INTRO (WEEK 1) - Walks (or How to Walk in Your Own Shoes)

 

Intro | Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4

 

You need room for this.




Walk as yourself, to fill the current space—explore every corner of the space, to take up space. Change you pace and rhythm – speed up, slow down.

Then, walk as you would walk in different settings, like:

1.     Walk as if you were on your street, in your neighborhood.
2.     Walk as if you were in your school, at your job.
3.     Walk as you would in court, as you just walked in court.

Did your walks change? If not, was that a conscious decision? If yes, what were the differences—the slights shifts in tempo, posture, style? How do those subtle shifts carry meaning? Why did your walks change?




Every day is a performance – from the moment we choose what to wear to the way we walk down the street – every decision, every movement, whether conscious or not, carries with it some meaning.




It is important to understand that every gesture is loaded with meaning. Meaning is internalized by each person... we each have our own interpretations and associations of this meaning. But meaning is also placed onto our bodies by other people... it is important to also understand this bigger picture.




Suspicion, for example, is the reason (the meaning) that Laquan McDonald was shot 16 times upon arrival... why Tamir Rice was shot upon arrival, why Jonathan Ferrell was shot upon arrival, why Freddie Gray was pursued, why Walter Scott was shot in the back, why 50 bullets were shot into Sean Bell’s car and why Trayvon Martin was followed.