By
on Monday, June 28th, 2010 |
No Comments
Check out these Photography images:
London’s Metropolitan Police Launches Anti Photography Propaganda Campaign
Image by Thomas Hawk
In what I can only view as troubling and a move surely to invite more backlash against photographers, London’s Metropolitan police has launched a new counter-terrorism PR campaign complete with anti-photography propaganda.
The campaign is meant to encourage people to turn in "odd" seeming people that they see taking photographs.
"Thousands of people take photos every day," reads their advertisement being run in London’s major newspapers. "What if one of them seems odd?"
Having personally been harassed in the past by the U.S. police while out shooting, I worry that this kind of a campaign will result in even more harassment for photographers going forward. In addition to police harassment, I think that this campaign also sends the wrong message to people about photographers and photography. I think it encourages people to think suspiciously of photographers and to add to the climate of fear associated with photography.
Photography is not a crime. Taking photographs is part of a rich tradition of art, social commentary and historical documentation. I’m very disappointed seeing London’s Metropolitan Police decide to take this course of action and worry that this sort of backward thinking will continue to spread the boogeyman myth that photographers and photography are the enemy when they very much are not.
Having people report "odd seeming" photographers will only take important police time away from ways that it could better be spent in really fighting crime and terrorism.
Thanks Nick for this important heads up.
On Digg here.
On reddit here.
On boing boing here.
Photography is Not a Crime
Image by Thomas Hawk
Tonight Flickr pals Ropeboy, Aqui-Ali and Ranjit and I all went down to Oakland’s warehouse district to shoot. No sooner had we begun than we were stopped and confronted by Sheriffs. They required each of us to turn over our IDs and then proceeded to detain us for about 20 minutes. Admitedly there is a small power plant and trains down in the district but ask yourself this, should carrying a camera result in this kind of harrasment? Should the police be able to randomly stop you and run your ID for warrants or a background check merely for being in the wrong place with a camera? There is a chill in the air in this country right now but I’m not sure that taking it out on the rights of photographers is the correct answer. We were committing no crime and peacefully assembling for the purpose of our passion, photography and it’s pursuit in a group that we all enjoy, Flickr.
This particular cop asked that I not take his photograph. I took this shot anyway when he wasn’t paying attention. As I understand it, freedom of the press involves the ability to photograph law enforcement and what some might view as an abuse of power.
If you want to read a lot more comments on the situation Boing Boing posted on the incident www.boingboing.net/2005/08/26/oakland_sheriffs_det.html and there are quite a few ensuing comments on my blog. thomashawk.com/2005/08/right-to-bear-cameras.html#comments
(out of 52 reviews)
(out of 50 reviews)
London’s Metropolitan Police Launches Anti Photography Propaganda Campaign
Check out these Photography images:
London’s Metropolitan Police Launches Anti Photography Propaganda Campaign
Image by Thomas Hawk
In what I can only view as troubling and a move surely to invite more backlash against photographers, London’s Metropolitan police has launched a new counter-terrorism PR campaign complete with anti-photography propaganda.
The campaign is meant to encourage people to turn in "odd" seeming people that they see taking photographs.
"Thousands of people take photos every day," reads their advertisement being run in London’s major newspapers. "What if one of them seems odd?"
Having personally been harassed in the past by the U.S. police while out shooting, I worry that this kind of a campaign will result in even more harassment for photographers going forward. In addition to police harassment, I think that this campaign also sends the wrong message to people about photographers and photography. I think it encourages people to think suspiciously of photographers and to add to the climate of fear associated with photography.
Photography is not a crime. Taking photographs is part of a rich tradition of art, social commentary and historical documentation. I’m very disappointed seeing London’s Metropolitan Police decide to take this course of action and worry that this sort of backward thinking will continue to spread the boogeyman myth that photographers and photography are the enemy when they very much are not.
Having people report "odd seeming" photographers will only take important police time away from ways that it could better be spent in really fighting crime and terrorism.
Thanks Nick for this important heads up.
On Digg here.
On reddit here.
On boing boing here.
Photography is Not a Crime
Image by Thomas Hawk
Tonight Flickr pals Ropeboy, Aqui-Ali and Ranjit and I all went down to Oakland’s warehouse district to shoot. No sooner had we begun than we were stopped and confronted by Sheriffs. They required each of us to turn over our IDs and then proceeded to detain us for about 20 minutes. Admitedly there is a small power plant and trains down in the district but ask yourself this, should carrying a camera result in this kind of harrasment? Should the police be able to randomly stop you and run your ID for warrants or a background check merely for being in the wrong place with a camera? There is a chill in the air in this country right now but I’m not sure that taking it out on the rights of photographers is the correct answer. We were committing no crime and peacefully assembling for the purpose of our passion, photography and it’s pursuit in a group that we all enjoy, Flickr.
This particular cop asked that I not take his photograph. I took this shot anyway when he wasn’t paying attention. As I understand it, freedom of the press involves the ability to photograph law enforcement and what some might view as an abuse of power.
If you want to read a lot more comments on the situation Boing Boing posted on the incident www.boingboing.net/2005/08/26/oakland_sheriffs_det.html and there are quite a few ensuing comments on my blog. thomashawk.com/2005/08/right-to-bear-cameras.html#comments