sandwiches, cold water bottles, and masks to protesters.
Muslim teenagers Dana Sharqawi and Sumaya Abdi brought people together at the Islamic Society of Milwaukee to remember George Floyd.