Abdelrazik Returns Home to Montreal
Abousfian Abdelrazik, a Canadian citizen exiled in Sudan, returned home to Montreal on Saturday, June 27, 2009. He was greated by supporters at a midnight rally in Montreal. More: Abdelrazik back in Montreal after six years
For more information: People’s Commission
Some more shots from the Anarchist Bookfair.
A few snap shots from the 2009 Montreal Anarchist Bookfair.
Par ailleurs, I discovered that I’m listed, along with some interesting peops, on The Balkans Project under “art and activism”.
Lately
The Activist Lens: A Roundtable on the Role of Photography in Social Movements
“What is the role of art in social movements? This was the question put to a panel of four photographers, Sharhzad Arshadi, Stefan Christoff, Ion Etxebarria, and Tatiana Gomez, who have each played a significant role in documenting social movements from Montreal to Lebanon. The Activist Lens offers a snapshot of the raw and visceral, the powerful and emotional in sites of political and social struggle.” Published in the March/April issue of Canadian Dimension, the piece explores the role of photography in activism.
Below is the work the photographers submitted for the piece and the article itself, but you should check out the print copy if you can. They did a great job with the lay-out.
WTO, Quebec City. Sharhzad Arshadi, 2001.
I am Palestine, Montreal. Sharhzad Arshadi, 2002.
Adil Charkaoui outside the Supreme Court of Canada, Ottawa. Ion Etxebarria, 2007.
Mothers and Grandmothers for Justice marching for Freddy Villanueva, Montreal. Ion Etxebarria, 2008.
Chatila refugee camp, Beirut, Lebanon. Stefan Christoff, 2008.
Manila, Philippines. Stefan Christoff, 2008
Portrait of Abdelkader Belaouni in Sanctuary, Montreal. Tatiana Gomez, 2008.
Signs of Migrant Resistance on the Streets of Montreal. Tatiana Gomez, 2008
The Activist Lens: A Roundtable on the Role of Photography in Social Movements
The role of art in social movements has been the subject of analysis and theorizing by artists, grassroots organizers, and academics. Although photography has often been used to document social struggle and create propaganda, it has rarely fallen within the ambit of this discussion. In the last few years photography has featured more prominently on the landscape of social movements in Montreal. It has been used to contribute to the work of local organizations, to shed light on specific social struggles, and as a tool of creative resistance. Activists and photographers Stefan Christoff, Ion Etxebarria, Shahrzad Arshadi, and myself speak about the role of photography in social movements.
Spaces in Between
My dear friend Kader is still stuck in sanctuary. This is his desk. There is a certain loneliness to the photo. I don’t think we can fathom what it must feel like to be imprisoned in a church.
Ms. Shoeclair
One more portait from the BCA project.
I photographed Ms. Shoeclair in her home in February 2009.
Melville Medford
More images from the Black Council on Aging’s (BCA) project documenting the lifes of Black seniors in Montreal. The official title of the project is “Life Stories from Montreal’s Black Community: Documenting the History of our Elderly Members”. I photographed Mr. Medford in January 2009 at the BCA office.
Emile Leacock
More images from the Black Council on Aging project I have been working on. This is Emile Leacock photographed in his home in December 2008. Mr. Leacock was a boxer in his youth.
Richard Lord
I have been working on a photo project for the Black Council on Aging (BCA). The BCA is documenting the lives of black seniors in Montreal.
I photographed Richard Lord in his home in December 2008.
Post #82
The polaroids may be cliche and nostalgic, but I think they are beautiful.
Polaroid Fun
Xmas Stuff
Papi
Mascarade publique, procès secret - Public Show, Secret Trial
[English Below]
Voici mes photos d’une soixantaine de Montréalais qui ont manifesté devant la Cour fédérale à Montréal le 10 décembre 2008, Journée internationale des droits humains. Les manifestants ont dénoncés l’usage des audiences secrets dans le cas d’Adil Charkaoui et les autres détenus sous des certificats de sécurité et pour réclamer le droit d’un procès juste et équitable.
Regarder un diaporama avec des paroles de la manif.
