Here's What Happened When a Artist Played Dead by a Philly Landmark.

The news: Philadelphia may be the City of Brotherly Love — but as these pictures show, we could all use a little more of that in our lives. Last Saturday, a group of artists decided to stage a silent protest in front of the LOVE statue, an iconic Philly landmark. The group seized on what was perhaps the most gruesome detail from Michael Brown's shooting death in Missouri: the fact that his body was left uncovered on the street in broad daylight for hours. So Keith Wallace, an MFA acting student at the University of California and Philadelphia native, decided to pose as a dead body. Covered with blood, bullet holes and even police caution tape, Wallace lied down and stayed absolutely still for an hour — right in front of one of the busiest tourist attractions in the city. Source: Facebook "It was something that's been brewing for a while in my mind," Wallace told Think Progress. "You realize, in these cases, there's a disproportionate amount of black men on the receiving end of this police brutality. And as a young black men, it strikes a different chord for me — it hits a little closer to home." And what he experienced was shocking. While some people realized that the display was an act of protest and were moved by it, others were occupied by a more immediate concern: getting their photo-op.

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I know the artist was trying to make a racial point but I didn't see that in this exhibit. What I saw was a populace completely desensitized by violence that it was just another day. I saw a generation of GTA players completely numb to fact and fiction. I saw an American population dumbed down to the point that thinking it would be a cool FB post to take a picture by a dead body. The one guy who didn't know it was staged, who wasn't feeling it was peer pressured into posing for an pic with his gung ho friends.

What it presented was the New America.

a reply to: ArchPlayer

Sure, so ruin a place that all people who come to Philly love to get a picture in front of. I"m from Philly and that's an important and very well appreciated piece of art, the LOVE Statue, not the idiot blocking it. Tourists and locals alike have every right to get a picture in front of that statue without some idiot blocking it or disrupting it.

Go lay on Penns Landing if you want to, there's more than enough room there. Better yet, go lay on South St, he wouldn't even be noticed.

If he wanted a bunch of people to freak out and call out the national guard he should have dressed up like a nativity scene on public property.

originally posted by: Metallicus
If he wanted a bunch of people to freak out and call out the national guard he should have dressed up like a nativity scene on public property.

You forgot holding a cross in one hand while holding a flag in the other.

a reply to: ArchPlayer

What I saw was a horrible attempt to make it seem like white people don't care..... but really everyone knew it was fake and some artistic attempt to protest for Michael Brown and they didn't let the protest stop from getting their pictures. It's silly to think people actually thought this was real.

Honestly, it's kinda obvious he's not dead. Real corpses... look different.

People like this artist make me sick. It's race baiting and intentionally trying to stoke the flames.

Though there are some good people. I have lost hope and respect for most. This culture here is damaged by what it's gov does. This astounds me considering i am a non believer in gods. One would think that these god loving people would know how to treat fellow humans. Not to mention not getting joy off the suffering of others. It is just sick. a reply to: ArchPlayer

I would go as far as race baiting. It's no different or more antagonizing than the Old Glory Pic. Old Glory


But he is definitely making a statement about the treatment of blacks in Philly. Before you guys chew my head off I'm playing devil's advocate here. It is no secret that Philly has had its fair share of issues with their urban black population. The MOVE Organization and the Philly PD/FD has had a turbulent history that led to the burning of Osage Ave. complex, and shooting anyone fleeing the burning building. That is not including the mess they went through with Rizzo back in the 1970s and the bulldozing of their original house before they became "nusiances". Philly has also had some riots back back in the day as well. Then there was Gary D. Heinick holding the 4 black teens captive, forcing them to have sex, and then killing two of them and forcing the other 2 to eat them. All under the premise of blind eye neighbors. All under the girls being missing and the cops not really bothering to find out about their kidnappings.

