In this ongoing series of expressionist drawings, Dr. Fahamu Pecou confronts the finality of death by highlighting the enduring legacies of iconic individuals. "Real Negus Dont Die" asserts that not even death can stop us.
"NEGUS," an Amharic word denoting royalty, uses both alliteration and subversion to reference the powerful impact the lives and sometimes deaths of iconic Black artists, activists, and others have had in our society.
#RealNegusDontDie resists the narrative of death as destruction and diminishes the finality and trauma that the threat of death inspires, the series reminds us that the work we do can have a lasting impact. It is a reminder that our lives (and sometimes our deaths) have meaning and purpose. Moreover, it compels us to see ourselves as something other than victims but rather as the kings and queens we can ultimately become.
