plastic goldfish

Nishimoto Ryota

"After the police killings of Eric Garner and Michael Brown in 2014, thousands gathered to protest anti-Black police brutality that December. We joined the march under a banner with the names of Black women killed by police. While Garner’s and Brown’s deaths justifiably sparked a wave of nationwide protest over lethal police killings, the public silence around Black women demonstrated that the killings of Michelle Cusseaux had yet to be memorialized in widespread activation and denunciation. So, we began chanting “Say! Her! Name!” and the #SayHerName campaign was born to cut through this disturbing reality and resist the invisibility of Black women, girls, and femmes by telling their stories of police violence.

The following year, the #SayHerName Mothers Network — a community of mothers and family members of Black women, girls and femmes killed by police violence—was created and brought together to attend the first ever #SayHerName vigil in Union Square. The Mothers Network emerged from the campaign as a recognition of the isolation and “loss of the loss” experienced by the family members. There was an urgent need to redefine a communal care ethic to support family members in the aftermath of police violence, as well as public failure to acknowledge the police killings of their daughters and siblings.

Lights, laughter, wishes, and new beginnings.

But elsewhere, far from the joy, my friend Abdul Rahman's mother is waging a fierce battle against cancer, struggling against pain, cold, and time itself.

While people bid farewell to one year and welcome another with hope, this mother lives in a tattered tent, exposed to rain and wind, without warmth or security, waiting for just one chance:

A chance for treatment… a chance for life.

To this day, only €9894 has been raised out of the €30,000 needed to evacuate her from Gaza and begin her urgent treatment.

The remaining amount is substantial, but more critically, time is passing, and every day of delay diminishes her chances of survival.

I write to you today with an even heavier heart…

Because tomorrow, December 28th, marks the anniversary of the martyrdom of my friend Abdul Rahman's older brother 💔

A date of unforgettable loss, a pain renewed every year, and I cannot bear for this date to bring another loss.

We need you now… One donation, one share, one word that reaches the right person can make a real difference.

If you can't donate, please don't hesitate to share.

Your click could save a mother's life and grant her son one wish for the new year: to see her smile again.

Help them… even with a little.

Time is running out, but goodness still lives in your hearts. 🤍

This is my mother… my whole life, my last refuge.I see her suffering before my eyes, and I am helpless, with nothing left but to plead with you.

And tomorrow… December 28, 2023, marks the anniversary of my older brother's martyrdom.My brother is gone, leaving behind a void, a pain, and my mother, who continues to fight both illness and grief.A mother who lost her son, now silently battling cancer.

On a day like this, when losses weigh heavily on my heart, I beg you…Don't leave my mother to fight alone.Your donation, no matter how small, could save her life.

Donte-Vetted

The image you see isn't just a text message… it's a direct death threat. A message sent by the occupation without fear, without shame, as if a human life is nothing more than a sentence that can be ended with a word. My friend isn't living a normal life… he lives between fear and threats, between the voice of death that haunts him and his inner voice that tries to stay strong for the sake of his sick mother.Imagine having your life threatened, and at the same time trying to save your mother who needs medicine and treatment to live another day. This isn't “news from Gaza” or “a story from the Middle East”… this is a human being.A human being like you and me. A human being who is supposed to dream, not count how much time he has left. To my friends everywhere in the world… If you believe in humanity, in compassion, and in every human being's right to live without fear—please stand with him.Support him, share his message, help him, even with just a word. Because silence in the face of injustice is not neutrality… it allows injustice to grow. My friend today is only asking that you save his mother, and give him the feeling that he is not alone in this cruel world. Whoever can help, in any way… now is the time.

It's all woven on our 8-shaft loom, designed and woven to represent the patterns of wood grain. There are four colors in the warp and one in the weft. The warp has an echo threading over eight shafts as described in Weaving with Echo and Iris by Marian Stubenitsky. All of the yarn is 8/2 cotton sett at 24 epi on the loom. There is no repetition in the treadling pattern, which helps create that dynamic and natural look.

Isn't she brilliant?! It looks JUST like wood, and if you're a weaver, you know how difficult it can be to get an organic look without a jacquard loom.

Detail pics below:

crybaby

floor length dress, low back, mock collar and high slit.

cotton silk yarn, swarovski pendants, maria enamel pendant, hook + eye closure