Black Lives Matter
BLACK LIVES MATTER
I'm so excited to be starting this blog and sharing more of my work, but it would be strange and wrong if I wrote this without talking about what is happening right now. On May 25, 2020, George Floyd was killed by Minneapolis police officers. It's now August; protests against police brutality and racist policies continue, often times being met by more police brutality. And the Covid-19 pandemic continues- another spotlight on the racial inequities in the United States where communities of color are disproportionally negatively affected (cases, deaths, access to resources).
Black people in the United States are disproportionally targets for police brutality and the corruption of our criminal justice system. This is the result of our long history of racism, that is alive and well today. There are a lot of people who have spoken on the matter who know more than me, who have been dealing with this much longer than I have, who are far more eloquent that I am. Go follow them and LISTEN. There are tons of black activists and artists whose voices are far more important than mine. That being said, if you are white and are struggling to understand- feel free to reach out to me and I will happily pass on some information. I am not an expert, but I am here if you want to join me as I am learning how to be anti-racist.
Racism is not a niche or special interest issue. Racism exists in every single industry- definitely including photography. Racism is my problem to help fix. As I am learning to be a better ally, I welcome feedback. If (more likely when) it's brought to my attention that I am messing something up, I will address it.
We live in a world where if I don’t declare that I believe in the value, rights, and humanity of black people- it will be unclear what side I fall on. So let me be clear, BLACK LIVES MATTER. If you are black, please know that you are welcome here.
Here are some people and resources that I have found very helpful:
Rachel Cargle and her course The Great Unlearn
Spirit of Revelry Instagram @spiritofrevelry - Portrait Photographers creating tutorials for white photographers to learn about properly photographing and editing people with melanated skin!
Anti-Racism Reading List from Ibram X. Kendi
Thanks for checking out my first blog post, and stay tuned for more!