War Photographers

photo from theodysseyonline.com

I just watched a fascinating documentary about war photographer James Nachtwey. Here is an excerpt from something he said at the end:

     "Why photograph war? Is it possible to put an end to a form of human behavior which has existed throughout history by means of photography? The proportions of that notion seem ridiculously out of balance, yet that very idea has motivated me. For me, the strength of photography lies in its ability to evoke a sense of humanity. If war is an attempt to negate humanity, then photography can be perceived as the opposite of war. And if its used well, it can be a powerful ingredient in the antidote to war.

"In a way, if an individual assumes the risk of placing himself in the middle of a war in order to communicate to the rest of the world what is happening, he's trying to negotiate for peace. Perhaps that's the reason why those in charge of perpetuating war do not like to have photographers around. In the field, what you experience is extremely immediate; what you see is not an image in a magazine thousands of miles away with an advertisement for Rolex watches on the next page. What you see is unmitigated pain, injustice and misery.

"It's occurred to me that if everyone could be there just once to see for themselves what white phosphorous does to the face of a child, or what unspeakable pain is caused by the impact of a single bullet, or how a jagged piece of shrapnel can rip someone's leg off -  if everyone could be there to see for themselves the fear and the grief just one time, then they would understand that nothing is worth letting things get to the point where that happens to even one person, let alone thousands.
But everyone cannot be there, and that is why photographers go there - to show them, to reach out and grab them and make them stop what they're doing and pay attention what is going on - to create pictures powerful enough to overcome the deluding effects of the mass media and shake people out of their indifference - to protest. And by the strength of that protest, to make others protest."