Could he have made a better choice of locale, well, it depends on who his target demographic is. He wanted it around a certain gentrified demographic and obviously tourists and he got it. I doubt the same message would have come across in a black hood noted for shootings.

originally posted by: ArchPlayer
I would go as far as race baiting. It's no different or more antagonizing than the Old Glory Pic. Old Glory


But he is definitely making a statement about the treatment of blacks in Philly. Before you guys chew my head off I'm playing devil's advocate here. It is no secret that Philly has had its fair share of issues with their urban black population. The MOVE Organization and the Philly PD/FD has had a turbulent history that led to the burning of Osage Ave. complex, and shooting anyone fleeing the burning building. That is not including the mess they went through with Rizzo back in the 1970s and the bulldozing of their original house before they became "nusiances". Philly has also had some riots back back in the day as well. Then there was Gary D. Heinick holding the 4 black teens captive, forcing them to have sex, and then killing two of them and forcing the other 2 to eat them. All under the premise of blind eye neighbors. All under the girls being missing and the cops not really bothering to find out about their kidnappings.

Could he have made a better choice of locale, well, it depends on who his target demographic is. He wanted it around a certain gentrified demographic and obviously tourists and he got it. I doubt the same message would have come across in a black hood noted for shootings.

Are you from Philly?

Edit to add: I really don't care where you're from, but you're talking about my city as if you know a whole lot about it. I'm from Philly, OK. If you want to bring up crimes across races, you're going to lose that battle as far as how the blacks are treated in Philly.

Whites can't walk through Chester, Camden or West Philly at night without almost 100% chance of either being threatened or stuck up. Anyone from Philly will tell you that.

Whites can go down Penns Landing, Olde City, South St (Most times), Delaware Ave. and South Philly. I have a weeks worth up papers upstairs with black on white crime that never makes the national news, I see it every damned day where I live. I'm not justifying white on black crime, or any race on race crime, but don't act like blacks are innocent and being dealt an unfair hand in Philly.

And, about your gentrified demographic idea, which I think you're talking about being around more whites, well, hate to tell you, if you go to love park and stand there for the day, you'll see more blacks than whites throughout the day. So, he picked the wrong spot if that was his idea. He wanted it in front of that LOVE statue because that's a landmark, not because of demographic. If it was demographic, he should have tried that in South Philly but being from Philly, he knew that would be a bad idea because the Italians wouldn't tolerate it.

What the hell are people expecting a cop to do when attacked?

Better training, cameras on cops, more transparency and for the love of god make cops pay for their crimes as a regular citizen!!!!!!!!

"Who watches the watchmen?"

originally posted by: Metallicus
If he wanted a bunch of people to freak out and call out the national guard he should have dressed up like a nativity scene on public property.

If I could give "applauses" you'd get at least one for that fat kernel of truth...

originally posted by: OptimusCrime
a reply to: ArchPlayer

Sure, so ruin a place that all people who come to Philly love to get a picture in front of. I"m from Philly and that's an important and very well appreciated piece of art, the LOVE Statue, not the idiot blocking it. Tourists and locals alike have every right to get a picture in front of that statue without some idiot blocking it or disrupting it.

Go lay on Penns Landing if you want to, there's more than enough room there. Better yet, go lay on South St, he wouldn't even be noticed.

ya and put 2 more in him for the pic.

he's lucky he didn't move.

something is in the water.

a reply to: ArchPlayer

When fatally shot, do black people reach out for their baseball-cap as some kind of aid in the afterlife, like Vikings and their swords?

Tourists probably saw the crackhead breathing or talking with his homeboys before trying to make his "artistic" point.

Someone should've ice bucketed the nuisance to add to his art.

a reply to: ArchPlayer
What does playing GTA(a video game) have to do with reality. Video games are fantasy.


This is "art"??? This is just race baiters trying to make it seem that everybody is just innocent little kids who get killed by cops for no reason. Blame white men!!!! The message was lost on stupidity and inaccurate assumptions. sorry. That's just where I stand on displays such as this. Lets be real and talk about what's REALLY going down in cities with a large black populace. It's happening in a city near me(Huntington WV) and now Dog The Bounty Hunter is coming here to try and help because the mayor doesn't know what else to do!!! He doesn't understand why the city has crumbled and fell to a high crime lawless place. Lets talk about what's real.

a reply to: ArchPlayer

I think the guy standing there with the "Call us by our names" sign" was a give away - the whole scene was obviously staged, and no one thought "Huh, a dead black kid; hope he doesn't ruin my photo."

