Tuesday 29 November 2016

Mark Bennington | America 2.0


Photo © Mark Bennington - Courtesy Huffington Post
Donald J. Trump is calling for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country's representatives can figure out what is going on,” his campaign said in a release. June 28, 2016
I never thought I'd see a fascist running for President of the United States, and win the election on a platform of hatred, misogyny, racism and discrimination...but one did.

I was thrilled to see Mark Bennington's America 2.0 portraits which, as he describes them, are his direct response "to the politicized images of American Muslims depicted as a plagued foreign diaspora". He found it to be the time to start this project that dealt with the aspirations of ordinary people, and give them a voice through his portraits and interviews.

Reading these young and accomplished people's thoughts is an eye-opener. It is what our country is all about : E pluribus unum, the 13-letter traditional motto of the United States of America; the "Out of many, one" which is at the core of our very strength. It's not the febrile election campaign's loose and empty talk from a fascist that can and will ever change that.

The Huffington Post also featured America 2.0 here.

Mark Bennington is a portrait photographer based in New York City who travels for commercial/corporate/editorial assignments and personal projects. He was also an adjunct professor of photography at S.I. Newhouse School. His first book "Living the Dream: The Life of the 'Bollywood' Actor" will release in December 2016 (HarperCollins).

REI | De Las Flores

REI by Tewfic El-Sawy on on Exposure