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Here are my photos of approximately 60 Montrealers who protested outside the Federal Court in Montreal on 10 December 2008, International Human Rights Day. Protesters denounced the use of secret trials in the case of Adil Charkaoui and the other security certificate detainees and demand the right to a fair and open trial.
Watch an audio slideshow from the rally.
Marginalized Justice
This photo of Will Prosper and Nargess Mustapha, spokespeople for Montreal-Nord Republik, appears in this week’s Hour with the article Marginalized Justice.
Border Movements
The visual arts’ diversity webzine ratsdeville is publicizing the upcoming show, Border Movements at La Centrale Gallery Powerhouse.
I will be showing my new series “Portraits of a Movement: Immigrant Workers Rising”, a work in progress that chronicles the struggle of immigrant workers dismissed from a local sock factory.
Flattered
Rick at ILovePhotoblogs has selected my blog for his list of 20 Awesome Photography Blogs - Montreal Quebec 2009. I am very flattered. Thanks, Rick!
Here is a photo of Jason “Blackbird” Selman, poet and trumpet player with the Kalmunity Vibe Collective.
Ensemble Acalanto
Ensemble Acalanto is my favorite local band.
Triple
Sun Light
Red
Alt poppy
Claire distributes white poppies in lieu of the red ones. Stefan Christoff at the Hour has written an article about the white poppies. The second photo was published with the article. Claire explains that the “white poppy is an alternative way to remember war, but also to protest war as an institution in our society, [especially] as the Conservative government is putting more and more money into the military and not into social programs, leading to hugely detrimental impacts on our society.”
More photos in a new format.
Back Alleys
The color and lighting are off, but I really like the compositional elements. I’m experimenting with new formats.
Book Cover
A book on the struggle of immigrant workers in Montreal is being published. And my photo is on the cover!
This photo has appeared in The Gazette, Canadian Dimension, Hour, and now its on the cover of a book.
This is It!
I discovered an amazing multimedia slideshow on May 68 by Bruno Barbey. He took these images early on in his career. The images are wonderful and the slideshow exemplifies what photography is for me. It tells a story, it documents, and allows us to reconstruct our collective memory.
Interestingly, Barbey reveals that colour photography used to be considered too commercial and therefore Magnum only did black and white photography. There is something very beautiful and very stricking about black and white images…and film photography.
More for the Cityscape/Political Posters Series
I’m not sure I’m satisfied with all three images. The second one I do like. Maybe the poster should always be at the edge of the photographe so as to capture more of the cityscape. It might be a more interesting perspective.
Portraits
Two portraits. The first is an experiment into environmental portraiture and the second is in my usual style. More and more I’m prefering portraits that make eye contact.
What great guys!
Canadian Mining in Mexico
In the Mexican village of Cerro de San Pedro in the State of San Luis Potosi, local residents have been fighting a battle against an open pit mine owned by a Canadian corporation and run by its Mexican subsidiary, Minera San Xavier (MSX). Check out the photo essay HERE.
The art of activism
This portrait of Freda Guttman appears this week in The Hour’s new monthly online column, “Cultural Crossroads”. Freda, in the words of Stefan Christoff, is a grandmother, celebrated artist and committed social activist. The article discusses her art and activism.
Freda said this was the first photo of herself she has liked in years. What a compliment!
Superfly
I like the lighting in this photo.
New youth group gets active in Montreal North
On 11 August, 2008, Freddy Villanueva, an 18 year old youth was gunned down by police officers in Montreal-North. This has ignited local youth who have come together to form the group Montréal-Nord Républik. The group is responding to police violence, harrasment, and racial profiling in the neigborhood. These photos were taken at the group’s first action outside the borough council meeting in Montreal-North on 20 August 2008. The top photo appears with an article on the topic in this week’s The Hour.
Snapshots and Lighting
Macro
Secret Pages
I photographed a wedding once. It was great fun. My photojournalism skills came in handy. Much like when I’m photographing an event or an action, I wanted the images to tell the story of the wedding. I used to showcase this series of photos, but now it’s one of the secret web pages that doesn’t make it into the portfolio even if I really like the images. The couple was really happy with the photos. It was my gift to them.
Something Different
Portraits: New Project Up
I’ve put up a new series made up of portraits.
