THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN YOU & ME | 2017

One of JY Originals’ most renowned pieces is a social critique focused on police brutality against Black people, titled “The Difference Between You and Me.” The heart-wrenching image consists of side-by-side portraits: one of a white body in the Captain America shield and the other of a brown body covered in a bulls-eye shirt with blood dripping from the center. The unspoken understanding is: “you get to be a superhero, but my people are constantly targets.”

This artwork has transcended language barriers, going viral multiple times in Brazil, exploding via social media and online news outlets. It is (even more) proof that Black and Brown people across the world are dealing with the same hateful police brutality issues. TDBYM has also been showcased at the University of Pittsburgh for the Black to the Future exhibition (2020), the Antwon Rose II benefit concert hosted by 1Hood Media (2019) and at Young’s first solo art show in Pittsburgh (2018).

Photos by Ray Carrington, Janel Young