January 22, 2016
So I feel I need to tell you a little bit about what I do before I get to my regular post. As a photojournalist, just like any other journalist, it has been hammered into my head that in order to be ethical and uphold my journalistic integrity I need to be as bias free as possible. When I cover an event or an assignment I leave my judgements and personal opinions at the door and photograph what is happening in front of me without distorting the events at hand. I try not to incite anything to happen nor direct someone to do something, whatever that may be.
This being said, I was assigned to cover the Georgia Right to Life’s Georgia March for Life on Friday. The weather was turning sour and snow was predicted in the forecast. It was cold and rainy as I made my way down to the state capitol building to see if anyone was going to show up. The weather had already switched around the day for me a few different times canceling some events while adding others into the mix. As I arrived at Liberty Plaza a couple of hundred people had gathered to listen to Pastor Mike Stone speak before marching for about a mile through downtown and the government center area.
Georgia Right to Life is a pro life advocacy group. There were numerous people within the crowd holding anti-abortion signs of varying degrees. The crowd started walking down Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. in relative silence as they left Liberty Plaza and started their march. It took about 20 minutes for them to make their way around the route and back to where they started from. By the time they headed up Piedmont Ave. someone in the crowd had started singing and was leading the crowd in song.
Serena Hale (left) and her husband Terrance hold a pro life sign as they listen to Pastor Mike Stone speak during a rally before the Georgia March for Life at Liberty Plaza across from the state capitol building in Atlanta on Friday, January 22, 2016.
Pastor Mike Stone (right) speaks during a rally before the Georgia March for Life at Liberty Plaza across from the state capitol building in Atlanta on Friday, January 22, 2016.
Jody Duffy (center) holds a pro life sign as she listens to Pastor Mike Stone speak during a rally before the Georgia March for Life at Liberty Plaza across from the state capitol building in Atlanta on Friday, January 22, 2016.
A couple hundred pro life supporters leave Liberty Plaza across from the state capitol building in Atlanta as they start the Georgia March for Life on Friday, January 22, 2016.
Julie Thomas (left), Jody Duffy and a couple hundred pro life supporters leave Liberty Plaza across from the state capitol building in Atlanta as they start the Georgia March for Life on Friday, January 22, 2016.
A couple hundred pro life supporters walk down Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. next to the state capitol building in Atlanta during the Georgia March for Life on Friday, January 22, 2016.
Janice McFarland (center) holds a pro life sign as she marches down Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. during the Georgia March for Life in Atlanta on Friday, January 22, 2016.
A couple hundred pro life supporters walk up Piedmont Ave. during the Georgia March for Life in Atlanta on Friday, January 22, 2016.
Jonathan Sims (center left) and Orlando Aguirre walk up Piedmont Ave. during the Georgia March for Life in Atlanta on Friday, January 22, 2016.