Meet Jacob (Danger) Riis.
Well okay, his middle name isn't Danger but, it might as well be since he's so badass....looking. Look at the way he's posing his left arm, it says "I don't give a turd what you think about me, I'm here to exploit the rich and evils of corporate America! Powaaa to the poor!"
So what makes him a photographer of justice? Well take a look at his tenement photography and you shall see why.
This picture taken by Riis in 1888 of three boys sleeping on a...yep that's right, a barrel, staircase and each other. Now, if you were to give a caption to this photo, what would it say? If not a
caption, what do you feel when seeing this picture?Jacob Riis yet again, prowls the night and finds people about to sleep and snaps pictures of them. Oh and did I mention that Riis used flash powder at the time so that he could capture pictures in the dark and inside tenements? Imagine how this guy felt, just about to fall asleep on his barrel bed and Riis jumps out and with a bright light says, "cheese sleepy head!" I'd want to beat Riis to bloody pulp but, that's why he's so bad-ass.
On a more serious note, look at the setting of the photo. What are his eyes saying?
(GTFO! Just kidding) What is his bed made out of?
Bandit's Roost/Thug Life - Tenement StyleAnother picture that Riis had no problem taking, there's one guy to the right holding a stick. A freaking stick! What do you think they were doing or talking about before Riis decided to show up with a giant camera? What kind of work would they have done?
Riis is praised for his tenacity as a investigative reporter, Lincoln Steffens was so amazed by him that he says "(Riis) not only got the news; he cared about the news. He hated passionately all tyrannies, abuses, miseries, and he fought them. He was a terror to the officials and landlords responsible, as he saw it, for the desperate condition of the tenements where the poor lived."
Riis had the fire of a thousand suns burning in his soul to expose the gritty and biting reality of the poor, if that isn't bad-ass, I'm not sure what is.
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Well moving onto our next photographer of justice, Mister Lewis Hine.
A little bit about Hine, he detested the treatment of children in the labor force. He was so disgusted that when factories turned him down for muckraking, he would hide his camera and pretend to be a fire inspector. Clever trick Hines, very clever. One of his speeches included this little bit, "Perhaps you are weary of child labour pictures. Well, so are the rest of us, but we propose to make you and the whole country so sick and tired of the whole business that when the time for action comes, child labour pictures will be records of the past." In 1916 legislation was passed to protect children, Hines probably made sure to the end that the government had taken care of the legislation, possibly with a camera and knife of justice.
But, enough of Hines for now, let's move onto to his photographs that were often times, taken in secret.
Here is a young boy, the caption claims he is a "German Steelworker"
How old do you think this...boy is? What kind of caption would you give this picture?
This is Leo, aged 8, working in a textile factory.
What are the dangers for a young child working at a factory? What kind of emotions do you feel when looking at the picture? How is his physical appearance? And...most importantly, where the heck are his shoes?!?!
William Parralla, 313 Second St., S.W., Washington, D.C., a 7 year old newsboy, standing on street with newspapers.
What time do you think it is? The weather?
Extra Questions
1) Are there still poor housing conditions today? What parts?
2) Where might the immigrants today find work?
3) Do you know of anyone who is an immigrant? You don't have to say names or anything. What kind of work do they do?
4) The legal to age to work is 17 now, should it be lower or higher? Why?
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ReplyDeleteMarianna said...
ReplyDeleteThis last picture was taken in the winter time, I think. There is no snow, but a seven year old boy has his coat and hat on, so it's probably very cold outside, and also, it's probably very early in the morning, because there are not many people on the streets, and he has a bunch of newspapers in his tiny hands. It's really sad, but little girls were working selling newspapers too...
1 -- There is usually a poor, and then a poorer area in almost every city in the United States. The most jarring though, I feel, are the new condo buildings adjacent to the projects in my neighborhood. A few months ago, at the Lafayette Projects at Classon/Lafayette, there was a huge portable Panopticon-looking type thing at the corner because there had been recent shootings. I imagine most of the residents there either work at two or three minimum wage jobs to support 1+ children, or don't hold jobs at all.
ReplyDeleteImmigrants today bus our tables, wash the dishes, get yelled at for wrong beer orders. Or they mow lawns, work under-the-table at nail salons--anywhere that labor is physically demanding, can be paid cash under the table, and requires little training or customer interaction.
As far as the working age goes, I got my first summer job at sixteen and I think that it does help kids become more responsible. However, it’s very important to protect children from corporations who want to capitalize on their labor. The age of legal employment shouldn’t be lowered for this reason and also, the type of work kids are allowed to do should be very specific.
