Above: Untitled, Washington, D.C., 1963. The Gordon Parks Foundation.
Legacy of ActivismGordon Parks went on to accomplish many things outside of Life. He was the author of eighteen books, and the first African American to write and direct a major Hollywood film.
"We live in an age of quick celebrity, where people become famous for not really doing much of anything. Gordon Parks earned everything he ever got. He made countless contributions to art and politics, and through his work and his life was an important agent of social change." |
Nevertheless, Parks’ Civil Rights photography for Life Magazine remains some of his most influential work. Prior to Segregation Story, there were not many images available to the public that showed African Americans in a respectable light. These images were a sharp contrast to previous photos published in Life and other mainstream press. Parks’ photos on segregation were revolutionary and paved the way for other notable Civil Rights photographers, such as Charles Moore, Bruce Davidson and Danny Lyon.
Photography is still one of the most effective ways to bring about social change. It remains a powerful medium that is capable of raising awareness of worldwide issues. In recent times, documentary photography has been used to highlight natural disasters, shootings, building collapses, and many other catastrophes. |
A Great Black Photographer Remembers, 2009. Youtube.
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Through Gordon Parks’ exploration of race relations, Americans became more aware of the nation’s problems surrounding discrimination. His photographs publicized the barriers that blacks encountered in an unaccepting society, and captured the everyday hardships of the era, as well as the people who were trying to repair them. In addition to this, Parks’ photos allowed whites to expand their minimal knowledge of African Americans for a more compassionate understanding of them. |