March from Selma, Alabama (detail) from Time of Change, negative 1965; printed later, Bruce Davidson, gelatin silver print. The J. Paul Getty Museum. © Bruce Davidson/Magnum Photos March from Selma, Alabama (detail) from Time of Change, negative 1965; printed later, Bruce Davidson, gelatin silver print. The J. Paul Getty Museum. © Bruce Davidson/Magnum Photos

We are reminded frequently of the power of photographs to propel action and inspire change. During demonstrations photographers take to the streets to record fast-moving events. At other times they bear witness to daily injustices, helping to make them more widely known. This exhibition of images made during periods of social struggle in the United States highlights the myriad roles protest photographs play in shaping our understanding of American life.

Selected Works

Publications

This Is the Day: The March on Washington

Leonard Freed Foreword by Julian Bond Introduction by Michael Eric Dyson Afterword by Paul Farber

Black in White America

Leonard Freed

North of Dixie: Civil Rights Photography Beyond the South

Mark Speltz With a preface by Deborah Willis


Purchase this and other publications in the Getty Museum Store

Getty Talks


Radical Archive: Preserving Protest Ephemera


A Shared Past in an Unfolding Present: A Conversation with An-My Lê


Documenting Dissent: L.A. Artists' Protest Photography

Exhibition Resources

Discover more about the works featured in the exhibition.

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