The Great Crenshaw Wall has been the site of many murals by artists since the 1970's. Most of these murals celebrated Black history, Black music, Black politics, or some form of Black culture.

 

The Wall has lived through segregation, civil rights, the Black Power movement, a Crack epidemic, two civil unrests, the Gang Plague, and Hip-Hop. By the year 2000 it had become a dilapidated, uncared for, icon of the past– until a group of South Central Graffiti artists called RTN (Rocking The Nation) decided to do something about it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In 2002 twelve artists, members of a Graffiti artist collective known as Rocking The Nation, turned the Great Crenshaw Wall into a 787 feet long, 10 feet high, 7,880 square foot Black History timeline. The mural was entitled- Our Mighty Contribution.

 

Without any financial support or permission from the city, they created an African-American History timeline on a concrete canvas of 7880 square feet.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Although many murals and Graffiti "pieces" had ordaned the wall, no one group of artists had ever attempted such a task- to paint the entire stretch of the wall, 787 feet. A full city block. It took them one year to complete their task.

 

The mural consists of images including Fredrick Douglas, Harriet Tubman, The Black Panther Party, Jimi Hendrix, Louis Armstrong, Marcus Garvey, African-American Soilders, Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, The Sphinx, Timbuktu, Slavery, Street Dancers, Dizzy Gilespie, and more.

 

For the past 12 years Our Mighty Contribution has stood the test of time. It has become one of the most popular African-American landmarks in the city of Los Angeles and visited by fans of Black culture, Hip Hop, and Graffiti Art from around the world.