I
’ve been waiting for years
for a show to be made
about
photographers.
The thrill of following light,
seeking out stories
and
composing
masterpieces
offers
the
perfect
ingredients
for
a
captivating
story.
Enter:
Netflix.
Netflix
recently
introduced
the
Australian
series
“Tales
by
Light,”
which
follows
an
expert photographer
in each episode. Needless to say,
I binge-watched the first season,
but something about the episode
“Tribes” disturbed me. The show
documents
photographer
Art
Wolfe in Papua New Guinea as he
attempts to “record what might
not exist too far into the future.”
He speaks throughout the
episode of his “obligation” to
photograph the peoples, cultures
and traditions of the places
he visits. Is this photographer
“running around third world
countries
objectifying
their
subjects to the fullest extent,” as
one reviewer put it, any different
from the influx of so-called
humanitarian selfies seen on
social media post-Spring Break?
As alternative Spring Breakers
gear up for their trips of a lifetime,
it’s imperative they strongly
consider replacing phones with
full-on philanthropy.
To get a sense for the selfie
epidemic — a selfidemic, if
you will — everyone going on
an alternative Spring Break
should
pay
a
visit
to
the
viral blog, Humanitarians of
Tinder. The page provides a
steady flow of Tinder profiles
featuring
seemingly
well-off
20-somethings
posing
with
impoverished
individuals
in
foreign countries. It doesn’t take
long for an innocent selfie taken
with a kid in a school, orphanage
or clinic to go through editing,
filtering and captioning, directly
reducing it from memory to
marketing material. Don’t see
the problem? At the center of this
issue is the greater conversation
on
voluntourism,
the
ugly
American
and
the
white savior complex.
Unsurprisingly, many
of these problems are
evident in Art Wolfe’s
travels in “Tales by
Light” and in many
of our ASB Facebook
albums.
When
we,
as
students, go abroad
in
service,
what
do
we
stand
to
gain? Are we widening our
worldviews? Or are we going
abroad
for
popularity
and
profit? In the end, it’s a mixture
of both. When Art Wolfe travels
to Papua New Guinea out of a
self-given obligation to preserve
the
cultures
of
indigenous
tribes, he’s also focusing on the
expansion of his photographic
curriculum vitae. And that’s
fine. But we have to be critical
about serving abroad in order
to increase our social media
presence when doing so comes
at the cost of the service itself.
It took a full year of reflection
on my freshman year week-
long ASB in Guatemala to come
to terms with this. I went on
my first ASB as the student
photographer in 2015 and took
tens of thousands of photos
for our host organization. The
photos were to be used for
donor recruitment — in a word,
marketing. But to be fair, it was
altruistic marketing with the
goal of sustaining development
efforts in Guatemala. Each photo
began with my asking to take
their photo, a scrambled, “¿Puedo
tomar tu foto?” and was followed
by uncomfortable smiles amid a
firing of my camera shutter.
Eventually it got easier to take
photos without receiving full
consent. I assumed everyone
would want their photo taken
and wouldn’t care what was to
be done with the picture. The
same kind of socially required
permission to photograph in the
United States is thrown out the
window when we, as student
volunteers, begin documenting
our
trips.
Throughout
the
“Tales by Light” episode, I
uncomfortably
watched
as
the
photographer
decorated
multiple Papuans with paint
and photographed them as full-
fledged models. What would
constitute participation in the
modeling industry in the United
States is free labor from the
Papuan. But this is an idea that
escapes many. When we post pics
with our friends, we tag them,
and they presumably receive the
benefits of social recognition.
When we photograph models,
we pay them, either in publicity
or money. Why don’t we afford
these same benefits to the people
(read: “fellow human beings”)
we serve?
I made a decision to put down
the camera during my second
year in Guatemala and couldn’t
be happier with my decision. My
focus shifted from self-promotion
to service. My concern was no
longer photographing the child
on his way to getting his vitals
checked, but checking his vitals
and monitoring his health. So my
greatest exhortation to anyone
going on an ASB: Think about
why you’re going. Think about
the people you’re serving and
what they deserve and whether
or not you want to partially
deliver. Don’t make the same
mistakes I did; be deliberate in
your presence and treat everyone
with the same respect you wish
to be treated with.
A viral and satirical Instagram
account, @barbiesavior, really
drives the point home. Complete
with captions like: “Just taking
a #slumfie amidst this dire
poverty and need. Feeling so
#blessed and #thankful,” Barbie
Savior highlights the issues we
can get caught up in when we
place posting over people.
I
want to thank Senate
Majority Leader Mitch
McConnell.
Not
for
his public service record or
anything like that;
I am not a fan of
him
and
do
not
support any of his
political
beliefs.
No, I want to thank
him for accidentally
giving
Democrats,
feminists and anyone
else who does not
agree with Trump’s
appointments
or
actions
their
next
rallying cry.
By now, I’m sure everyone
has seen the instantly iconic
phrase
“Nevertheless,
She
Persisted”
or
#LetLizSpeak
on Twitter or Instagram. On
Tuesday night, during a Senate
debate on the nomination of
Jeff
Sessions,
Democratic
Sen.
