"The Bridges Ruby Crossed"
Far too often the media shows images of black people who have died fighting for justice. I wanted to honor the living ones as well through my art. Who was Ruby Bridges? Ruby Nell Bridges Hall (born September 8, 1954) is an American civil rights activist. She was the first African-American child to desegregate the all-white William Frantz Elementary School in Louisiana during the New Orleans school desegregation crisis on 14 November 1960 at the young age of 6 years old. To think she’s only 3 years older than my dad... she’s truly living black history and proves that heroes come in all shapes and sizes.
Jeffery Beckham Jr. is an acrylic artist and community leader who serves as Interim CEO for Chicago Scholars, a non-profit that helps low-income and first-generation students in Chicago.
"I started painting in December after the untimely passing of a friend. My last conversation with Brian Sleet was about what outlets I had to manage stress if I decided to run for office in the future. He asked me what I liked to do other than basketball (because at my age, my knees can’t take that every day). I said, “when I was in high school, I loved to draw and paint.” He said very simply, “well, paint.” We’d discussed the fact that both of us had worked quite a bit, and neither one of us had taken a real vacation (where we left a laptop at home) in a long time. His words resonated with me hours after I found out about his death, so I went in my closet and got out a canvas and some paint I’d bought a year prior, and I started painting. Since then, I’ve probably painted and sold over 60 original pieces, and I have shipped over 300 prints to 4 continents and nine countries since April. It has become my most significant outlet and has brought me immense peace.
Whatever the thing is that brings you peace & harmony, please do it! Being mindful of your mental and spiritual health is as critical as your physical well being. So I encourage you to find your thing & thank you, Brian, for helping me unlock mine."