Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child
1943
Black-and-white lithograph
10” x 13” Plate
As with others, this print reads as a sort of cautionary tale, exploring the story of how African American men struggle to maintain a righteous path in a world full of pitfalls and obstacles set against them. The central character in the composition is shown on the road to his modest rural home. Five menacing demons have blocked his path and violently gesture toward him. One of the devils taunts him with the scales of justice, which are tipped. Another points to him, jabbing a finger in a threatening manner as he jangles chains in the other hand. The protagonist struggles on his knees to pray to God and maintain his contact with the light showering down upon him from the heavens.