DJC Donor Rockstars 2
Today is DJC’s Donor Rockstar Day! We appreciate EVERY SINGLE LAST ONE of our donors. Not only people who give money, but also give time volunteering, and give access to their information and resources. You're all priceless. I want to highlight a couple donors who have participated in building us to this point. Thank you all 💯
This month we’re highlighting Author/Professor Dr. Nicole Fleetwood & Activist/Philanthropist Will Rothschild.
BL Shirelle, Co-Executive Director
Dr. Nicole Fleetwood
BL: First of all I want to say thank you for all your support. You’ve been a supporter for a long time, so you had to have some foresight to know it was something you wanted to align with…
Nicole: I’m very happy to support DJC! My first encounter seeds were planted in 2017 Kwabena Slaughter introduced me to Maxwell Melvins and Fury Young and we collaborated on a project. We kept in contact over time, then Fury introduced me to Tameca Cole and I began working with her. It’s all been very organic. I like organic relationships.
BL: Your book, ”Marking Time: Art in the Age of Mass Incarceration” has been so impactful in the culture. What is an accomplished author like yourself reading these days?
We first met Nicole when she interviewed Maxwell Melvins at a Met Breuer panel in 2017.
Nicole has been a champion for many prison-impacted visual artists, such as our longtime collaborator Tameca Cole.
Nicole: A book called The Residue Years by Mitchell Jackson. Mitchell continues to do the work in this space as well. His book is phenomenal. It’s an autobiographical novel paralleling the lives of a mother who is a recovering addict, and a son who is involved in drug trafficking in the crack era. I highly recommend it. I’m also reading Wintering: The Power of Rest and Retreat in DIfficult Times' by Katherine May. It’s about the need to go dormant, slow down and take a pause. That's important to our process as humans.
BL: Any upcoming projects from you to look forward to?
Nicole: Yes, the Marking Time exhibition is touring and it will be at The National Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati, Ohio from April 22nd through August 7th. I’m extremely excited to be featured here because the Freedom Center is dedicated to the abolition of slavery, so to be in the fight for prison abolition and be featured here is humbling. Also, Ohio is my home state, and I started this fight here visiting my incarcerated family members so it all feels very full circle.
Will Rothschild
BL: What made you want to support DJC?
Will: I have a weirdly optimistic view of the world, not for myself — but I choose to believe with all the information available it’s truly a duty of individuals in society to participate in repairing broken systems. My grandfather died six years ago and left money in this foundation. It's to be used for helping people who need it.
I always thought mass incarceration was fucked up but reading The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander opened my eyes; do we want to punish or rehabilitate? We fall on the side of punishment too much.
BL: The New Jim Crow has truly been a cultural reset in America. It has inspired so much great work, including Die Jim Crow.
Will: Yes, the initial push [from Will’s foundation] was from a race and a cruel condition perspective, We were focused on policy before prison, restorative justice, things like that. But we also need to focus on quality of life inside. Giving incarcerated folks something more productive to do while they’re doing their time. That’s why I support Die Jim Crow.
BL: What are some things you like to do in your spare time?
Will: Well, I like to cook. My area of expertise is Chinese. I make great double cooked pork, right now this is the season for stews so I’ve been making a lot of stews lately. I also enjoy doing martial arts. It’s fun, scary, and challenging. I use it as a way to engage my body more than a self defense type of objective, but I imagine if I needed to defend myself I should be able to with my training.
BL: What's the last book you read?
Will: The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky. I’m now reading an easy read detective book to decompress a bit.
BL: What’s your favorite project from the DJC catalog?
Will: Well, I’ve listened to some of your stuff. I think it’s great. But the first full project I listened to is Tlaxihuiqui. It was challenging to listen to which made it that much more powerful. Listening to the pain is what made it challenging for me, but I love the melding of styles. People try to mix hip hop, grassroots, and different genres together, but at times it feels forced. On this album it’s done right!
BL: Well thank you for all the support you have given us. I really appreciate you helping us build the organization. Your contributions have been vital.
Will: We’re proud to be sponsoring you guys, it's a privilege to be able to support. I'm thankful for what you guys do. I grew up in a wealthy family with all my needs met and a lot of privilege. I couldn’t imagine some of the circumstances that have led people to make some of the choices they may have made. So I just want to use my privileged position in life to actually change some things for the better.
