Photograph by
Oliver, Tommy, American, born 1984
Subject of
Unidentified Man or Men
Unidentified Woman or Women
Floyd, George Perry Jr., American, 1973 - 2020
Weber, Anthony, American, 2001 - 2018
Lacey, Jackie, American, born 1957
Black Lives Matter - Los Angeles, American, founded 2013
Date
June 3, 2020
Medium
digital
Dimensions
H x W: 4480 pixels × 6720 pixels
File size: 172.3 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 mass of protesters at a Black Lives Matter - Los Angeles protest against District Attorney Jackie Lacey at Grand Park in Downtown Los Angeles, California. The image was taken by Tommy Oliver during the protests that followed the death of George Floyd. Taken from the steps of City Hall, the image looks down at the crowd and is filled with protesters. Many of the protesters are wearing face masks or other protective face coverings and carrying raised protest signs. In the right midground is a large banner that is spread out in a horizontal orientation amongst the protesters. A large white sign with handwritten dark text in the right foreground, reads [“A.J.” / WEBER / ANTHONY / WE[BER?]]. The top text is framed on either side with indistinct images. Other fully visible signs on the left side of the crowd read [BLM], [WHO DO U / CALL WHEN / THE POLICE / ? MURDERS / ?????], [DEFUND THE / POLICE], [PROSECUTE / KILLER COPS], [BLACK / LIVES / MATTER], and [Educators / for / BLACK / LIVES]. Some visible signs at the center read [“WE NOT DOWN / WITH DA KLAN” / RIP BIG FLOYD], [None of us / are FREE / until / ALL / of / of / us / [a]re / FREE], and [We will be / ANGRY[underlined] / until / We are set / FREE[underlined]!!!]. One white sign at the center has black marker text that reads [BLACK / LIVES / MATTER] with [#SAY THEIR / NAMES] in the top left corner,[FUCK 12[underlined] / [---?] in the bottom left corner, [#ANTIRACIST] in the bottom right corner, and [My kid / will read / about this in / history class. / What an / Embarrassment] in the top left corner. On the far right, towards the back of the crowd is another fully visible sign that reads [I / CAN’T / BREATHE]. In the background is a freestanding squared column with punched out text in multiple languages, sizes, orientations, and fonts. The English text on the right side of the column reads [GRAND / PARK / the park for / everyone]. In the background, is a row of leafy trees and a lamppost with red and yellow banners hanging from either side.
Place captured
Downtown LA, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California, United States, North and Central America
Classification
Photographs and Still Images
Movement
Black Lives Matter
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
2021.31.39
Restrictions & Rights
© Tommy Oliver
Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
GUID
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/fd5b037a4cc-1c68-4f2e-9623-314361fdf411

Cataloging is an ongoing process and we may update this record as we conduct additional research and review. If you have more information about this object, please contact us at NMAAHCDigiTeam@si.edu

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