Bicycle riders, dog walkers and lovers on a stroll change their destination to view this spectacle of gritting teeth and arched backs. I find myself part of a large audience listening to the older Christian woman sermonizing over the edge of her big square poster. Two young women are now her targets, defending their right to be young and free. Words fly back and forth. Teeth are gritted.
Voices break the notes of anger and tension.
This was an unkind cut but true. I am transfixed on this religious right-winger, dismayed at her likeness to this disfigured image, an image that represents her own struggle. I look at the teenage girl, expecting some show of remorse, a look of embarrassment at her callousness, but I see nothing. New York style rebels sing pop songs of the sixties, bellowing raspy notes of bliss to anyone who will listen. The hopeful notes cross the park, voices reaching for grandeur, proving skill only gets in the way when it feels so good.