- Photograph by
- Oliver, Tommy, American, born 1984
- Subject of
- Unidentified Man or Men
- Unidentified Woman or Women
- Floyd, George Perry Jr., American, 1973 - 2020
- Santa Monica Police Department, American, founded 1897
- Date
- May 31, 2020
- Medium
- digital
- Dimensions
- H x W: 3446 pixels × 6720 pixels
- File size: 132.54 MB
- Caption
- Photographer Tommy Oliver is an award-winning producer and cinematographer in television and film. Best known for his 2020 documentary 40 Years a Prisoner on HBO, his docuseries Black Love (2017–2020) on OWN, and his feature film The Perfect Guy (2015), Oliver challenges audiences to question their assumptions about race, gender, and family. The film Kinyarwanda (2011), which Oliver co-produced, weaves together narratives of resilience during the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. It won the Sundance Film Festival’s award for World Cinema Drama and was recognized as one of the top 10 films of 2011. This photograph is part of a broader portfolio of images taken during Black Lives Matter rallies in Los Angeles between May 31 and June 14, 2020.
- Description
- A digital, black-and-white image of a large group of protesters facing a police line of twenty officers at a Black Lives Matter protest on Ocean Avenue, Santa Monica, California. The image was taken by Tommy Oliver during the protests that followed the death of George Floyd. The protesters are standing closely together, with their backs to the viewer. A woman at the center of the crowd of protesters holds up a white sign with handwritten, black, text that reads [tu lucha / es mi / lucha! / #BlackLivesMatter]. The sign holder is wearing dark spandex shorts, a black short sleeve T-shirt, and a backpack embellished with three pinback buttons on her back. Many of the protesters are wearing face masks and other types of protective face coverings. Some of the protesters are holding up signs and cell phones, and a few have their hands raised. In the left foreground, within the crowd of protesters, is a pedestrian signal with a street sign with white text that reads [Arizona / Ave / 100]. The protesters are standing catty-corner to the police line, at a four way stop with crosswalks. The officers are standing in a line, blocking off one of the crosswalks. Behind the officers, in the background, is a multi-storied brick building with white windows.
- Place captured
- Santa Monica, Los Angeles County, California, United States, North and Central America
- Classification
- Photographs and Still Images
- Movement
- Black Lives Matter
- African American - Latinx Solidarity
- Type
- digital images
- digital media - born digital
- Topic
- Activism
- Justice
- Photography
- Police brutality
- Race relations
- Resistance
- U.S. History, 2001-
- Urban life
- Credit Line
- Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Tommy and Codie Oliver
- Object number
- 2021.31.11
- Restrictions & Rights
- © Tommy Oliver
- Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.




