The Art of the Photograph

In reading the Conclusion of Epic Encounters, I found the topic of the snapshot to be very relevant to my photography senior thesis, in regards to how an image is represented and what we, as an audience, take away in our own interpretation of an image. The method of photography is a very unique form. It manages to capture a fleeting moment of time, forever preserving that passing moment into a tangible, static image. In our text, we are told that "what we know is inextricably intertwined with what we have seen recorded on film or in digital memory. By asking the right questions of a photograph, we may discover what rendered it powerful at a particular place and time...photographs invite us to see them as transparent representations, as a kind of historical record. Yet, photographs are inevitably fragments" (McAlister, 268). In this sense, I find photography to pose the same challenges as oral histories had in our text Watching Jim Crow. The passing of time allows for significant change in the meaning and context of a photograph, both on a personal and societal level.

At the time of 9/11, Americans were surveyed to feel a stronger, overall connection across racial and class divides. Once again, in a time of crisis, society united together. Captured by New Jersey photographer Thomas Franklin, the image of the three white NY firefighters raising the American flag amongst the rubble of the World Trade Center came to be the most nationally celebrated image of the tragic event. For a brief moment, class levels seemed to be in reverse, as all Americans banded together to honor the firefighters who helped save lives on that fateful day: "professionals, writers, and lawyers who had been "kings and queens of the city," were now cheering men who probably "hadn't been applauded since the day they danced... with their bride at their wedding" (272). Although the celebration of the working class (firefighters and policemen) is a positive example of American patriotism, Thomas Franklin's photograph of the three firefighters raises very critical issues of race as well.

In memory of the 343 NY firefighters that perished in the 9/11 attacks, a 19-foot statue replicating the famed photograph was to be erected at the NY Fire Department's headquarters in Brooklyn. However, the statue would differ from the photograph in that the three men would be portrayed as three different races- one black, one white, and one hispanic - in order to make the historic image more politically correct. Yet, in reality, these three American heroes were white men. According to the NY Fire Department spokesperson, Frank Gribbon, the statue was supposed to be symbolic of the sacrifices made by all who died- regardless of race and ethnicity. "... ultimately a decision was made to honor no one in particular, but everyone who made the supreme sacrifice," Gribbon claimed. Kevin James, a black firefighter and member of the Vulcan society (an organization supporting black and Latino firefighters), said: "The symbolism is far more important than representing the actual people. I think the artistic expression of diversity would supersede any concern over factual correctness." Additionally, race experts believe that having men from different races would better represent the NY Fire Department as a whole, as the 11,500-person department is comprised of approximately 2.7% blacks, 3.2% Hispanic, and 94.1% Caucasian.

Okay. Just looking at these statistics, the fire department's racial composition is not in the LEAST bit equally divided. Not to say that it has to be, but I feel the numbers completely negate the goal of creating a politically correct piece, when there is such racial discrepancy in the department itself. Syndicated columnist Walter Williams believes that, "sometimes facts, history and photographs are not politically correct and must be changed". Yet, doesn't this mean that you'd ultimately be rewriting history? Many people, regardless of their own race, had problems with the decision to change the race of the firefighters. Many believed that of all times where political correctness would be valid and appropriate, why chose this moment? The statue was meant to symbolize a historical memory based on a photograph that was extremely representative of the 9/11 attacks. It in no mean was meant to be a political statement, or a political piece of art. Do you think if the statue was erected representing different raced, it would embody a political rather than historical meaning? Additionally, do you feel this action would be a disservice to the three white firefighters actually represented in Thomas Franklin's photograph?