Created during the 2020 uprisings, "Opportunity & Oppression" repurposes state artifacts originally designed to divide and control public spaces. The symbolic colors of the American flag are reimagined: red represents bloodshed, blue signifies the police state, and white remains an emblem of whiteness. I incorporated archived newspapers dated September 11, 2001; October 2019; and March–June 2020, chronicling moments of profound grief and struggle for New York City's residents and long-term survivors. Titled "Opportunity & Oppression," the name plays with ironic messaging—mocking the state's exploitation of working-class, BIPOC, immigrant, and low-income communities. While dismissing public outcry, the state paradoxically benefits from our physical and creative labor to bolster a pseudo-progressive image.
