This is my third and final entry into my project covering the George Floyd protests. The Nashville protest was the first in this series. It was the largest and the one that garnered the most attention due to the riots that happened afterwards. Next, I covered the protest in Franklin, Tennessee on the square. I thought it would be interesting to see how the Franklin protest compared to the one in Music City. Well, the Franklin protest turned out to be a perfect model for a legal, peaceful protest. They did it by the book. Rumors of outsiders coming to do harm to the confederate statue, Chip, and to disrupt the peaceful protest did not come to fruition. Finally, I jumped at the chance to cover the demonstration down in my home town area of Franklin County, Tennessee in the towns of Decherd and Winchester. Covering this protest was my favorite. A trip down memory lane and seeing familiar faces you haven’t seen in a while is always good for the soul. If you haven’t seen the photos from the Nashville and Franklin protests, check out the links to those posts at the end.
My goal with this project was to create a visual record of this historic moment. Not only did I want to create a visual record, I wanted to give the viewer a sense of what it was like to be there. Those who follow me know I love street photography. I’ve learned over the years that I favor the street shots that are up close and personal. Shooting from afar reduces the detail and intimacy between the subject and the viewer. If you become part of what you’re shooting, you can get close. Those up close moments in my opinion, have more impact. Achieving this is much easier said than done, but I hope my images give you a glimpse into the atmosphere of these protests. I would love to hear your thoughts. The images are displayed in the order taken. I hope you enjoy the slideshow.
I believe we have missed a golden opportunity. It seems the only time we come together as a nation is when we are at war with a foreign enemy. During those times, we put our differences aside and we come together to fight together. The tragic death of George Floyd has brought us to a similar moment where it appears the overwhelming majority of the nation regardless of race, all agree what happen to Mr. George Floyd was wrong. Period! Times like this is when the atmosphere is right for real change to happen, but this moment has been hijacked by rioters and political groups whom have their own agenda to push. These agendas have nothing to do with George Floyd, and the mainstream media is more than happy to oblige.
In the meantime, I’ll still keep hope alive. As I said in my Nashville protest post, this issue is complex, and we have to be careful not to only treat the symptoms, but find the root cause and make changes that will benefit generations to come. Below are the links to my blog posts on the protests in Nashville and Franklin. Thank you for taking the time to read my post! Follow me on Facebook at Shuttering Thru Life to catch my next photography adventure.
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