Thing is, while the "artist" carried his own baggage, the worst commissioner of race-baiting was, a bit ironically, the Asian author who fabricated, uh, "wrote" the story.

You have to wonder, what reaction did they want? What reaction would have moved them to say "Oh, this restores my faith in humanity?" More to the point, what, exactly, would have moved the author to write a narrative *other* than one where she repeatedly asserted that white people don't care about dead black men? (and notice her own racism, where every single actor was defined by their race.)

It's a rhetorical question, really - we all know the answer to that - nothing would've changed her conclusion.

While she's at it, perhaps she should've mentioned that, by far, the group most responsible for killing young black men are other black men. And I shouldn't mention that stat in isolation - the biggest killer of white men, of which there numerically more victims of homicide (at least in 2010) than blacks, are other white men.

(Italics mine - while the rate of murder among blacks is far higher than whites, it's clear most people don't realize that in volume, there are more white victims of homicide than black.)

So, perhaps that demonstration would've carried more weight - and appropriateness - in a black neighborhood.

a reply to: OccamsRazor04

Yep, plus he's trying to cash in on the whole race scam. He's just a no body trying to get his fifteen minutes of fame. His "artistry" isn't good enough, so he's playing on his race.

originally posted by: Fylgje
a reply to: ArchPlayer
What does playing GTA(a video game) have to do with reality. Video games are fantasy.


This is "art"??? This is just race baiters trying to make it seem that everybody is just innocent little kids who get killed by cops for no reason. Blame white men!!!! The message was lost on stupidity and inaccurate assumptions. sorry. That's just where I stand on displays such as this. Lets be real and talk about what's REALLY going down in cities with a large black populace. It's happening in a city near me(Huntington WV) and now Dog The Bounty Hunter is coming here to try and help because the mayor doesn't know what else to do!!! He doesn't understand why the city has crumbled and fell to a high crime lawless place. Lets talk about what's real.

I'm going to add to what you're saying as I live in Philly. Here are some facts:

and OP, this is for you, I'm going to play devils advocate here. I'd love to hear your response.

My grandparents used to live in Darby, Pa and would go to Chester, Pa at night for dancing and drinks with friends back in the 50's before those areas became predominately black. I hate to say it, but since the blacks moved in, both of those towns are torn to pieces with trash all over the streets and beautiful Victorian houses, and most newer houses, are destroyed with wood over the windows. A beautiful cemetery in Darby has gang signs and graffiti on headstones with some kicked over and the crime rates are through the roof.

It does not cost money to keep your town and cities clean and nice. It doesn't cost money to treat others with respect.

Not but a few years ago a white Widener University student was walking a bit off campus and was robbed and murdered for the less than $10 is in pocket by a black and left for dead on the sidewalk. You didn't hear that make national news and there were no riots.

Arrest in Widener student's death One suspect is held as police search for the man they think pulled the trigger.

Furthermore, blacks were playing the "knockout game" and knocking old white people out left and right in Philly this past summer. I bet you didn't hear that in the national news and when they were caught, they weren't charged with hate crimes.

Dangerous Knockout Game Hits Philadelphia Transit

Another instance happened at temple where a group of black teens almost killed a white girl over no reason. Hitting her in the face with a brick multiple times.

Temple Student Attacked With Brick Wants to Return to Classes

These are just a few of the crimes committed against whites that happen in Philadelphia and the surrounding suburbs every day. I could post about a few hundred more but I think I've proved my point. It's getting to the point where I'm seriously considering get my L2C because I don't want to end up a victim, and that's becoming the mentality in and around this area.

The crimes against whites are so brutal and they're thought out, these are not just occasions where a black had to defend themselves and killed a white person. They're planned attacks. They never make the national news and when the news speaks of the crimes, if the culprit is black, they never say it, but when the culprit is white and does a crime against a black it's always "A white male has assaulted 2 black males . . blah blah blah"

Not one of these instances did any white burn down a store, rob anyone or cause a mass riot and destroy their own towns.

This gentleman in your OP is doing nothing but dividing the races and he is race baiting. I don't care what you say or how you want to spin it. The crimes against whites are just as bad, even worse, but they never make the news. So quit it with your idea that blacks are the victims in all this.

That's not art. It's vandalism.