I haven’t written in awhile.
I used to write. And by write, I mean I used to write A LOT.
I ran a popular poetry blog on tumblr (@2am-poetry) with thousands of followers and millions of impressions. Writing and reading are ways of explaining experiences and do well for what they are, but let's face it—PEOPLE LOVE PHOTOS!
People appreciate a visual representation of something if it's only as simple as stick figures, but with the New Civil Rights Movement, now more than ever, people are glued to their digital devices watching events unfold before their eyes. Who is recording these events though? Does it matter if an image came from a news station versus a regular citizen? It does. Not only does it matter, but it's imperative to the goals of the original civil rights movement to document oppressed people in a light that gave them humanity.
In the film, Through a Lens Darkly: Black Photographers and the Emergence of a People, made by famed photographers Debra Willis and Thomas Allen Harris, it is noted how prominent actors in African-American's fight for equality would use the power of media to their advantage. From Fannie Lou Hamer to Booker T. Washington, vital figures stressed the importance of capturing themselves in good light to project their messages further. When you think of Martin Luther King Jr., what images come to mind? Do you think those were taken by accident? Even the late great activist, Julian Bond, started out a student documenting civil rights.
The point I'm trying to make is that WE CONTROL THE NARRATIVE. Now, more than ever, with the existence of modern technology and smartphones, we can capture beautiful alluring images easily, and convey the message of the movement with grace and dignity. I, personally, want to push you to move out of your comfort zone and contribute to this effort the next time you attend a rally, protest or march. The image you see in this article was featured in The Louvre and I took it as a citizen journalist. I wonder how many other great images are out there hiding taken by regular ol' folk?