ReplyDeleteLowering the legal working age would be detrimental to the future academic success of the child. I know of an immigrant who had to drop out of school to support their whole family and is now an illiterate adult. If we had laws that supported children entering the workforce at younger ages they would be more likely to drop out of school before reaching their full potential. They would also be likely to come in contact with poor working environments.
There is of course the dilemma of businesses hiring “under the table”. A lot of immigrants and particularly children were working and being paid this way. As it was brought up in class, most immigrants would not report unfair conditions at their job for fear of being out of work or deported. It saves the owner money and liberates them from any responsibility to provide health care, fair pay or even decent conditions for their workers; as can be seen in some of the pictures above.
In the photograph of “Leo working in a textile factory”, this is exactly the kind of work that exploits children’s labor. It is more profitable to employ children due to the fact that they require less upkeep than adults. They can be paid very meagerly or not at all and they are unaware of their rights. It reminds me of a quote: “If you don’t know your rights, you have none” owners definitely took advantage of this in the workplace. For me, this particular photo is very effective in exacting feelings of anger and sadness.
As far as the dangers of children in this environment; there were many. There was always the risk of losing a finger or a more fatal accident when working around so many machines. Textile factories were especially of low safety standards and almost exclusively employed by women and children. There was little or no ventilation, deafening noise from the machines and long hours. A child like Leo, at his age could work up to twelve hour days and would possibly be beaten if he fell asleep at work.
Leo has no shoes in the photograph because he doesn’t need them. In the broader spectrum these people are nothing more than devices being used to attain the highest possible profit. As the owners see it, they are cheap labor therefore easily replaceable and not worth the trouble of their maintenance. The terrible conditions in which they were forced to work are reminiscent in my mind of the life of an indentured servant. They are living check to check and are never able to save up enough money to move up in society.
Jacob Riis and Lewis Hine were somewhat of revolutionary men. They depicted the side of the immigrant and lower class that most of the upper class community weren't exposed to. From children working in extreme working conditions to poor and unsanitary housing conditions, their photos changed the course of the immigrant life in the US, especially NYC. Unfortunately, poor housing conditions still exist today. As a New Yorker, there are still areas around the City where immigrants of different ethnicities live in these housing projects and somewhat of neo-ghettoes. They are unable to find a blue collar job because they are somwhat stuck on the bottom of the totem pole and work on job sites that one would never want to experience in their lifetime. I personally know many immigrants that have these jobs. Whether its extreme manual labor on construction sites or washing other peoples' dishes in restaurants, they get paid lower than one who would have not been an immigrant.
ReplyDeleteThe legal age limit should stick to 17. I believe that it is the rightful age where a child transitions into an adult, where they will be able to decide the path in life they want to choose by exploring broad options in their career and building a brighter future doing so.
Joe Picarello wrote:
ReplyDeleteJacob Riis seemingly had this instilled compassion almost inate in him. While reading more about him while viewing his pictures it has become clear that helping those less fortunate is in his blood.
There are stories of him lending peopple money so their family can eat way before he even immigrated to the United States. These photos were all there (staged or not) because for some people that is their lives normally even if the photo is "produced". I feel Riis has found a way that makes people want to help the poor and feel their pain.
While Hines although maybe also sympathetic to the plite of the poor has so many photos that show the "brigther" side of their community. The strangth and love between the people, the kids playing stick ball. This positives maybe a bit much that the upper class may say that "being poor isn't all that bad so why should i help". These photos are two sides of one story the strong negatives of the life that at small points and not often may create some strong benefits.
Tania Mock wrote:
ReplyDeleteLooking at these images, one can argue that in many cases in today's society, the poor housing as well as living conditions can very well be compared to the pictures. Perhaps the conditions nowadays are not as severe as these images from the 19th and 20th centuries but there certainly are people who live in them. The United States may be considered one of the richest nation in the world but there are also areas where a dense population of poors reside. For the most part, poor areas are mainly found in the urban sections. Many incoming immigrants are attracted to live in urban socities for the fact that there are more job offerings. Of course, newcomers would not be able to obtain a professional job therefore they are left with the odd jobs that pay at minimum wage. Having a luxurious life may not be an option for these people while living pay check by pay check. Many times apartment buildings do not provide the full proper conditions to live under but many immigrants as well as illegal aliens have no option but to deal with these circumstances. It is bad enough trying to survive in today's economy therefore "cheap rent" for a lot of immigrants will do, whethere it lacks sufficient lighting, gas, and/or heating. Like all others, people will do what they can in order to live, eat, and survive.