“Subliminal” by Mikayla J (SY ‘23)

Subliminal was made because I really like those mini-libraries hidden in bookcases, but also because I realize that every time you see pictures of libraries or piles of books or pictures of intellectuals the only titles present are white American/European. You only see other titles/authors when there’s some sort of theme or there’s a person of a different race as the focus; I wanted to focus on Black authors without it being explicitly civil rights/struggle/pointed-race-statement related. Let the suggestion of Black excellence be as subliminal and natural as the big moments and events.

“More Than That” – Mikayla J (SY ‘23)

More Than That is a spin-off of a strip I’ve been toying with for a long time, and the caption reads “And to think, you almost convinced me that my Black was nothing but the chains that brought it here.” In school, I was taught to believe that Black history–particularly the American part of the Black community–is nothing but slavery and civil rights. We are so much more than slavery, and definitely more than civil rights legislation. Black history, especially Black American history, is more than pain and struggle. I need us all to remember that.

Mikayla Johnson | mikayla.johnson@yale.edu