I watched a little of Wayne LePierre’s 22 March speech at CPAC. As he spoke, I began to wish that this man, the CEO of the NRA, the head of an immensely powerful and rich organization with unparalleled access to our political leaders, had something better to say. I began to wonder what was inside his head. I began to wish there was something better in there.
Then I thought about the pain that 30 parents must feel today. I wondered whether these parents had cleaned their children’s rooms, knowing their children would never come back to them. I thought about the stupid fights that parents and teenagers have always had; fights that these parents would never get to have with their kids again. How long do they wait to wash the clothes that still smell like the baby they put into the world?
Did the two teachers who were shot to death have a wife or a girlfriend? Do these women wake up at night to tell their men about the strange dream in which they died? Does the negative space they leave behind feel like being forever short of breath?
I went to sleep thinking about the Parkland high school kids who are shaking us out of our complacency. I closed my eyes wondering would our law makers be strong enough to do what’s right. I asked myself what I could do.
So I made these pictures, hoping something beautiful will come out of all this.
*cover photo for Washington Post Express by Jim Watson (AFP/Getty Images)
AKIL STEAMSHIP 