Last week, New York's finest spent their time courageously protecting the public by painting over a mural inspired by FELA! on Broadway. The mural depicted the coffins that Fela and his wives carry on stage with epitaph names such as Sean Bell, Rodney King, Trayvon Martin, and institutions and global corporations such as the Environmental Protection Agency, Halliburton, and Monsanto - as a way of remembering who the real victims and culprits of corruption and violence are. Inspired by the show, artist Alan Kets painted the image of the coffins on a wall in Inwood- with permission from the local grocery who owns it - and added to the tombstone list the NYPD as a way of reacting to the recent spate of killings of innocent people at the hands of the police force. The NYPD swiftly sent over two of eight on-duty officers from the 34th Precinct to paint the wall black. Locals, quoted in the full article here, questioned the use of resources (certainly there are more urgent needs, no?). And, of course, it's probably illegal to paint over private property. Fela's spirit certainly lives on - and so do his enemies: corruption, the abuse of power, and mindless tyranny.
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