The United States of Locko: A Letter to America

The United States of Locko: A Letter to America examines America’s inverted democracy, where freedom for Black Americans exists under the constant threat of oppression. First debuted in LOCKOLAND: Vienna, the flag was shown despite warnings that displaying such language could result in arrest. Its inclusion in LOCKOLAND: Paris feels especially fitting, given Paris’s historic role as a gathering place for Black artistic expression. Inscribed on the flag is the phrase “can you imagine yourself as strange fruit,” a provocation meant to encourage cross-racial critical reflection. The line “perhaps the negros want to grow” references W. H. Auden’s “perhaps the tulips want to grow” from If I Could Tell You. I substitute negro for tulip to emphasize that, like a flower, the Black American cannot help what they are or where they live—they exist within a garden, moving through life day by day. Through this metaphor, the work plants the idea that perhaps the Black American simply wants what everyone else in America wants: to live, to grow, to feel normal, without segregation or the burden of daily oppression. Ultimately, the piece reflects Locko’s meditation on the constant negotiations, performances, and challenges of being Black in America.