Obama Spotted In Brooklyn
The cool thing about living in Brooklyn, in a neighborhood that is packed with artistic (and mostly liberal) types, is that amazing things happen overnight. In Brooklyn, it also isn’t uncommon to come across murals of great black political leaders. I regularly ride my bike past colorful building-side portraits of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcom X, and others. But most of these appear to have been painted about two or three decades ago.
This morning, on my way to the subway (Grattan Street for you locals, near the Morgan L), I was greeted by a new portrait: one of the presidential hopeful and current Junior Senator from Illinois, Barack Obama. I prefer my posts to steer clear of politics, largely because I’m such a politician myself that I don’t like to show my cards and reveal what I feel to be personal preferences or opinions. But I am not ashamed to say that I love the excitement that Barack Obama has been able to generate across racial and demographic lines.
Perhaps the reason that many of these murals were painted some time ago is, while there have been candidates for the presidency that have created excitement and broad-based support, it has been some time since there was a candidate that so many individuals were willing to invest their aspirations in. Since this was an non-commissioned piece of guerilla artwork, we’ll see if the owners of the building decide to let the tribute stand. If he doesn’t clinch the nomination, it will certainly come to stand as a curiosity.
Some photos for your enjoyment, courtesy of Heather Waelchli:
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Look closely- there is irony in “perfction.”