Bulgaria pics š„° I am very grateful and fortunate and privileged to have been able to spend some time with my family in a part of Europe I havenāt been to before. Bulgaria is way cool. I explored ancient ruins, temples, crypts, and churches. I drank my metric weight in Rakia and ate some of the most glorious tomatoes of my entire life. I spent super quality time with loved ones. I could go on and on about how amazing the trip was and you should visit if you ever have the chance!
Yet all the while, in the back of my mind was home. I kept thinking about how sad it is that we canāt seem to come together in a cohesive enough way to actually do something to make a real change for the better, and honestly just how weird it is that more of us donāt take the corruption in all branches and major parties of our government more seriously.
Whatās always been missing is our shared humanity. This just isnāt one of our cultureās values. How can it be, given our foundation? I guess it shouldnāt be so strange to me that itās not popular for more people to want to make an effort for us all to live well, or for more of us to see that fighting for the rights of others is tantamount to us each fighting for our own rights. The current business model doesnāt make that super profitable, I suppose.
Even still, I have to ask - why is it radical to want our food and water to not be poison? Why is it radical to want for everyone to have a decent or just livable standard of living? Why is it radical to want to dismantle systems of supremacy? Why is it radical for us all to have our basic needs met and for good health be the norm?
Whatās it gonna take for us to rise up for real, like weāre seeing right now in Nepal, in France, in etc., and to do this while we still have the chance? Before things get even worse, and we look around and go āoops I guess they were being seriousā when we thought they were joking about taking our rights, our elections, our freedoms, and our neighbors away? I want to know what you think. DM me if youāre not comfortable making a comment ššš«
ŠŠ±ŠøŃŠ°Š¼ Š²Šø Š²ŃŠøŃŠŗŠø šššš
A scan of an 8x10 silver gelatin print I made in my darkroom. This photo of Sammy was made on ilford hp5 with my Mamiya 7ii and 80mm f4. Developed in hc110b. Always making prints of my black and white work if you have any interest. . ā¢
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#silvergelatinprint #120filmphotography #darkroomprint #ilfordhp5 #ilfordpearlpaper #ilfordrcpaper #filmphotomag #filmphotography #mamiya7ruinedeverything #mamiya7ii #mamiya7 #shootfilm
one year ago today, I flew from LA to NYC ājust for the summer,ā and within about 30 seconds of getting off the plane I knew I was home. I didnāt know how it would all work out, but I had a feeling it would. and Iāve never looked back š„¹š
this past year, Iāve made friends who feel like family, played with the coolest bands, and done profoundly life-altering work studying acting @esperstudio
Iāve learned that trusting your intuition will always take you exactly where youāre meant to be. Iāve healed the shadowy parts of myself that once thought a person (me), place, or thing had to be perfect to be loved. and Iāve fallen in love with life in a way that me who came here ājust for the summerā couldnāt have imagined.
thank you to every person Iāve met, every weird and wild and wonderful thing, and to the city for helping me remember who I am and what home feels like š„°šš«
I love yāall and Iām so grateful!
P.S. I still love you too, LA! itās not you, itās me š
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1: @bailey.lecat
9: @belleandchain by @_himynameismichelle
15: @ciggybop by @__kevindaniel
I bought this Malcolm X sweatshirt at the Brooklyn flea market I think like 13 years ago. My boyfriend at the time, a very āeducatedā (white) man and an educator himself, was shopping with me, and he couldnāt fathom why I would want to buy this, let alone wear it. He was embarrassed. It took me a little too long to break up with him after this incident, but thatās a me-problem for a different story time lol š¤£
His feelings about me buying this sweatshirt speak to a core problem with āš» people, a core problem in our society. White folks will leech off of and benefit from Black people and Black culture when itās suitable, but Black folks wanting a safe and thriving community?! Too radical. Too (insert words that will likely suppress this post) š¤¬
What that boyfriend never grasped and what so many folks canāt seem to understand is that liberation for Black people is liberation for us ALL! If we are not educated about, aware of, or ourselves radicalized by our history, by Black history, which is American history, weāre doomed to maintain, and dare I say strengthen, the divisive, abusive structures of white supremacy this country and this world are built on.
None of us are free until we all are.
Itās no wonder change is so slow. Anyone with an idea worth a damn who shows the promise of progress is gunned down, vilified, and made to look like a criminal by the establishment. I donāt really know what the solution is. But I will proudly wear this sweatshirt so long as I have a body to put a sweatshirt on, in solidarity forever with the principles of human liberation this hero stood for. By any means necessary.
Thank you, Malcolm X ššš«
additional photos from @thereclaimed ššš