The City is a Sweatshop
This building located at 55 de Louvain in what is known as the Chabanel District in Montreal, is where the Lamour Hosiery Manufacturing Inc. factory was located before it closed. The Chabanel District, located North of the Transcanada Highway, is home to many such buildings containing Canadian sweatshops. While many companies in the garment industry are closing their local factories and moving to the global South where they can find cheaper and more flexible labour, some Canadian factories remain. Workers in the area have reported fears of accepting flyers from community organizations such as the Immigrant Workers’ Center for fear of employer retaliation. The landscape and architecture in this area embody the term “the city is a sweatshop”. This focus on the cityscape is how the project, “The City is a Sweatshop” is evolving.
Getting their cut
The struggle of the Lamour workers’ continues. As Mostafa Henaway of the Immigrant Workers’ Center explains, “over 600 jobs have been lost over the past couple years. Lamour Inc. is closing operations and following a pattern of corporate globalization. Companies are shutting down the manufacturing centres, retaining their administrative operations in Canada and moving manufacturing to places in the South with more exploitable labour.” The Lamour workers are fighting for a decent severance package. They say they were “unceremoniously laid off”. On Monday, 14 July, they will go in front of the Labour Relations.
This photo was published with Stefan Christoff’s latest article.
For more information: iwc-cti.ca
Cerro de San Pedro
I am still working on the audio slideshow on the Cerro de San Pedro in San Luis Potosi. It is coming along rather slowly, but here are a few preview photos. As you can see, the town is literally at the foot of the open pit mine.
Portraits
Some of my favorite subjects in natural lighting and without posing.
Militarization and Counterinsurgency in Chiapas
The Zapatista uprising began 15 years ago under the banner of democracy, justice, and liberty. Over the course of those 15 years, indigenous and peasant communities have upheld their struggle despite the government’s counterinsurgency agenda. In recent months, counterinsurgency tactics have escalated.
Photo credit: Unknown
Fighting Canadian Mining Companies in Mexico
Since 1997, residents of the Mexican village of Cerro de San Pedro and the surrounding area have been fighting a large-scale open-pit gold and silver mine. Canadian corporation Metallica Resources Inc. has backed the project since its inception. According to the Frente Amplio Opositor (FAO), mining operations began in 2006 without required environmental permits.
This week a delegation from Mexico of members of the FAO traveled to Toronto to confront the corporation on its home turf. Images from the action are available on the Toronto Social Justice Magazine.
I am working on an audio-slideshow with recent photographs of the mining site. It will be available soon.
Photography and Posters
This poster was made by Graham, a member of Solidarity Across Borders (SAB). He used photos from different SAB events and of different SAB members to create a poster that is telling of the organization’s demands and work. This is one way that photography can be incorporated into groups’ work.
The photos in this poster were taken by many different people, including PatC, Darren Ell, JBS, and myself.
Still Here
This photo is from my series “Still Here: Abdelkader Belaouni still in sanctuary, which we used for a “guerilla vernissage”. The vernissage really put into action art and activism. This radio report is poignant in that respect.
Relations, a local magazine, will be featuring Abdelkader Belaouni in their July-August 2008 issue and will be publishing this photo.
For more information on his struggle, please visit his website: soutienpourkader.
Audio Slideshow: Our Solidarity is Our Security
On Friday, 23 May 2008 the Coalition Justice for Adil Charkaoui organized the People’s Camp, a community-based info-fair, in the immigrant working class neighborhood of Park-Extension. This is the first of several camps that are going to be held in different Montreal neighbourhoods throughout the summer.
The slideshow of the event is available on the People’s Commission website.
Photos by Ion Extebarria and Tatiana Gomez
Audio by Charlie and Courtney of the CKUT News Collective
Produced by Tatiana Gomez
This is Solidarity
No Border Camps, autonomous zones meant to challenge border militarization and migration controls, were organized in Montreal and along the US/Mexico border in November 2007. In Montreal, migrants and their allies gathered at the Centre de prevention de l’immigration, the Laval immigration detention center, on November 10-11, to stand in solidarity with all those detained as part of the growing efforts to fortify borders and control the movement of people.
A short documentary of the event that details both the action and the realities of immigration detention was produced. It is entitled This is Solidarity.
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