Posts published in 2020
By Leslie Lee —One of my biggest challenges as the founder and executive director of The Soul Box Project is how to sufficiently thank everyone involved. I have said “thank you” so many times I fear for its sincerity, even though my heart is in every word. An endeavor like The Soul Box Project did not grow from a hastily published website in 2017 to a thriving national act of ARTivism in 2020 without our [...]
By Nanci Tangeman —You always learn something new at a Soul Box-making session – even the virtual ones! In September Soul Box-makers from Alaska, Massachusetts, Oregon, Washington and California met via Zoom to share their top Soul Box tips: Recycle! Use old magazine pages for the bottoms – nobody will see them. Don’t throw away flimsy paper! Fold two sheets together and leave them together. The "men's tie" stage of folding Paint plain paper with watercolors [...]
By Nanci Tangeman – There are so many reasons to look away from the gunfire epidemic right now. A global pandemic. Critical movement against systemic racism. The election season. Each could be a reason to focus our energy elsewhere, yet each is a reason why our work to end gunfire deaths and injuries remains vital. That's why we've kept working. Diligently. Social distancing moved many of our operations into backyards, basements, living rooms [...]
By Ellen Stearns —Lives Irrevocably Torn Apart by Gunfire. Every Soul Box holds space for a person killed or injured by gunfire. It doesn’t matter how or why a person was shot. What matters is a life was irrevocably torn apart by gunfire and each person represented in our exhibits is unique. We treat each and every story with care, compassion and respect, regardless of race, cultural background, gender identity, sexual orientation, religious [...]
[from Newsletter of June 6, 2020] A Visual Representation By Leslie Lee The Soul Box Project is designed to be a wake-up call – a visual representation of our nation’s never-ending gunfire epidemic where: --Black Americans are ten times more likely than white Americans to die in a gun homicide. --Guns take the lives of 14 times more black children and teens than those who are white. --Unarmed black civilians are nearly five [...]
By Pastor Lesley Abrams — In October of 2017, I was scheduled to officiate at our nephew’s wedding. It was going to be a particularly joyous occasion, as the entire family had not been together for quite some time. Before we arrived for the big event, I received a call from the bride-to-be. The bridal party line-up had changed because her cousin, Chrissy, would no longer be able to serve as the maid of [...]
By Leslie Lee — As I sit in a sunny window “sheltering in” it's hard for me to imagine the trials people all over the world are enduring as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. I want to better understand and help in some way. I sometimes think there’s nothing I can do. But that’s not true. Isn't The Soul Box Project uniquely positioned to offer an opportunity for healing and empowerment even when [...]
By Nanci Tangeman — Look closely at The Soul Box Project logo. Have you noticed the blood-red bullet hole inside the first “o”? Or the second “o” shaped like a box, with a heart inside? Did you realize that the handwritten style of the typeface reflects the grassroots community that makes up The Soul Box Project? Each element of the logo is a subtle reminder about the mission of our Project. Just days after [...]