I don’t fuck with kids.
but If you feel alone, I’ll be Your friend.
Let’s have a chat.
Why does history repeat itself?
Because we don’t teach children different APPROACHES.
A whimsical twist on the idea of a “puppet state”, I Don't Fuck with Kids is a four-part video series inspired by the educational and often vital passing down of knowledge to children through public broadcast television; teaching them about the world that they live in. This series is a fun, parallel prelude to what I hope to accomplish with my thesis work—embracing marginalization and reclaiming agency in our society.
Children are like sponges, they absorb whatever information they see or hear, and they absorb the energy that they are surrounded by. In IDFWK, I am combating my disdain with children by attempting to educate a fictional audience of kids. The kids within this audience are children of color, future queer youths, and those exiled by society from a young age due to handicap or religious upbringing. In these short, yet poignant puppet shows, I will illustrate the various puppets that exist within our broken society.
Inspired by the teaching of Iyanla Vanzant and the true tactics of the Black Panther Party, I am targeting children to harness their curiosity for the world and to attempt to correctly educate them on how to treat others with the kindness and equal treatment they deserve. Vanzant often mediates and analyzes people in crisis as if they were children, speaking to their past selves in effort to pinpoint moments of miseducation. While I am talking to children hypothetically, I am talking to anyone that needs to hear it. Our society is in crisis; and this series is an effort to reeducate those who have been told that iniquity is acceptable. I believe that this work is a perfect exercise in illustrating the issues of marginalized individuals as well as furthering my colorful, weird, yet conceptually driven art practice.
Episode 1:
How To Deal With The Police
In the first of four shows, we are introduced to Officer W. Oinky, and a frank conversation about how children of color have to interact with police officers. A relevant conversation for all people of color of all ages, this conversation is meant to shed light on the inequity in police treatment and assumed guilt. However, the conversation remains digestible and light-hearted, while focused on education.
Episode 2:
Religion
We got a budget! Thanks to viewers like you!
A departure from the first installment, this episode offers a healthy introduction to the world’s four biggest religions. Focused on the idea of tolerance and symbiosis, viewers are shown what the world would look like if we stopped telling people what to believe in: rainbows and sunshine.
Episode 3:
Gender & Love
Our third episode takes a brief deep dive into the expansive and claustrophobic void that is gender performance. With the help of three terry-cloth friends, LGBTQ+ issues are discussed and presented in a manner that is digestible for kids of all backgrounds. Again, the notions of acceptance and tolerance remain king as we explain the gender binaries, trans visibility, and queer love all within six minutes.