Gente De Tu Barrio
Artist: Victor De La Rosa
Year: 2015
Date of Action:
Region: North America
Subject: Political/Economic/Social Opinion, Racial/Ethnic
Medium: Public Art, Public Speech
Confronting Bodies:
Description of Artwork: La Gente De Tu Barrio / The People of Your Neighborhood [The Mission Suite] (italicize) consists of four textile posters portraying local residents by text based on quotes Victor De La Rosa overheard in the Mission or on stories told by the residents (NCAC.org).
One panel "features Mickey “Tiny Loca” Martinez saying in bold letters, “Bitch you’re not from here.” Martinez is surrounded by words and phrases echoing her feelings about the changing Mission: “start up, forced out, moved on, fed up, cleaned up, bussed in, bought off and taken over” (SFGate).
The Incident: Victor De la Rosa, a San Francisco State University art professor, was one of five artists commissioned by the city to depict life in the Mission (SFGate). The transit agency said this week [week of December 7, 2015] it approved the other three panels, but [the panel featuring Mickey "Tiny Loca"] violated its standards (SFGate).
Results of Incident: A compromise that included blurring out the word "bitch" was rejected by BART, with the agency spokesman explaining that the issue was the “overall demeaning tone of the message in that panel.” (NCAC.org)
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