Elizabeth
Warren
(Mass.) read a 1986 letter
written by Coretta Scott King
in which King argued against
confirming Sessions for a
federal judgeship. But, Sen.
McConnell interrupted her by
citing a rule, one that is rarely
used, meant to keep a certain
level of civility in the Senate.
I’m not surprised that he
tried to quiet his opponent. I
would expect that from any
politician,
especially
one
who refused to hold hearings
to fill the vacant seat left by
Antonin Scalia, former U.S.
Supreme Court justice. But
I wonder what he thought
would happen when he tried
to shut up one of the most
vocal Democratic voices in the
country. Did he really think
that a woman who exchanged
blows with Donald Trump on
Twitter and joined protesters
in a Boston airport following
Trump’s travel ban would
stop speaking?
McConnell
should
have
realized that any attempt to
silence her would have the
opposite effect. Sen. Warren
is not someone who will sit
quietly in the background
if you tell her to. She was
barred
from
speaking
on
the Senate floor, so she said
what she needed to outside
of the Senate and
broadcasted it to
millions of people.
Whether or not you
warn her against
doing
something,
she will do what she
feels needs to be
done. If anything,
attempts made to
silence her, like the
one
on
Tuesday,
will just make more
people listen to her and make
her message more potent.
I hate the fact that attempts
to
silence
progressive
female politicians continue
to happen, but I love what
follows.
When
Trump
or
McConnell
try
to
dismiss
their opponents, the result
is never what they intended.
With Trump, it was “Nasty
Woman”;
with
McConnell
it
is
“Nevertheless,
She
Persisted.”
In
both
cases,
these
statements
were
reclaimed and used to band
women together. They gave
us great memes and slogans
for shirts, but they also gave
many women something they
could connect to. This shows
that there are people, masses
of people, who oppose the
limits Trump attempts to
set on freedom and who will
support each other in the
fight against him.
Sen. Warren, and other
senators
fighting
against
Trump, give me hope that he
will not just stomp on and
tear down what people have
worked hard to achieve. I
need this reassurance.
For the past few months,
national political news has
seemed like a constant stream
of disappointments. Watching
Trump
be
inaugurated
as
president, hearing the news
of
the
confirmations
of
Betsy DeVos as secretary of
education and Jeff Sessions
as attorney general and seeing
the anger and frustration of
my friends leaves me worried.
The people who are coming to
power have records showing
that they are unfit for these
jobs and that they do not have
everyone’s best interest in
mind. They want to bring the
old rules of the game back;
the ones that say if you’re not
rich, white and male, you may
as well count yourself out and
watch while the boys play.
Seeing
this
political
shift
is
discouraging,
but
this shift has forced people
out
of
complacency.
It
has encouraged people to
take a more active role in
government; this is obvious
by the amount of protesters
at the Women’s March and
even in late-night shows. It
brings attention to the voices
of
minorities
and
other
marginalized groups because
Trump will affect everyone.
Hopefully, this activism and
inclusion will continue. We
need to keep this attitude
and
sustain
this
energy;
we cannot allow the events
Trump has orchestrated to
become the norm. We need
to stay vigilant, not just
right now but always, to
ensure that the government
is filled with people like
Elizabeth Warren, who does
not just advocate for the rich
and ignore the concerns of
minorities like Betsy DeVos
or Jeff Sessions do.
Warren’s actions, those of
other senators speaking out
against Trump’s nominations
and actions and the protests
that
followed
Trump’s
election win and travel ban
show that no one is going to
quietly take their seat. People
will speak whether Trump
or Sen. McConnell want to
hear it or not. Any attempt to
silence us will only make us
louder. If you try to stop us or
to warn us, nevertheless, we
will persist.
Opinion
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
4A — Wednesday, February 15, 2017
REBECCA LERNER
Managing Editor
420 Maynard St.
Ann Arbor, MI 48109
tothedaily@michigandaily.com
Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan since 1890.
EMMA KINERY
Editor in Chief
ANNA POLUMBO-LEVY
and REBECCA TARNOPOL
Editorial Page Editors
Unsigned editorials reflect the official position of the Daily’s Editorial Board.
All other signed articles and illustrations represent solely the views of their authors.
Carolyn Ayaub
Megan Burns
Samantha Goldstein
Caitlin Heenan
Jeremy Kaplan
Max Lubell
Alexis Megdanoff
Madeline Nowicki
Anna Polumbo-Levy
Jason Rowland
Ali Safawi
Kevin Sweitzer
Rebecca Tarnopol
Ashley Tjhung
Stephanie Trierweiler
EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS
#LetLizSpeak
COREY DULIN | COLUMN
Selfies not for service
IBRAHIM IJAZ | COLUMN
Ibrahim Ijaz can be reached at
iijaz@umich.edu.
Corey Dulin can be reached at
cydulin@umich.edu.
