We Will Rise Again by George Rodrigue, 2005
Today is Flag Day. But I am not feeling very rah rah. As I watch the ineffectual boom drift along the Gulf Coast, not a soul in sight (Rachel Maddow is going excellent coverage of this), and the live feed continue to gush, I can’t shake the sense that something is terribly wrong in our country. Why can’t we mobilize forces to stop this? The truth is that “the greatest nation on earth” doesn’t have the resources, money, or technology to tackle this. And it’s scary.
As I was looking for an image to post today, I found this Blue Dog by Louisiana native George Rodrigue. He painted it in September of 2005, just after Katrina, and wrote:
We Will Rise Again shows the American flag covered with water. The blue dog is partly
submerged, and its eyes, normally yellow, are red with a broken heart. Like a ship’s
S.O.S., the red cross on the dog’s chest calls out for help.
Today, Blue Dog and the flag would be submerged in toxic globs and a question mark might be in order at the end of title.
P.S. George’s wife, Wendy, has a terrific blog called Musings of an Artist’s Wife. She recently wrote about the dark period of Blue Dog after Katrina and her husband’s cautious optimism. Click here to read.
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