Who the hell is sambo, and why was sambo created?  Well, wouldn't you know it, it all began with art.  The Peruvian artist, Cristobal Lozano, painted a work between 1771 and 1776 entitled Negro con Mulata produce Zambo.  Translation:  a Black man with a mulatto woman makes a zambo.  Zambo is the Spanish word in Latin America for a person of South American negro, with mixed European and native descent.  The term "zambo" could have very well been derived from the Congolese word nzambu, which means "monkey."  The Latin American Spanish derivative would pronounce the word as "sambo."   

If the translation of the painting by Lozano is accurate--how and why did it become a derogatory term?  And why exaggerate with big or bugged-out eyes, broad noses, and big lips?  Unless pursuant to the sinister and diabolical intent of maintaining and furthering the slave industrial complex and physical and psychological oppression of the same, it was necessary to find as many ways as possible to demean and degrade the image and existence of Black people.  

The sambo image, which began as art, was the genesis and symbology or iconography of "blackface."

Fela Anikulapo Kuti said, "Music must awaken people to do their duty as citizens and act." Further, he said, "With my music, I create change . . . I am using my music as a weapon." Those words, for me, are truly inspiring and motivating to drop the mic right now and create!  There is no question that songs like Zombie; I.T.T. (International Thief Thief); Sorrow, Blood and Tears; and Water Get No Enemy, and many others were not only political but weaponized.  Not only the lyrics of these songs but the rhythm and pulse of Fela's Afrobeat, sax solos and the cadence with which Fela delivered the lyrics raised the vibration, being deliberate and intentional.  Fela's music stands out as defining music as a weapon.  

And in this episode, I will not only talk about my political art but also highlight the potent  and impactful works of Faith Ringgold and Elizabeth Catlett.  This episode leaves no doubt about the entanglement of politics and art—Art history, check.  Contemporary art, check.  Political art, absolutely.  Weaponized art, no question.

Should artists deliberately and intentionally politicize their art or create work that responds to or addresses political concerns and issues? What if politicians or wealthy patrons commission the art? In Part 1, I discuss how politicians and wealthy patrons weaponized art for power and control.