The public is invited to a free viewing of “Don’t Look Away”- the 45,000 Quilt, on display at the Concord Unitarian Universalist Church at 274 Pleasant Street in Concord, NH through Dec. 18. Viewing times are Tuesdays through Fridays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Saturday from 1 to 5 p.m.
The huge quilt, made by more than 60 artists from across the country and Mexico, is in six sections, each 9 feet by 9 feet. In its artistically various stitched, collaged and painted panels the quilt tells of the 45,000 immigrants incarcerated at the time the quilt was made in 2021, reminding the viewer that immigrants are still being incarcerated today.
Many New Hampshire artists contributed to the quilt. As its originator, New Hampshire teacher and activist Glen Ring, says about the panels she made:
“I love painting birds. It took a long time to paint 1,000 caged birds. It made the number 1,000 much realer and that was only a fraction of people jailed for seeking asylum. My second square tells the story of a man leaving home, hoping to be treated humanely, only to be jailed and then deported. I painted 1,000 faces and tears … how many tears must be shed before a nation of immigrants remembers their ancestors’ journeys and welcomes those making the same journey?”
The public is invited to a free panel discussion about the making of the quilt and “What is Going On With Immigration in NH?” to be held at 3 p.m. on Saturday.