In collaboration with a legion of committed cultural community activists, organizers and the California Arts Council, the iconic parade and festival brought the community together with joy and unity. The beat of the drum provided joyful positive human connectivity.
Drums are used not only for their musical qualities, but also as a means of communication over great distances. The talking drums of Africa are used to imitate the tone patterns of spoken language.
Throughout Sri Lankan history drums have been used for communication between the state and the community, and Sri Lankan drums have a history stretching back over 2500 years.
The joyful and healthy streets of Crenshaw were a world away just down the road where ICE was field testing their newly minted arsenal of army stuff, spiriting away brown citizens to unknown zip codes. The human separation could not have been more stark.
The healing human vibe of music prevailed through the day offering an antidote to the paralysis of the human spirit threatened by war toys. Thank you to Two Drum Jimmie for keeping the vision and the beat!
