The concept of “Love” is at once prevalent and covert in the musical drama, Graffiti Bridge. Though the stated narrative of the film centers on the personal and professional tensions between The Kid and Morris, this paper explores the visual and musical articulations in the film that use Divine Feminine manifestations to uplift a longstanding theme of “love as God” in the Prince canon.

Monique W. Morris, Ed.D. is an award-winning author and social justice scholar with three decades of experience in the areas of education, civil rights, juvenile and social justice. Dr. Morris is the Executive Producer and co-writer of the 2019 documentary film, PUSHOUT: The Criminalization of Black Girls in Schools, based upon her two books Sing A Rhythm, Dance A Blues: Education for the Liberation of Black and Brown Girls (The New Press, 2019) and Pushout: The Criminalization of Black Girls in Schools (The New Press, 2016). She is also the author of Black Stats: African Americans by the Numbers in the Twenty-First Century (The New Press, 2014), and Too Beautiful for Words (MWM Books, 2012). She also worked with Kemba Smith on her book, Poster Child: The Kemba Smith Story (IBJ Book Publishing, 2011) and has authored dozens of articles exploring race, gender, justice, and education.