The Eight Pillars

Background

The Pavilion site is nestled between two federal office buildings in Washington DC's Judiciary Square district. The area is an epicenter for judicial courthouses and federal agencies. The site has a linear proportion with an open street on the north and south sides. The most prominent node o the site is the recently removed monument at the north end of the site. The monument was of Albert Pike, a problematic historical figure who was a civil war officer. During the eventful summer of 2020, on June 19th, a group of protesters toppled Pike's statue leaving only the pedestal behind. The demonstration was part of many other gatherings that denounced racial justice, coinciding with the Black Lives Matter Movement (BLM). The pavilion concept stems from my personal experience as a photojournalist during the BLM protests and the things that I saw/ heard/felt/learned during that summer of 2020. Of the many things that I have learned from the demonstrations, I learned about the 8 Pillars of Systemic Racism. The 8 Pillars of Racisms are underlying factors or concepts that support racism or, more specifically, the systemic oppression of People of Color (POC). These eight pillars include

1. (Individualism) The belief that society seeks to benefit individuals and is not constrained by collective interests or government.

2. (Universalism)Idea that everyone is the same and every experience is the same. Writes off race and social status, which essentially denies the different experiences of the POC community, and the racism exists.

3. (White Supremacy)A belief that white people are the superior and dominant race in society. It is something that people are born into and don't necessarily have a choice. Every system has the reproduction of racism, whether it is white or not. There is no neutral area where racism does not exist in a social network, making it the hardest to overcome.

4. (Internalized Superiority) The internalization of (white) supremacy and using inequality to boosts oneself in society.

5. (Investment in Racial Order) Favors the maintenance and defense of privilege and power and conveys the message that it's "better to be more white."

6. (Good Binary) Binary thinking or two theoretically opposite thinking set off one another. The contrast between two mutually exclusive terms, such as ideas like if you are not a racist, then you're a good person, and if you are racists, you're a bad person. This binary thinking is faulty because it suggests that you can't be a good person while being complicit with racism. This idea makes it very difficult for people to openly discuss about racism especially for white people.

7. (Bad Binary) Similar to pillar 6.

8. (Implicit Bias) Unconscious bias or preference for or against a specific color or group of people.

The site is an urban plaza, nestled between two federal office buildings in the Judiciary Square district of Washington, D.C. This neighborhood is an epicenter for judicial courthouses and federal agencies, with very little mixed-use development other than food services. One of the primary characteristics of the district is an abundance of pocket parks, plazas and monuments that are frequented by federal employees and visitors to the area.

The site has a linear proportion (300’ x 90’) , and is open to the street only on the north and south sides, with the east and west sides occupied by long, flat facades. The east side of the site is directly accessible by the Metropolitan Police Department. The west side has a long covered colonnade, which makes up part of the US Department of Labor.