Mr. E.T.
Pope.L plans to blend the iconic images of E.T. and Emmett Till in his performance at Haverford in March. Someone in Philly has beaten Pope.L to the punch but chose Mr. T instead!
This t-shirt is arguably way less serious than Pope.L’s concept, but it makes use of the same metaphor: black people are aliens. I really like the way this tshirt image looks: E.T. is not in blackface. He just has the typical Mr. T. accesories: a beard, a mohawk, and a gold chain. This makes me think that E.T. is already in blackface, or that E.T. is already black, and so he needs no extra cosmetic alterations to articulate this. Is this how Pope.L will deliver his piece, channeling Emmett Till through the strange body of E.T.? I guess I’m asking which way the metaphor goes, and if that even makes a difference – is E.T. Emmett Till or is Emmett Till E.T.?
