Untitled photographed mixed-media painting by Jaanika Talts. (All rights reserved by the artist) One need not, after all, call oneself an artist in order to embrace either the beauty that roses give to the world or the genius that one’s love does. (Aberjhani) I. ENCOUNTER WITH BEAUTY When viewing a recent untitled painting by Dublin artist Jaanika Talts a strange thought came to me. It was this: Between the elegant reach of an artist’s color-stained fingers toward  her canvas and the haunted explosion of a soldier’s bullet inside his brother’s  chest, somewhere a terrified soul is seeking shelter inside the warmth of a  stranger’s voice, or an infant is squealing at the incomprehensible delight of discovering  it is alive . As I said, it was a strange thought. Talts’ painting  depicts a cluster of multi-colored roses in different stages of blossoming, nestled against the flesh of dark ...

Advocates for civil and human rights march in Washington D.C. (photography by Getty Images) “We must not approach the observance and enforcement of this law in a vengeful spirit. Its purpose is not to punish. Its purpose is not to divide, but to end divisions--divisions which have all lasted too long. Its purpose is national, not regional. Its purpose is to promote a more abiding commitment to freedom, a more constant pursuit of justice, and a deeper respect for human dignity.”–President Lyndon B. Johnson (Remarks upon Signing the Civil Rights Act of 1964) Because so many social and political turning points took place in the United States during the 1960s, the country in recent years has observed a number of important historical milestones and continues to do so in 2014. One such milestone is the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 . The act became a law July 2, 1964, making the official anniversary date July 2, 2014. Awareness of that date is particularly ...

Varieties of angels, like varieties of love, are many. It is therefore not too surprising that the angelic imagery utilized to help celebrate Valentine’s Day tends to range from innocent blushing cherubs to winged beauties swagged out in erotic creations worthy of placement in a Victoria’s Secret catalog. Valentine’s Day itself, like most holidays in the modern era, has been heavily influenced by commercialism that focuses on the appeal of romantic fantasies. The effective marketing of Valentine fantasy movies such as Winter’sTale (with Colin Farrell, Jennifer Connelly, and Jessica Brown Findlay);and the film Endless Love (with Gabriella Wilde and Alex Pettyfer) support that observation. Movies can provide tear-inducing or comically-entertaining representations of love but many agree that its deeper conflicting complexities often seem unfathomable. That is largely because different human hearts often interpret their experiences of love in different ways. ...

“And the syndrome goes on; this is only a poem, wondering when to our senses we will come home.”      ––T.J. Reddy (from A Poem About A Syndrome) Most of the more celebrated names among African-American authors, poets, and artists are known to the world because of their association with specific cultural arts movements. The recently-deceased  Amiri Baraka has been identified as a hero of both the late 1950s Beat Movement and the 1960s and 1970s Black Arts Movement. Poets such as Gwendolyn Brooks and Sterling Brown remain renowned for their link to the Harlem Renaissance. One of the more powerful qualities of such movements is that they often inspire more creative genius than the world takes time to recognize. Or sometimes they produce creative thinkers of a type that “others” tend to fear and consequently attempt to destroy. It is possible both these scenarios may be applied to the poet, visual artist, human rights advocate, and educator k...