RISE - BlackOut

RISE. This special edition crown combines headlines and historical moments in Black History into a sculptural homage to a relentless journey. Black history hasn't been pretty, but the journey tells a story of resilience and mental toughness beyond any imaginable condition. From the depths of the Dungeon the people will "Rise" up rings true by every measure in this instance. This controversial piece highlights some historical moments in black history without hiding beneath a veil of censorship. We thought long and hard before releasing such a concept piece as we realize that homage can dig up once forgotten and difficult memories. This piece was created simply to celebrate from whence we came with a sense of pride, in order to remind the world what a people so far from their original land are made of, and how those once oppressed will always RISE up.

• Red Black & Green Color Interior Palette - red: the blood that unites all people of Black African ancestry, and shed for liberation; black: black people whose existence as a nation, though not a nation-state, is affirmed by the existence of the flag; and green: the abundant natural wealth of Africa.
• 1863 - The Emancipation Proclamation was a presidential proclamation and executive order issued by President Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863. It purported to change the federal legal status of more than 3 million enslaved people in the designated areas of the South from "slave" to "free", although its immediate effect was less.
• Brown V Board of Education -1954 In a unanimous opinion, the Supreme Court in Brown v. Board of Education overturns Plessy and declares that separate schools are "inherently unequal." The Court delays deciding on how to implement the decision and asks for another round of arguments. Many people protested by bearing signs that simply stated keep our schools white.
• On December 1, 1955 Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a bus in Montgomery, AL and sparked the American Civil Rights movement of the 20th century.