Editor's Letter December 21, 2025

         Patrice Worthy, Publisher PWorthy Archives       

I try my best to curate my social media feed and limit my engagement on the platforms to as a little as possible, but even with my boundaries in place you can't escape the current political climate. In fact, after reading the article about Chor Boogie's controversial paintings, I realized our current political climate isn't new. Maybe a little more intense, but not new. Chor Boogie observed the divide among Americans more than 10 years ago, and when commissioned expressed his observations on canvas. As I re-read the story, I have to ask myself how did we get so far gone? It's not hard to put the have nots in a constant state of panic  about rent prices, food prices, and safety. Then, in a society that awards materialism, make people afraid they won't be able to afford an Apple Watch or the new Jordans, flex on Instagram, or feel superior to others and the result is everyone looking out for themselves exacerbating the problem. 

When I met Chor Boogie in 2014 he was knee deep in the domino effect of his work. Having debuted his pieces during the 2102 Democratic National Convention, he was a voice that captured the emotions of American voters. In a nation divided  by politics, fear, and misinformation the very mechanisms that could be used to alleviate the situation - social media and traditional media - are only making things worse. 

I grew up in a time when getting a job wasn't so hard, it wasn't getting harder, but it wasn't as difficult as it is now to take care of yourself. In college I lived in a two bedroom apartment that was $495 a month in my small college town. I had big dreams, that I saw vanish under the weight of the 2008 financial crisis. In a city with no family or real friends I had to keep up with rent that was $795 a month for a one bedroom, then having to pay more than $1000 a month just to live somewhere safe. Life changed quickly for millennials and all we could do was keep up. I'm just now feeling the anger and resentment that others have felt for years, and in my opinion, that has led to the currently racially charged climate. 

My regret is that instead of demanding a more equitable United States, we just tried to keep up. Many of use believed that lie that we could build the lives of our dreams without community. We believed that as prices and rents soared, wages would keep up. Even worse, we applauded those who seemingly succeeded as things became more unjust, and never stopped to think about....anything. We just kept going because we had to survive. Now as people dream of leaving the U.S., to live the American dream, I have to ask myself are we too far gone? Some days it feels like it, and others I have hope, but more times than not I'm filled with doubt about the future for people who look like me. As I quietly watch events unfold I am grateful for artists like Chor Boogie. I'm happy artists are rising up while they still have the freedom to capture the zeitgeist of America. When we our silent about injustice, we are choosing our future. .  

I hope you enjoy the content this week. 

Patrice Worthy

Publisher, PWorthy Archives