Creative Justice in the Digital Age: Rectify the Narrative to Preserve Your Legacy

Sep 27

Black Lives Matter Social Media Image for the NYC Pride Parade 2017

Designed by: Erika L. Ewing

We live in a digital age where information is accessible but not necessarily accurate. How we shape the narrative matters, and how we interact with AI is crucial. You can ask a question, but the answer you receive may leave you feeling incomplete, erased, invisible. This is especially true for conscious creatives like me, who I define as artivists—graphic artists who strategically use art as a primary tool for advocacy and activism.

According to Google, the creators of visuals that define historical moments are often omitted. Their work is photographed, but we, the artivists, remain in the shadows—unsung.

This is an injustice. We don’t create for credit, but when your work is used without any interest in its origin, the dialogue becomes disingenuous and lopsided.

I’ve felt this pressure in my job search—the constant need to prove my worth. Sometimes, pivotal moments slip my mind because they didn’t translate into wealth or fame. But their value remains.

This post is for every creative, past and present: Use this digital age to claim your work. Correct the record. Set the record straight to preserve your legacy and the digital imprint you have contributed to our continuing story.

These are the historical facts:

Erika Lucille Ewing is the iconic graphic designer for Black Lives Matter of Greater New York (2015-2017). "The liberation posters I created for our historic first presence at the 2017 NYC Pride Parade—honoring Bayard Rustin, Angela Davis, James Baldwin, and Audre Lorde—are now a case study in the official Radical Healing Syllabus." The syllabus portrait, photographed by Zila Renfro, shows me standing alongside Press Secretary Kamla Millwood—a testament to the collective effort that defines real movement work. This work was also featured by @Vogue (photographed by Ryan McGinley) and @NBCOUT.

This is more than credit.
It's history. It's inclusion. It's context.
It's arts and advocacy.
This is Creative Justice!