I’m a photographer and sharing photos related to peace activities has been one of the main ways I’ve supported peace efforts throughout my life.

I found another way to think about activist photography recently. I usually take around 80 photos a day, which I often combine with hiking for exercise. I then select about 20 photos to share on my Facebook page. There are a small number of people who nearly daily “like” and sometimes comment on the photos.

I’ve noticed when I share photos related to justice there, no one comments.

I look forward to opportunities to take photos at justice events and have come to realize that I do that not only to support the activities, but also because I enjoy the challenge of taking photos in these dynamic and often tense situations.

Yesterday I took photos at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, related to the disappearing of Mahmoud Khalil. That word was also used during the gathering. For a long time, no one knew where he had been taken.

To disappear is the opposite of visualize.

Which is utterly symbolic of authoritarianism, which is obviously on the rise here. Authoritarian efforts must stamp out dissent, and that has been the focus of the current administration.

As I thought about sharing these photos, and thinking, again, no one will comment, I tried to express why I share these types of photos. I began with “I know we don’t necessarily agree on politics.” This time, a number of people “liked” the post.

Justice spaces

In order to maximize the visibility of peace and justice efforts, I share these photos on as many media platforms as possible. I begin by writing a blog post, like this one, that includes writing related to the event, and select some photos to include, on my main WordPress site, unflinching (https://unflinching.blog/)

Then I share that blog post on several Facebook groups, substack, BlueSky, Mastodon, and medium.com. Links to all those sites can be found on my Link Tree https://linktr.ee/jeffkisling

I’m more careful these days to try to avoid closeups of people’s faces, even though we all assume we’re being recorded by the authorities.

Fear?

One thing I heard during yesterday’s gather is, “we are living in scary times”. My Quaker faith helps a lot, but I am afraid that I will be arrested for doing these things. When my visualizations stop, that will mean I have been disappeared.

The following photos were taken at “Walk Out for Mahmoud” yesterday on the University of Wisconsin, Madison campus. Another rally is being organized by the Wisconsin Coalition for Justice in Palestine (WCJP), that I am a member of, in Milwaukee on Friday. I arrived at yesterday’s rally early and introduced myself to the small group of organizers getting ready. They were happy to hear of the support from the coalition.