Five years ago today, on April 19, 2015, a young, unarmed, innocent Black man named Freddie Gray died of injuries sustained in the process of being arrested by six police officers. Exactly one year later, we gathered for a performance called Rise Bmore, honoring Freddie Gray and Baltimore in words and music.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we can't gather today for the fifth annual Rise Bmore event, but — as the city begins to tear down Gilmor Homes, where Gray lived and was violently apprehended — it feels as urgent and necessary as ever to mark the day. In considering what we might offer online, I thought of countless powerful moments created by the Baltimore-based artists and activists who have joined us each year. One of those moments, in particular, is burned into my memory.
Tariq Touré, who took part in our pre-concert conversation on art and activism in 2016, had written a new poem, "April 27", that he hoped to share during the discussion. There was simply too much to say in a little less than an hour, and Tariq didn't get to read his poem, so we decided that he would do so after the opening music (performed by my wife, cellist Lavena Johanson) and words of welcome.
After introducing the show alongside my friend and collaborator Tameka Cage Conley, as well as Pastor Laura James, I handed the mic to Tariq, and stood a few feet behind him with Lavena. I'm not sure whether I can see the experience in my mind's eye so much as I can feel it in my body. Tariq's words, and his performance, filled the literal and figurative space that Rise Bmore was meant to create.
I hope you'll take five minutes today to listen to Tariq read "April 27" — the title refers to the Baltimore Uprising, a wave of protests sparked by Gray's murder — at this link. You'll also find a link there to the full text, published in the much-missed Baltimore City Paper. Tariq made this recording yesterday. For those of you who were with us in 2016, you’ll hear the electricity of the premiere transmuted into something else, no less broken but perhaps stronger.
Tariq's refrain, "I looked Freddie in the eye today", refers to the Baltimore street artist Nether’s mural of Freddie Gray at the intersection of Mount and Presbury Streets. A photo of the mural accompanies the audio, so that we can look Freddie in the eye while listening.
Freddie Gray should be alive today, only 30 years old. We hope to gather again in his memory on April 19, 2021. Until then, as Tariq puts it, "Rise is still rise: the spirit can't die."