What does it mean to truly be seen? Here, before the I Am Queen Mary statue in Copenhagen, that question echoes powerfully. I Am Queen Mary isn’t just a statue. It’s a declaration. It’s a monument to Mary Thomas, a sugarcane plantation worker who ignited the Fireburn labor revolt in St. Croix in 1878. This 23-foot-tall figure sits atop a plinth of coral stones, a stark reminder of the enslaved Africans who harvested them. The I Am Queen Mary statue is the first public monument in Denmark to honor a Black woman. It commemorates the centennial of the transfer of the Danish West Indies to the United States. Mary Thomas, one of the “Queens of the Fireburn,” led a revolt that engulfed fifty plantations and most of Frederiksted, St. Croix, in flames. Her defiance against slavery-like conditions echoes in this space. Look closely at I Am Queen Mary. In her left hand, a torch of defiance burns bright. In her right, a sugarcane cutting tool, a symbol of her labor and her resistance. Her seated pose deliberately mirrors the iconic photograph of Black Panther Party founder Huey P. Newton. This statue is a collaboration, a fusion of the artists’ own bodies into a powerful representation of Mary Thomas. The I Am Queen Mary statue was damaged by a winter storm in 2020. The figure is currently undergoing restoration, but an augmented reality version keeps her spirit alive in this space. This monument stands as a testament to resilience, a beacon illuminating the struggle for recognition and the enduring power of resistance. The fight for whose stories are told continues, here at the I Am Queen Mary statue, a symbol of hope and remembrance in the heart of Copenhagen.
Центральный дом работников искусств
Step through the grand wooden doors of the Central House of the Workers of Art, and you’ll be transported to