Folks wear black for a whole host of reasons. Some people just think it looks cool, whilst others may be making a fashion statement, perhaps acknowledging humanity’s apparent insignificance set hopelessly adrift in a remarkably cold, dark, uncaring and incomprehensibly infinite universe. Or it could very well be less existential in nature, sure. Folks might just be mourning someone or something in particular, you know, like the steady erosion of democratic institutions/norms and the rise of autocratic leaders around the world (just as a not so random example). Indeed, wearing black as a form of protest has a long history, as evidenced by “The Man in Black” himself, the late great Johnny Cash. He even wrote a song about it in 1971, which happened to be one if his more overtly topical tunes, channeling his inner-protest singer (which was no doubt inspired by Dylan’s early work). And it’s a compelling tune at that, also particularly timely, with lyrics like these no doubt resonating with a plethora of folks these days:
“Well, there’s things that never will be right, I know
And things need changin’ everywhere you go
But ’til we start to make a move to make a few things right
You’ll never see me wear a suit of white
Ah, I’d love to wear a rainbow every day
And tell the world that everything’s okay
But I’ll try to carry off a little darkness on my back
‘Til things are brighter, I’m the man in black”
R.I.P.J.C.:
