This photograph was taken by Brandon Bell and it shows an open shot of a man with his left arm raised up in a fist standing in front of a building that is on fire and is burning down. This photo was taken during the Black Lives Matter movement and it is likely an example of the protests and rioting that have been occurring these past few weeks.
I find this photograph very powerful, the large amounts of bright orange fire in the background resemble destruction which symbolizes the amount of effort that is needed to redesign the established racist system that oppresses black people. The system made by white supremacists many years ago that everybody has continued to live in. This photograph shows that people want change and if the higher authorities won’t listen then they will make their voice heard, because ultimately, the people outnumber everybody else, and they have the power to cause change if they work together.
To me, this photograph shows the power of a free world where everybody has the right to speak up and cause change. We only see the silhouette of the person in the shot which shows that this person could be any regular person, not some superhero with incredible strengths. The pose in which the person is in shows strength, power, and a willingness to fight no matter how hard the fight may seem.
It feels as if society as a whole as developed so much, it is already the year 2020 and we would expect to have come together as a human race by this point and all that’s left for us to do is to work towards evolution. Everything that is going on inside of this photograph feels as if it happened many years ago in the past, but the fact that it was taken so recently shows the great distance we still are away from global equality.
The shot is taken from a lower angle looking up at this person which makes him seem powerful like a leader. There is only one person in the photograph rather than many people, which seems to me that even if just one person stands up for their vision, they are able to make it happen. The person seems to be looking at something, it feels as if he could be looking at a large group of people who support his actions and are looking up to this person as a leader. The angle of the photograph is taken from the side which doesn’t make the viewer feel apart of the large crowd he may be looking at, but rather makes them feel like a spectator observing what is happening from a distance, and this is emphasized as the subject is not looking towards the camera. I find this interesting because it suggests that we are not doing anything to fight against the problem, however, it makes the photograph feel like more of a historical event rather than a call for action. It makes the viewer think about the situation as a whole, at a larger scale, where we were, where we are, and where we are heading.