Ghetto Gardens

Ghetto Gardens Part 2. (2020-2022)

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The on-going Coronavirus pandemic is affecting all the world's nations, but not equally. Where the Global South struggles to manage the virus, working with limited healthcare capacities and poor infrastructure, the Global North has - in many cases - been able to deploy strategies to protect its citizens, while limiting damage to its economies. Nevertheless, even in the Global North, the impact of the virus has not been equal. Poorer communities and ethnic minorities have been disproportionately impacted by the virus. Areas such as Handsworth, Birmingham (UK) which is still seeing rapidly rising numbers of cases, despite tighter restrictions on socialising. 

 

Handsworth, an urban inner-city area has in the past survived gang wars, racial tension and riots. It lives with deep deprivation, being one of the UK's most deprived regions (Ladywood Constituency). The economic challenges Handsworth's residents face have been compounded by the pandemic. Simple tasks such as purchasing groceries, commuting and going for a government-mandated walk have become perilous in its crowded streets. 

 

Such varied and distinct cultural behaviours ‘locked down’ together are prone to clash and create friction, yet they also give way to new types of co-operation as citizens adapt and find new ways to continue their daily routines.

 

During this time, racial injustice has been elevated to national consciousness, due to the work of the Black Lives Matter movement. A large proportion of Handsworth's residents are Black, and, this being paired with the statistic that BAME groups are more ‘at risk’ of Covid-19, has caused agitation felt by many in the community. 

 

The illustrations in this series seek to piece together the sights from a walk in Handsworth and evoke a sense of what daily life feels like during the Covid-19 pandemic.