Amazing Grace

Disclaimer: this is a long post. Please have your coffee or adult beverage nearby; I don’t want you, dearest reader, to get dehydrated! If you want to skip straight to the quilting and music parts, jump down to the seventh paragraph.

Everyone knows there is an American presidential election approaching and in these unprecedented times, the stakes for this particular election are incredibly high with each side fearing for the future of this country and its total demise should the other win. We are more polarized than ever, demonstrated in the most egregious forms by mask debates and the post office (probably the most beloved government service) being tossed on the political pyre. It is understandable to get overwhelmed and disgusted with our current state, and yet in this year full of stomach churning news, let us not lose sight that 2020 marks the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment granting women the right to vote. On this milestone, recognizing that we still have a long, long way to go to make voting truly fair and equitable for all Americans, women earning the right to vote remains a pivotal moment in U.S. history. What I was not taught in history class is that the 19th Amendment did not grant the right to vote to all women and that within the suffrage movement there were both abolitionists and staunch racists; history, it ain’t always pretty folks. Nonetheless, as a woman who has benefited from the suffragists efforts, it is important to commemorate the anniversary.

I made this quilt as another challenge piece for my art quilt group — the challenge(s) being to make a piece celebrating the 19th Amendment and then also display the quilts in town for all to see. The idea for this piece came to me while I was camping and stuck inside the tent during a thunderstorm. I have no clue what I was ruminating on out in the woods that led me to this design; whatever, I’m thankful for it! When I think about protest movements, both past and present, I think about the passion that leads people to become active instead of passive, to do something and not just have an opinion. There is always a risk in standing up for what you believe in, but where would we be as a country without participation?

Although I consider myself a politically active woman, I caucus and vote in every election (more on this later), I am not active as a protest participant. Sure, I marched against the Iraq War and during Women’s Marches, but big crowds are outside of my comfort zone. Yes, I am too afraid of how peaceful protests become so violent and charged and I am too risk adverse to put myself in that situation. And double yes, being arrested scares me to bits. The older I get, the more I recognize how incredible it is that people physically put themselves out there for the causes they believe in.

As a society we perceive someone who has been arrested as an individual who has done something bad, as a person to be feared who deserves to be punished. An arrest is like being branded: we use language like “having a record” which is a part of you, like a bad Tweety Bird tattoo, for the rest of your life. Your past is always a part of your present after an arrest because it has so many lifelong consequences including being denied housing or a professional accreditation, or ineligible to vote and receive benefits. Not to mention that if you’ve been arrested once, the penalties for subsequent arrests tend to be harsher. Not forgetting that an arrest is traumatic (handcuffs, cop car ride, fingerprinting, booking, jail, bail, court, probation, fines etc.). Yet, despite all of this, people do still get arrested for standing up for what they believe in knowing that there will be a lifetime of consequences and explanations. In all of the causes that folks believe in from freedom of religion to equal rights to climate activism to suffrage, activists are arrested. And that is a brave act.

Since I’m putting these words out on the scary internet, I probably should have made it absolutely clear at the beginning of this diatribe that I am writing about people who are arrested for nonviolent acts. Those who practice nonviolence are arrested just as those whose commit violence. Are we clear? The first person I met who was arrested for nonviolent protests was one of my political science professors in college. He was not a troublemaker, but someone whose voice had long been suppressed (a Native American) and he would sit in front of the annual Columbus Day parade route in an attempt to thwart the celebration of an individual who decimated Indigenous People. In his role as a professor he did not advocate that we, his impressionable students, follow his actions. There was zero bravado; it was a resignation that the police would respond to his nonviolent act with an arrest and so he prepared for the inevitable by having a substitute instructor and bail money ready. He was the first person I knew, and someone I really admired personally and academically, who actively pursued change in the ways I had previously only read of (i.e. Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King, Jr.). It made a big impression on me.

I once heard a statistic that more people vote for American Idol contestants than in presidential elections. Back in the day when I heard this jaw dropping stat, you were still charged per text message, which means that more people were actually paying to vote rather than exercising their hard won right to democratic participation. This physically made me sick. And if more people vote for a talent show than for the leader of their country, what about all of the other less showy elections? These small elections are where your votes can really make a difference and impact your community with important issues like bonds for schools, roads and fire districts at stake. It is important to remember in celebrating the right to vote that every election counts, not just the ones with all of the advertising, non-recyclable glossy flyers (don’t get me started!) and media obsession.

Really, this blog is about quilting and awesome music so I apologize for the verbose background on this work but this piece is one of my more, pun intended, arresting. This quilt has 19 cell blocks representing 19 women who were arrested for advocating for women’s right to vote. I wanted the simple colors to be muted like a sepia photo, but by using the jet black, I achieved a higher contrast and the blocks look like both jail cells and prison suit stripes. For the light fabric, my original idea was to dye some muslin with tea bags to achieve an old fashioned look, however I found that I had many pieces of faded natural dyed pieces languishing in my stash. One thing you learn while experimenting with natural dyes is that it is really easy to make beige and tan, so these slices come from my failed attempts at brighter colors.

