[Leica] Kyle Cassidy and the NYPD

[locke at straylight.ca (Greg Locke)]

Kyle,

First, I most certainly feel for your situation and experience. Been there,
done that ...and got the stitches to show for it ...but some great pictures,
too. That?s the reality of society and our business.
You have a great story to tell and one that MUST be told to your fellow
countrymen because .... Well, I won't get into that.

...although, Ted's suggestion of Goth Grrrls in Bora Bora seems like a
better gig at our age.

Second, after being there a few times you will learn to never walk WITH
protestors and NEVER, NEVER, NEVER get between them and the goons with the
sticks.

Keep some separation! Walk to the side, walk backing up and shooting BUT
ALWAYS place yourself in a position where you are separated from the pact
and don't look like a protestor. ALWAYS have a exit plan and route that is
AWAY from the cops AND protestors. Let them do battle and you shoot from the
edge.

Evan if the cops don?t want you, once they decide they are "closing it down"
and you are "inside" you are going with the pack. As Marc says, you can
never win when the guy has a gun and a lot of his buddies for back up.

Third, press credentials don?t mean squat if the police or security forces
have a task to do.
In NYC it was to harass, detain, disrupt and otherwise scare off protestors
and journalists alike.

This is not about right or wrong but basic street survival. You think NY was
bad, you should take in a WTO protest if you want to see the "power of the
state". The people in your pictures are na?ve, honest folk who believe in
the ideals of their country and constitution but they got a hard lesson in
the reality of "democracy". 

The role of the documentary photographer is to document that clash of ideals
and the turning point in a society.

Sometimes using Leica's helps by not drawing attention to yourself. BUT, 4
SLR's, big lenses and a photo vest help more at other times because you WANT
to be easily identified and separate from the crowd. 

Greg Locke
St. John's, Newfoundland
http://blog.greglocke.com