It’s a question every person of color, Black people, has asked repeatedly since January 6, 2021. We joke about it as well, especially when we see pictures of militias, made up mostly of white men, proudly holding AR-15s on government property. Their smug, privileged smiles say it all, “We’re white. Nothing’s going to happen.”
As Black people, we respond, “Yeah, you’re right.” If it had been a group of Black men doing the same thing, they would have been quickly labeled as “rioters,” “BLM,” or “Antifa.” Don’t argue. Deep down you know it’s true. If Black men had charged the Capitol Building last January 6, they would have been shot on sight.
Racist social media accounts would have posted images from the 1972 film, Conquest of the Planet of the Apes. Right-wing mouthpieces Candace Owens and Larry Elder would have been tweeting nonstop, politicizing that the Black men shot deserved it as they were misled by the Democratic party.
Yeah, that’s what would have happened if they were Black. And probably more.
To mark the one-year anniversary of the U.S. Capitol insurrection, fueled mostly by the lies the former President spread about the 2020 election, Goodby, Silverstein & Partners has created a bold campaign for the Courageous Conversation Global Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to racial equality and social justice, to explore the question:
What if the insurrectionists were Black?
“We partnered with artists to create re-imagined RIP shirts to highlight the actions of the Jan. 6 insurrectionists and how Black people would likely not have received the same treatment,” says a somber statement on the CCGF site.
The agency created a limited line of air-brush-style memorial shirts designed by artists Timothy Bluitt Jr. and Casandra Burrell. The shirts are inspired by memorial T-shirts popular in the Black community with messages like “In Loving Memory” or “Rest in Peace.”
We see Black versions of the most famous of rioters, including the Qanon Shaman. Under, are statistics pointing out bias within the American justice system are emblazoned on the back.
“Black people are 5 times more likely than white people to be imprisoned,” one shirt reads. Another says, “One-third of unarmed people killed by police are Black.” Take a look below:
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For San Francisco-based GS&P, the bold messaging was all about driving awareness of Black injustice and the privileged treatment of the January 6th insurrectionists
“Hopefully, people don’t see it as advertising or marketing,” Anthony O’Neill, GS&P creative director, told Campaign US. “It’s more tapping into what’s already happened. This is our opportunity to protest the injustice that goes on in America.”
The campaign will also be featured on TikTok with an #IfTheyWereBlackChallenge and on Twitter.
Colin Costello is the West Coast Editor of Reel 360. Contact him at colin@reel360.com or follow him on Twitter at @colinthewriter1