This piece presented me with several challenges. There were many, many times during construction where I worried that this quilt was veering off into referee jersey territory; keeping it from looking like an NFL ref was always the goal. Again, pun intended. As you can see with all of these wonky lines, there was no measuring, every piece was cut free hand. For each block, I made a group of alternating black and white strips, then cut it in the middle-ish and flipped one of the pieces before inserting the center bar. Another challenge for me was making an uneven number of blocks into a square. When I completed about 12 out of the 19 cells, I created an arrangement I liked and then filled in the remaining space with other pieces. Throughout the construction, I debated adding negative space around the cells but ultimately decided that I liked the chaotic placement of block on block, even if at times it hurt my eyes. I also debated adding the names of suffragists to each cell and ultimately decided that I like this just as is. This isn’t exactly a pretty quilt; it is a quilt that evokes an emotional response.

To finish this quilt, I did very simple hand quilting at random intervals in vertical and horizontal lines to echo the cell block pattern. I felt that hand stitching was an appropriate homage to the era and I wanted to keep the quilting extra simple because the block design is so dynamic and dramatic. I had a pretty tight deadline to meet so my quilting is nothing fancy. And I’m proud of how accurate my stitching is considering that I’m still adjusting to my current normal with tingling in my limbs.

The name of this piece is “Amazing Grace” because one Sunday morning, I was in my studio working on these blocks and listening to a gospel recording of Aaron Neville at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival in 2009. The music was so profound that I stopped everything I was doing and just listened. After “Morning has Broken” and “Amazing Grace”, my husband came upstairs to find me with tears streaming down my cheeks staring down at my cell blocks. (He also said, “Um, now may not be the best time to tell you that our well is dry.” There is never a good time to talk about our well; such is life in the drought stricken West. But I digress…) I was so moved by the set that my only reaction was tears. It was a culmination of everything: all of the upheaval, the hurricanes, the fires, the smoke, Aaron’s unreal voice, my body acting weird, inequality, the stress of extreme water conservation, the pandemic, this damn election and this quilt. Yep, this quilt made me cry.

This is the first piece I’ve made that is a statement. Everything I make is for celebrations or for comfort, not a critique. In addition, this piece will be displayed alongside many other extraordinary works downtown in a show to be viewed by many. I’m pretty new to displaying my work and find there is an extra level of consideration that goes into making your work public, especially when it has a pointed message. I’ve spent a lot of time thinking while making this quilt, and like history, not all of it is rosy.

“Amazing Grace” is first and foremost a religious song, but also very popular in secular circles, including as a protest song during the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s. If you are a nerd like me, just google up “Amazing Grace history” and you’ll be astonished at how much you can learn and how influential this song is throughout history. Here are a couple of more pertinent facts to share: Mahalia Jackson, the legendary Gospel singer, began using the song during the Civil Rights movement as a sort of talisman against violence during the protests. Later the song was adopted and utilized during the Vietnam War era by folk singers, where it also was associated with particular political leanings. Regardless of your religious or political views, there is no doubt that this song has a powerful history AND a profound message.

My ears were filled with so much incredible music during the construction of this quilt. I was fortunate that the bulk of my work happened to coincide with the streaming of previously recorded live sets on “Festing in Place – the Next Fest Thing” on WWOZ out of New Orleans. A few highlights were: The Meters, Dr. John, Allen Toussaint, James Booker and Voice of the Wetlands Allstars. I also listened to a wonderful Ellis Marsalis tribute on American Routes — another fantastic radio program I highly recommend. Because this quilt is named “Amazing Grace”, I also sought out other versions of the song by Irma Thomas, the Boutte siblings and Aretha Franklin. While I was hand quilting, I dug into our record collection and listened to Nina Simone (whose protests were as legendary as her vocals) and Son House (for some raw 1930s Delta Blues).

In conclusion, I really don’t know what else to say because I feel like I have said more than enough here. If perchance anyone reading this humble little blog is waffling about whether or not voting is worthwhile, and if what I think has any influence over that decision, then I emphatically say DO IT! People literally gave up their lives so that you could have this opportunity; don’t squander it. There are so many Americans who would love to have the opportunity to vote and have their voice heard. Respect them and vote!

Artists listened to: mostly streaming on WWOZ (best radio station in the universe, as they say), Tribute to Ellis Marsalis (RIP) on American Routes, Nina Simone “Finest Hour” and Son House “Heroes of the Blues: the very best of Son House”.