In Darkness We Stand What are you? Where are you from? The presumed simplicity of these two questions is never more swiftly convoluted than when posed in regard to identity. How we walk out into the world in our minds eye may not be the reflection facing us from the outside perspective. The need to self identify and the requirement to be identified seeds one goal: POWER. Power of Self, or power over others. It is in the pursuit of power that fractured states of being have become the foundation of modern civilization. The invention of racial identity continues to be a most bountiful fruit from the sinister seed of power. A manufactured concept masquerading as science during the colonial exploration period; racism has served as base and justification for a so called “superior” identity, and the subsequent creation of an inferior identity. For those willing to play the divisory instrument of racism, the inferior identity is often equated to blackness. The shimmering golden-bronze and glistening berry shades of The Sun People reduced to crimes and cause for disregard. The amalgamation of Afro- diaspora descendants and indigenous or previously enslaved peoples has created an additional dimension of racism in both a counter culture and dichotomy of self identity. Colorism concepts like blancamiento, misegeny, and the “one drop” theory continue to perpetuate the narrative of race based power grabs by influencing and infecting some of the largest black and brown communities around the globe. Declarations of class, creed, and color have long served as hatchets at the roots of the Universal Tree of Life. Wedging space for sectism, sexism, classism, and racism. Each wound penetrating the growth of society; planting parasitic vines, slowly strangling their host. Call for Art The In Darkness We Stand Exhibition is seeking works from artists of all mediums with ties to the Afro-X communities of Afro-Latino, Afro- Indigenous, and Afro- Caribbean backgrounds. Artworks would speak to a sense of identity as a descendant of both African diaspora and identity within your culture at home; and express how your identity influences your art. The exhibition opening will on display at the Boricua College Bronx Campus Art gallery. Opening reception for the exhibition will be held Thursday July 17th 2025. My Black is Beautiful. And so is yours. In Darkness We Stand.