Over the past few years, Nashvillian protesters have shown up in support of Black Lives Matter, the People’s Plaza, abortion rights and the rights of unhoused people — not to mention the protesters and counter-protesters who showed up to demonstrate over health care for transgender kids. Through all of it, protest photographers keep me informed. And since it’s been a busy few years for activists, the same is true for our city’s photojournalists.
The photos are perhaps the most important part of any protest. We see how many people are there, the aesthetics of those involved, their expressions, the tone of the event. The cardboard signs they hold can live on for years. Those are the things I remember thinking back on a protest event, even if I was there to write a story about it. Photos make a protester a part of history.
We rely on some great photographers here at the Nashville Scene. Independent protest photographers and those at other news outlets put themselves in harm’s way, and some don’t even get paid to be there — they do it because they have a pure commitment to the cause.
We have to document these conflicts well, in the hopes that we’ll be able to look back and see that things have improved. Thanks to protest photographers, who make sure we don’t forget what things are like in the heat of the moment.
—Hannah Herner
Health Care Reporter, Nashville Scene and Nashville Post
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