Ann Arbor Photographic Arts
A Staircase of Creative Expression
The immigration and asylum policies in America were changed by President Trump’s administration to where immigrant children were separated from their parents. This change drew massive protests at rallies across the country to stop this inhumane treatment.
In Ann Arbor, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell and others addressed the crowds on the University of Michigan’s campus. On that hot day, June 30, 2018, forceful stories were video recorded by Ann Arbor Photographic Arts, providing comprehensive coverage of this important time in America’s political activism history. View Rep. Dingell’s stirring speech and all the other speakers that are in our galleries.
But beyond belief, these frightful stories were eclipsed in this first week of August 2019. A mass killing of 22 Hispanics in El Paso, Texas by a white terrorist armed with an assault weapon was followed by another mass shooting in Dayton, Ohio. That was followed by the largest ICE raid arresting 680 undocumented workers in food processing plants in Mississippi.
Children and parents were traumatized by the cruelty, and some say torture, executed with the encouragement from an illegitimate, white supremacist President. Our country showed the world a sick, Nazi face. We are not in a reality TV show for entertainment but an entertainment of demagoguery and ugly power of greedy men executing a RICO conspiracy to take even more of the world’s material riches.
We at Ann Arbor Photographic Arts will still fight to create and create to fight. Art and activism goes together, here. View our new photo design animation video, “Asylum Seekers and Families Are Not Criminals” and all of the other photography and video in our political action galleries.
On May 31, 2019 the ACLU of Michigan joined in a National Day of Action to fight for safe abortion access with a rally in Ann Arbor for reproductive freedoms. It was held in the Diag of the University of Michigan. The keynote speaker was Cecile Richards.
The ACLU partnered with Planned Parenthood, NextGen, Equality Michigan and others to fight back against the blatant attempts in many states across the nation to gut Roe v Wade and criminalize health care.
Ann Arbor Photographic Arts was there with a Panasonic FZ2500 to video record and document, in 4K, the entire hour and a half rally. To see and hear all of its many speakers, click on the youtube video link.
Plus, Maria roved with a Panasonic FZ1000 to capture action shots of the protesters with their signs and messages, highlighting the dire situations women are being subjected to. “Women’s rights are human rights.” This is a call to action! Visit the photo galleries for more.
Memorial Day is special for Ann Arbor Photographic Arts as it has covered the parades and ceremonies for years. This year was memorable for its in depth look into stories at Ypsilanti’s Highland Cemetery following the Memorial Day Ceremony.
Click to see our video including interviews from Chaplin Lawrence Vollink, DAR member Roberta Kemp, EMU history students Jay Frye and Lacey Opdycke, and Willow Run Chapter of the Civil Air Patrol volunteer Norman Terry. The sights and sounds of the day were captured with the live video vignettes followed by a photographic slideshow. in the video as well as still images captured in our photo gallery store.
It was a beautiful, sunny day that helped us reflect on the heroism, sadness and tribulations of soldiers for every nation who have fought and are fighting in the world’s wars. May the valiant be secure and rest in peace and those safe at home be vigilant in sending a constant message for peace. And click on the gallery story that includes an album of photo designs on a playful spinner.
The Hon. Damon J. Keith’s life was celebrated May 13, 2019 with a service at the Hartford Memorial Baptist Church in Detroit Michigan. When he passed away at age 96, he was still a jurist on the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals and still mentoring at the service through those sharing memories of his legendary accomplishments.
Keith had deep connections to Detroit, Wayne State University School of Law and civic organizations. He was a jurist of national stature. Dignitaries from Michigan and across the nation came to pay their respects.
Ann Arbor Photographic Arts became acquainted with Judge Keith when it photo documented the Civil Rights Museum at Wayne State School of Law in 2012. It’s one of the albums in our collection of galleries on this website.
We attended the satellite feed of the funeral service on Wayne State’s campus and video recorded the ClickonDetroit telecast from that auditorium. There we met Peter Hammer, one of the authors of Keith’s biography, Crusader for Justice, professor in the Wayne Law School and Director of the Damon J. Keith Center for Civil Rights. Thanks to Wayne, where a2photographic’s founder Maria Koukios received her BFA degree in photography, we were able to witness, record and share the outpourings of love and reverence for Keith’s life and work.
Our photo journalistic endeavor was a blessing and timely for today’s urgently needed activism for social justice. Judge Keith ruled in his pivotal case: “Democracies die behind closed doors”. It is now Donald Trump who is in need of a “Keith correction”. Click on the button below to visit our Judge Damon Keith photo/video galleries. Our democracy is in peril and must not perish. Judge Keith sounded the alarm. See more in our galleries.