honorable mention
Joel Dyer united states
title
Windows, Walls and Invisible Lines: Portraits of Life in Sanctuary
There were 36 people in public sanctuary in 22 states and another dozen or so in non-public sanctuary when I launched the project. I am approximately halfway to my goal of photographing everyone in the nation in sanctuary.
For many of these people who have chosen this form of self-imprisonment in their effort to someday live free from the constant fear of deportation and separation from their loved ones, the sheltering church's windows have become their only remaining connection to the outside world — their only way to see, and be seen and not forgotten.
My work has appeared in New York Times Sunday Magazine, Vanity Fair, U.S. News & World Report, Mother Jones, Utne Reader and numerous other publications.
My original reporting has put me in front of the camera on such programs as Today Show, Good Morning America, Fox News, 48 Hours, Nightline, ABC/NBC/CBS Nightly News, and The Editors.
I have won numerous national and regional journalism awards.
I've had the following books published:
Harvest of Rage: Why Oklahoma City is Only the Beginning
1998, published by Westview Press
Perpetual Prisoner Machine: How America Profits from Crime
2000, published by Westview Press
Books endorsers include Filmmaker Michael Moore, Historian Howard Zinn and best-selling authors Jim Hightower and Mark Dowie.
I've been a working photojournalist since 1985.
In 2018 I launched my Windows Walls and Invisible Lines: Portraits of Life in Sanctuary project. I’m currently traveling throughout the nation photographing and interviewing undocumented immigrants who have been forced to take sanctuary in churches to avoid deportation back to their countries of origin. For many of these people, such an outcome would force them to decide between giving up their small children or taking them back to a world of poverty and violence. In addition, many now in sanctuary have been marked for death by gangs should they ever be deported.
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entry description
I began my Windows Walls and Invisible Lines: Portraits of Life in Sanctuary project in early 2018. I’m currently traveling throughout the U.S. photographing and interviewing undocumented immigrants who have been forced to take sanctuary in churches to avoid deportation back to their countries of origin by the Trump administration. For many of these people, deportation would force them to decide between giving up their small children or taking them back to a world of poverty and violence. In addition, many now in sanctuary have been marked for death by gangs should they ever be deported.There were 36 people in public sanctuary in 22 states and another dozen or so in non-public sanctuary when I launched the project. I am approximately halfway to my goal of photographing everyone in the nation in sanctuary.
For many of these people who have chosen this form of self-imprisonment in their effort to someday live free from the constant fear of deportation and separation from their loved ones, the sheltering church's windows have become their only remaining connection to the outside world — their only way to see, and be seen and not forgotten.
about the photographer
The following are a few of my career highlights to date as a photojournalist, journalist, author and writer:My work has appeared in New York Times Sunday Magazine, Vanity Fair, U.S. News & World Report, Mother Jones, Utne Reader and numerous other publications.
My original reporting has put me in front of the camera on such programs as Today Show, Good Morning America, Fox News, 48 Hours, Nightline, ABC/NBC/CBS Nightly News, and The Editors.
I have won numerous national and regional journalism awards.
I've had the following books published:
Harvest of Rage: Why Oklahoma City is Only the Beginning
1998, published by Westview Press
Perpetual Prisoner Machine: How America Profits from Crime
2000, published by Westview Press
Books endorsers include Filmmaker Michael Moore, Historian Howard Zinn and best-selling authors Jim Hightower and Mark Dowie.
I've been a working photojournalist since 1985.
In 2018 I launched my Windows Walls and Invisible Lines: Portraits of Life in Sanctuary project. I’m currently traveling throughout the nation photographing and interviewing undocumented immigrants who have been forced to take sanctuary in churches to avoid deportation back to their countries of origin. For many of these people, such an outcome would force them to decide between giving up their small children or taking them back to a world of poverty and violence. In addition, many now in sanctuary have been marked for death by gangs should they ever be deported.
back to gallery
