Through These Realities

Through These Realities challenges the narratives of mass media that invalidate the experiences of Black, Indigenous, Latinx, Asian & Pacific Islander, and People of Color (POC) through the interactions of poetry and photography.
Poetry stands in opposition to the way by which information is consumed online. Popular media overwhelms, commands excessive interaction (e.g., social media use), and can negatively affect cognitive function and emotional well being. In contrast, poetry can uplift, calls upon readers to reflect, promotes attention to unseen connections, and new ways of thinking.
Photojournalism, too, offers insight into moments that most cannot or will not see. Here, in conjunction with poetry, photography is transformed from a tool of external documentation into one of internal representation.
Artists of color will use poetry and photography to validate their realities, reveal the discrepancies between the dominant culture, and solidify the normality of POC living in the everyday.