L
ast
Tuesday,
racist
emails were sent to the
University of Michigan
computer
science
and
engineering email list. Three
days later, Students4Justice
organized
an
emergency
protest and sit-in to denounce
white supremacy, racism and
bigotry and to call for action by
the University administration
to create a more inclusive
environment on campus.
As the protest commenced
last Thursday on the Diag, I sat
in the Michigan Union’s quiet
Reading Room, unaware that
the organizers were planning
the sit-in and protest in the
same building. By afternoon
the protesters could be heard
marching down State Street,
passionately
chanting,
“If
you’re with us, join us!” and
ascending into the Union,
where
they
distributed
a
letter of demands directed
to the University president,
administration and Central
Student
Government.
The
attendees
and
organizers
protested
in
the
Reading
Room as well, urging those
studying and quietly working
to join the protest. But a
majority of people packed
their things and left.
The discomfort I felt when
the protesters walked into the
Reading Room and the reaction
from those who decided to
leave troubled me. Though I
decided to join the sit-in, I was
conflicted. Over the past few
weeks, I have questioned how
my anger toward the political
climate can be channeled to
effect change.
Ending racism, misogyny
and xenophobia calls for broad
support
and
participation.
With Trump as president,
combating
discrimination
and seeking reparations for
hate speech and crimes will
be an ongoing struggle. White
supremacists,
like
those
who sent the racist emails,
feel emboldened, no doubt,
by Trump’s success in the
election. Richard Spencer’s
“Hail Trump” speech at the
“alt-right”
conference
in
November is an example of
this sentiment.
So, the question remains:
How do we build a broader
political coalition to resist
dangerous government actions
and hateful speech?
Sometimes, forceful protest
will be necessary. Actions by
the Trump administration, and
his extremist supporters, have
had a threatening impact on
the lives of minorities, women
and immigrants. His executive
orders and cabinet appointees
threaten to further disempower
the already oppressed and
vulnerable. These actions need
to be opposed with strong, civil
expressions
of
disapproval.
Jeff Session’s appointment as
attorney general presents an
imminent threat to civil rights.
The executive order banning
refugees from several Middle
Eastern and African countries
was targeted toward Muslims
and thus was discriminatory.
Hate speech, like the racist
emails,
poses
a
threat
to
people’s
lives
by
inciting
violence
against
minorities.
The list goes on.
Furthermore, protests like
the one in the Union or like the
protests carried out in airports
across the country in response
to the Muslim ban should
not wane. It is necessary to
continue to advocate for the
people whose lives are affected
by hateful actions.
In order to continue the
momentum
of
resistance,
however,
we
need
broader
coalition
building:
The
organizers needed everyone in
the Reading Room to join the
protest.
On campus, we strive to
promote
inclusivity.
The
initiatives set forth by the
University’s Diversity, Equity
and Inclusion plan have created
programs to teach incoming
students about diversity and
political
correctness
during
orientation. With good reason,
then, we begin our college
career cautious to approach
sensitive topics.
But this poses a problem:
Avoiding a controversial topic
out of fear of criticism, or
critically denouncing our peers
for using potentially offensive
language, limits discussion; it
shoves difficult issues aside.
In our classes we restrain
ourselves from expressing our
opinions on difficult issues
— if we avoid talking about
race, at least we won’t say
anything racist. Associating
ourselves
with
like-minded
people protects us from having
our
opinions
challenged.
However,
this
inhibits
us
from
developing
a
deeper
understanding of the problems
facing minorities. We need to
create an environment where
discussion about controversial
issues is encouraged.
So, engage in open dialogue.
Work together to understand
how
non-politically
correct
language can have harmful
implications.
Be
open
to
criticism and be willing to
point out when assumptions
about others are biased.
If
the
vulnerable
and
disempowered
in
society
continue
to
be
threatened
by actions from the Trump
administration — and by his
extremist supporters inciting
violence
—
organizations
advocating for change will
need stronger coalitions to
resist. Being open to speaking
to people who look, sound and
think
differently
than
you
do and reaching out to your
peers, including the ones who
are
apolitical
or
generally
apathetic,
is
crucial
for
mobilizing a broader base of
allies over the next four years.
Now is not the time to
ignore the demands of those
who feel threatened. And
it is not the responsibility
of minorities to teach the
world why they must chant
their demands so loudly. By
working
together
we
can
build greater understanding
and unity in the face of
oppression.
Mobilize against Trump
SARAH KHAN | OP-ED
Sarah Khan is a Public Policy junior.
IBRAHIM
IJAZ
COREY
DULIN
SUBMIT TO SURVIVORS SPEAK
The Michigan Daily’s Opinion section is seeking additions to Survivors
Speak, a series of first-person accounts of campus sexual assault
and its corresponding personal, academic and legal implications.
Submissions will be due by March. 10 at 11:59PM. Visit http://bit.
ly/2kIeoMq for more information.
— Sen. Richard Burr, chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee,
on Tuesday.
“
NOTABLE QUOTABLE
We are aggressively going to continue
the oversight responsibilities of the
committee as it relates to not only the
Russian involvement in the 2016 election
but again any contacts by any campaign
individuals that might have happened
with Russian government officials.
”