Behind Enemy Lines

Part of AeroSoul’s mission is youth advocacy through the practice and preservation of hip hop’s visual culture. Wearable art has long been a part of that culture and these jackets – created by San Francisco’s incarcerated youth – are a continuation of that culture. The culturally specific political themes of these painted denim jackets exemplifies AeroSoul’s mission to advocate for self-determination in struggling Black and Brown communities. The themes include classical African notions of justice, stopping street gun violence, indigenous/Brown pride, Sisterhood and the very contemporary valorization of Black youth’s lives in the personae of Travon Martin. These examples of youth expressing themselves in these culturally specific ways also underline the 5th element of hip hop which is knowledge of self.