How art can shape Americas conversation about freedom Dread Scott
I am a visual artist,
and I make revolutionary art
to propel history forward.
I’m going to come right out
and tell you something:
I don’t accept the economic foundation,
the social relations
or the governing ideas of America.
My art contributes to fundamental change
by encouraging an audience to address
big questions from that perspective.
Social change is hard,
but ideas matter tremendously.
When I say I’m an artist,
most people think, “Oh, he’s a painter.”
Behind me, you can see
some of the kind of work I do.
“Imagine a World
Without America” is a painting,
but I work in a range of media,
including photography,
video and performance art.
A current project,
“Slave Rebellion Reenactment,”
is going to be reenacted
on the outskirts of New Orleans
this November.
In 1989, I had an artwork that became
the center of controversy
over its transgressive use
of the American flag.
“What is the Proper Way
to Display a US Flag?”
is a conceptual work that encouraged
audience participation.
It consisted of a photo montage
that had text that read,
“What is the Proper Way
to Display a US Flag?”
Below that were books that people
could write responses to that question in,
and below that was a flag
that people had the option of standing on.
The photo montage consisted
of images of South Korean students
burning American flags,
holding signs that said,
“Yankee go home. Son of a bitch,”
and below that were flag-draped coffins
coming back from Vietnam.
People wrote long and short answers.
Thousands of people engaged with the work
in a lot of different languages.
Some of the people said,
“I’m a German girl.
If we Germans would admire
our flag as you all do,
we would be called Nazis again.
I think you do have too much
trouble about this flag.”
“I think that the artist
should be returned to his heritage,
i.e., the jungles of Africa,
and then he can shovel manure
in his artistic way.”
“This flag I’m standing on stands for
everything oppressive in this system:
the murder of the Indians
and all the oppressed around the world,
including my brother
who was shot by a pig,
who kicked over his body
to ‘make sure the nigger was dead.’
That pig was wearing the flag.
Thank you, Dread Scott,
for this opportunity.”
“As a veteran defending the flag,
I personally would never
defend your stupid ass!
You should be shot!” – US Navy Seal Team.
As you can see, people had
very strong reactions about the flag then,
as they do now.
There were demonstrations of veterans
in front of the Art Institute of Chicago.
They chanted things like,
“The flag and the artist,
hang them both high,”
evoking images of lynching.
I received numerous death threats,
and bomb threats
were phoned in to my school.
It was a very dangerous situation.
Later, President Bush called
the work “disgraceful,”
which I viewed as a tremendous honor,
and Congress outlawed the work.
(Laughter)
I became part of a Supreme Court case
when I and others defied that law,
by burning flags
on the steps of the Capitol.
That action and the subsequent
legal and political battle
led to a landmark First Amendment decision
that prevented the government
from demanding
patriotism be mandatory.
But let me back up a bit.
These people literally wanted me dead.
What I would do at this moment
would make a difference.
This is me at the exact same moment,
eight stories above that crowd.
It was supposed to be for a photo shoot
that was going to take place on the steps
where the veterans were at that time.
It wouldn’t have been safe
for me to be there, to say the least.
But it was really important
to do that shoot,
because while some wanted to kill me,
it was also a situation
where those who viewed the American flag
as standing for everything oppressive
in this system
felt that they had a voice,
and that voice needed to be amplified.
The point is this:
changing anything –
whether it’s conventional ideas
about US national symbols,
traditional thinking challenged
by scientific breakthroughs
or ousting an authoritarian president –
requires a lot of things.
It requires courage,
luck
and also vision and boldness of action.
But on luck –
I have to say, the photo shoot we did
might not have worked out so well.
We laughed after we were out of the area.
But the thing is, it was worth the risk
because of the stakes that were involved.
And in this case, the luck
led to a wonderful,
profound and powerful situation
that was also humorous.
Thank you.
(Applause)