Yesterday, 23 November, I stumbled upon a very large and vocal march through the streets of Paris that was directed against domestic violence towards women. What really struck me were the handmade signs carried by many men and women of all ages expressing anger and sorrow at the lack of action in this area by the French government, which many see as deliberately turning a blind eye to the problem.
These are images straight out of my camera, with no attempts made to make them pretty. I have done a loose translation in the captions of the main signs that you see in each photo. If you want more details about the march, check out this BBC report.
Male executioner (Note: In French this word combination sounds a lot like Marlboro). To be born a woman kills. (Note: the wording of this warning matches that on cigarette packaging.)
Sexism kills. Feminism saves.
We teach our boys about consent and what happens if the state does it? No is no!
Red smoke. (I am not sure of the symbolism here.)
My body belongs to me. In France 2019 there is a rape every 7 minutes. We are all concerned.
Not a single one more. The state is not protecting us.
Four out of five handicapped women are victims of violence. The state is complicit.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Powerful post, thanks for sharing. (I began following your blog for your beautiful wildlife pics, but am quite enjoying your foray into different subject matter on this Paris trip.)
Thank for sticking with me, Karen, as I have made this three-week detour. My subject matter here in Paris, as you have seen, has been quite different from my normal postings, but most readers who have commented have enjoyed being with me in Paris through my images and commentary.
These are very powerful images. You could be a news photographer! The first and fourth are particularly powerful.
Thanks, Nina. It was a large jostling crowd and it was a challenge to get clear, unobstructed shots, but as with most of my other photography, I persisted and got some pretty good results.The first shot is one of my favorites, with a large graphic subject, though it does not give a sense of the crowd. The fourth image, which I assume you mean the one with the red smoke, was the time when I moved the most from the perch I was occupying. The smoke looks pretty thick, but it dissipated quickly, so I had a limited window of opportunity to photograph it.
Thank you for choosing to capture these. November 25 was International Day for Elimination of Violence against Women. These are important.
Thanks. I was very impressed by what I saw in Paris.