Fool's Freedom

nat rosasco • February 5, 2021

Inspired by the Vagrancy act of 1866, artist, Sharod Farmer created Fool's Freedom (cotton, wood, glue, paint).


From America’s conception, slavery has played an integral role in the swaying on the economy. Through the cotton industry booming from the invention of the cotton gin, the need for slaves increased tenfold. This porous material had been used to create various textiles in the north to be dispersed throughout the US.

However, this soft absorbent material actually bears traumatizing memories for these forced individuals currently residing in this country. Picking cotton was laborious and would normally leave cuts on the hands from removing the cotton from the buds. Slaves would work day and night and were often beaten to remain subservient to their master. Essentially if the slave was free in the mind, they could not be a slave.

It wasn’t until 1863 that it was expected to have the slaves emancipated under Lincoln’s order. Eventually, it was officially abolished in 1865 and we celebrate this day as a form of progress. Ultimately, in 1866 the Vagrancy Act was passed which constituted that any person who appeared to be unemployed or homeless would be forced into employment.

If so-called vagrants ran away and were recaptured, they would be forced to work for no compensation while wearing balls and chains - more formally known as the Act Providing for the Punishment of Vagrants. The law came shortly after the American Civil War (1861–1865), when hundreds of thousands of African Americans, many of them just freed from slavery, wandered in search of work and displaced family members.

𝘚𝘭𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘥𝘪𝘥𝘯’𝘵 𝘦𝘯𝘥, 𝘪𝘵 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘸𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘣𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘦 - Douglas A. Blackmon


Contact the artist: sharodjr1997@gmail.com

Public Art for Racial Justice Education

August 20, 2025
Public Art for Racial education is an organization that believes that public art has an important role in racial justice awareness. They commission and engage artists to create public art in and for each of their communities. Through public art and accompanying public programs, PARJE believes we can better understand our true history, and it can help us to appreciate the rich diversity of our human family and challenge us to be engaged in contemporary racial justice issues.

Nicole M Brewer

August 20, 2025
Nicole M Brewer is a passionate advocate for anti-racist theatre. She has spent the last fourteen years refining and practicing an inclusive method of theatre training and practices which she calls Conscientious Theatre Training (CTT). She has authored four articles about the need for the theatre industry to shift from racist and oppressive models to anti-racist and anti-oppressive.

U.S. Department of Arts and Culture

August 20, 2025
The U.S. Department of Arts and Culture is building a world where every cultural organizer feels connected to and recognizes their critical role in a vibrant movement for liberatory change. The Art & Well-Being: Toward A Culture of Health is a free guide for artists who place their gifts at the service of healing, working for both individual and collective well-being, recognizing social justice as the foundation of a culture of health.

Creating La CASA – A Beacon for Affordable Housing, Education, and the Arts in Boston

May 12, 2025
La CASA (Center for Arts, Self-determination, and Activism) is a transformative $33 million initiative by Inquilinos Boricuas en Acción (IBA) in Boston's South End.This four-story facility will consolidate IBA's diverse programs—including affordable housing, education, financial empowerment, and arts—under one roof, enhancing access and community outreach.Supported by a $20 million New Markets Tax Credits allocation and $12 million in tax-exempt bond financing led by TD Bank, La CASA exemplifies a strategic partnership aimed at fostering socio-economic mobility.Upon its anticipated completion in 2026, La CASA is projected to serve over 2,500 individuals annually through resident services and youth development, with an additional 5,000 benefiting from its arts programming, reinforcing its role as a beacon for Latino culture and community empowerment in Boston.

ArtsHERE Grant Spotlight: The Welman Project (Fort Worth, Texas)

May 12, 2025
The Welman Project aims to support educators by making the reuse of materials a resource for creativity in the classroom, and to increase arts participation in underserved groups. They serve educators, artists, makers, and families through three main programs: the Educator Resource Program, the Curiosity Shop, and their Creative Reuse Education Program. They are dedicated to using the arts as a space for healing and confronting social injustice.

Art Against Racism

May 30, 2023
Art Against Racism is a virtual arts exhibition which aims to lift up the tremendous array of creative works made in support of the Black Lives Matter movement. In doing so, project organizers hope that the exhibition will serve as an archive of the national artistic response to this historic moment.
Show more