FACE OF PROTEST

During the 2017 Inauguration Day protests in Portland’s Pioneer Square, 30-40 masked protestors exercised their constitutional right to burn American flags.  As I looked on, dozens of photographers and videographers flooded the scene, effectively disregarding the other 1000+ citizens who were assembling and protesting peacefully.  Within minutes, those were the images broadcast on local and national media.  At most, the flag burning lasted ten minutes and constituted a fraction of the organized political action at the square, yet instantly became the headline.  As is the norm in the current climate, the loudest, angriest voices were given a loud speaker while the peaceful majority was largely ignored.

In response, I walked around and interviewed a handful of the peaceful protestors with my iPhone. Here’s what they had to say (you can listen to the full audio recordings here: www.wweek.com/culture/2017/01/23/a-local-photographer-is-documenting-the-faces-of-portland-protests/