Okay, this post is definitely going to constitute more than a word or two. There might even be a rant involved, though I'm gonna try to keep my head clear.
One of the most compelling factors to push me forward in this photo project came when I was working on a tribute for Sakia Gunn. Around the same time, Patreese Johnson and the six Black lesbians who accompanied her to NYC in August were convicted of "gang assault," amongst various other charges.
Patreese, who is 19, has been convicted of first-degree assault. The attempted murder charge against her was dropped, but first-degree assault carries the same potential sentence.
I'm looking at all that, and feeling completely gutted, when the Village Voice runs that wholly ridiculous article, "Girls to Men." Along with the article, there is a gallery of images, by photographer David Yellen. The pictures aren't bad, if you like studio sets with paper backdrops and conventional lighting. The captions are what really annoyed me.
I know the communities have been outraged over this article. I feel that. I know a lot of good people are working to make a positive difference out of something so harshly inflammatory.
What I don't know is what that photographer said, what he promised, what he proposed, to earn the trust it took to have the AGs featured in that gallery pose for him.
I do know everyone's mad about it. Hell, I'm mad about it.
And yes, I've extended an invitation to studs and AGs to participate in my photo project.
I want you all to hear me now, when I say, clearly and with absolute certainty: I do not misrepresent anyone in my work.
You come to me, you get what you want. If you don't like an image I've selected for inclusion in my web gallery, that image is simply not seen by the public, evah.
Let's make a positive difference. It matters.
~Emmanuela
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