According to the 50501 Movement organizers of last Saturday's "No Kings" rally at Independence Hall, National Park Service staffers estimated a crowd of up to 4,000 people. I was there, and like me, many protestors carried signs demanding due process for Kilmar Abrego García, who was illegally taken by ICE in March due to an error the Trump administration admitted in court, and is now being held prisoner in El Salvador as Trump and his cronies openly flout court rulings, including a unanimous Supreme Court decision, to bring García home and give him the due process that belongs to all of us.
We're angry, as we should be, because we understand what this lawlessness means for all of us, especially those of us in Philly's arts and culture sector, which always has been and always will be enriched by the essential contributions of our immigrant neighbors, including those in the BSR community. I personally know it's exhausting, and difficult, and often feels hopeless, but we MUST keep pushing for justice in all possible ways. We don't do it because we know the outcome. We do it because it's right.
With that said, let's see what our hardworking writers were up to this week. We have a rave review for the Wilma's Archduke, marking the return of director Blanka Zizka, we have chamber music, we have movie reviews from PFS SpringFest, we have another rave review for The Hobbit at the Arden, and we head to Of Black Wombhood, a new exhibition and oral history project on view at TILT. As usual, our writers cover a lot of ground.
Always remember that engaging with local artists is exactly what some people--like those who hate free expression--are trying to stop you from doing. Their worst fear is the way we draw knowledge and joy and strength and inspiration and understanding from each other, through the things we write and the art we make. So keep right on supporting the arts and independent media about the arts.
Alaina Johns
BSR editor-in-chief
