Police State, New York
A Thought:
I was going to write a lengthy post about my experiences on the streets of New York over this past year, as both a citizen and as a journalist. About my repeated experiences with the NYPD, both good and bad. About the general culture of fear and intimidation that they purposefully create. How they do a very good job at it. How if you spend any amount of time on the streets of New York, you don’t feel protected, you feel watched. About how if you are an upstanding citizen, you should never feel that way. How as a member of the media, you quickly start to get worried doing your job. And all the time you spend defending yourself. As in: “No i’m on assignment, I’m, not a terrorist, I’m taking a photo of this building for the real estate section…” and “yes I DO have a right to be here…” and “no, photography on a sidewalk is NOT illegal.” How long ago, I stopped wearing my NYPD press pass because whenever an officer saw it, they only threatened to take it away. And for all the respect we are expected to pay them while doing their jobs, the respect is never reciprocated.
And then I had another thought: Fuck it. Let the photos speak for themselves.
(All photos taken over the past 12 months. Shot on assignment for various news organizations, or on my own, or during assignment, but for myself.)
