The International Labour Organization (ILO) is marking its centenary in 2019 and as part of the commemoration has launched a photography project called “Dignity at Work: The American Experience” to document the working life of people across the United States. UN News joined the ILO on a visit to the southern US state of Louisiana.
This was a turning point. I knew my art, my beading, was nice and I saw people making money from painting portraits and thought I could do that too. People saw something good in my work and started paying a nice amount of money for it.
So, success is beginning to happen for me. My hard work is paying off, this is an important thing that I have learned, but you need to keep on working hard.
Success means a lot, to be able to live from my work, it’s like being born again, like I’m young again. But I never lose the doubt that my shoulder begins to hurt, or I get another injury that prevents me from working.
I’m working towards buying my own home as I don’t want to be in the same position again of possibly losing it. I want to get that house when my grandma is still here, so we can have that family feeling again.
The future for kids now in New Orleans is different now from when I was a kid. After Hurricane Katrina, the schools have improved and there are more facilities and more opportunities, so kids are now behaving better.
I also teach these kids. That’s important to me as it helps to keep the culture beating. I’m the first to create a contemporary art form with bead work, with Mardi Gras Indian beading. It’s my duty to teach, to keep the culture alive. I learnt from my elders by watching, but I’m teaching these kids in a hands-on way, showing them techniques. It feels good to pass on this culture to somebody.”
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