Скачать или смотреть Conexión: Postive Street Art in Manchester

Jason Bonilla and Manny Ramirez wanted this mural on Lake Ave. in downtown Manchester, N.H. to add beauty and representation to a historically immigrant neighborhood.

The two of them, along with a handful of other community leaders, wanted the mural to reflect the past, present and future of the community living in Center City, along with “our culture, our music, because music is part of who we are. It’s in our blood, right?” Bonilla said.

Muralist Manny Ramirez decided the focal point would be something that’s easy to miss in human interaction: a handshake. Or in this case, the dap. It’s something Ramirez, Bonilla and so many others in Manchester grew up doing, that actually started with Black soldiers during the Vietnam War.

“It basically means, like, I'm here with you, I understand you,” Ramirez said. “We're here, we're fighting the same battle, and I got your back regardless of what it is.”He says if he could, he’d paint another mural that’s ten times the size of this one, to tell the world, “you know we’re here and we matter. We need to be in the forefront.”