I have been a witness, and these pictures are my testimony. The events I have recorded should not be forgotten and must not be repeated.
James NachtweyRead
If you want to connect with people who are in distress and great grief and scared, you need to do it in a certain way. I move kind of slow. I talk kind of slow. I let them know that I respect them.
Interpretation
To effectively connect with those in distress, one must approach with patience and respect.
James Nachtwey emphasizes the importance of approaching individuals who are experiencing grief and fear with a sense of respect and a gentle demeanor. His method of moving and speaking slowly serves as a way to demonstrate empathy and understanding, making it easier for those in distress to feel safe and supported.
In practice
During a counseling session, share this quote to illustrate the importance of empathy.
I have been a witness, and these pictures are my testimony. The events I have recorded should not be forgotten and must not be repeated.
I became a photographer in order to be a war photographer, and a photographer involved in what I thought were critical social issues. From the very beginning this was my goal.
I don't think tragic situations are necessarily devoid of beauty.
I try to use whatever I know about photography to be of service to the people I'm photographing.
[Photography] puts a human face on issues which, from afar, can appear abstract or ideological or monumental in their global impact.
If Im feeling outraged, grief, disbelief, frustration, sympathy, that gets channeled through me and into my pictures and hopefully transmitted to the viewer.
I think that, for so much of our matriculation through American society, black people sort of feel like outsiders.
When you are young, you think it's going to be solved by love. But it never is. Being close -- as close as you can get -- to another person only makes clear that impassable distance between you.' If being in love only made people more lonely, why would everyone want it so much?' Because of the illusion. You fall in love, it's intoxicating, and for a little while you feel like you've actually become one with the other person. Merged souls and so on. You think you'll never be lonely again.
I’ve built a wall around me, never letting anybody inside and trying not to venture outside myself
Listen to me. I’m shy. I’m not stupid. I can’t meet people’s eyes. I don’t know if you understand what that’s like. There’s a whole world going on around me, I’m aware of that. It’s not because I don’t want to look at you, Lucinda. It’s that I don’t want to be seen.
Within the lesbian community I am Black, and within the Black community I am a lesbian. Any attack against Black people is a lesbian and gay issue, because I and thousands of other Black women are part of the lesbian community. Any attack against lesbians and gays is a Black issue, because thousands of lesbians and gay men are Black. There is no hierarchy of oppression.
If you limit yourself to sexual pleasure it's narcissistic. You don't connect with the other, you take what pleasure you want from them.
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