The Patriot
I generally steer clear of the political on a blog about photography, but this one is something that I did want to share, despite the fact that it was about a year ago. I think it’s important that we remember such important events.
I hate crowds and am generally a bit claustrophobic so the idea of attending an event like this with thousands of people in close quarters, is basically the embodiment of my nightmare. I honestly wasn’t going to go. My friends all took off early that morning and walked down to the subway and I stayed in bed. Then, something inside me forced me to get up and I grabbed my camera and headed down to the metro.
It. Was. Packed. Jam packed. There wasn’t even a way to get on a south bound train. Oddly enough, I ran into two of my friends who’d gotten separated from the others and we rode the train all the way north so that we could come back south. We weren’t the only ones to do this and there was an overwhelming sense of comradery among the subway riders of all genders.
When we finally made it to the march site the crowds were
overwhelming, but it felt important and everyone was incredibly present and supportive. I used my camera to distract myself from the crowds and focused on capturing the incredible displays. Finally, we all made it to the end of it all in time for the speeches, but even as we were leaving thousands more were still marching. It was truly a humbling event and I’m so happy that something forced me out of bed that morning. Miracle of all miracles, we found everyone that we got separated from. Shockingly unlikely in a crowd of that magnitude.
Almost a year later, resistance persists. Here are a few of my favorite shots from the day: