Title of Work: Troy
Publication Outlet (if published): Chicago Tribune
Publication Date (if published): May 25, 2021
Creation Date (if unpublished):
Impact Statement: While covering protests against racism and police brutality during my internship at Chicago Tribune, I started seeing familiar faces. I wondered what their lives look like when they are not out protesting and what forces them onto the streets to demand change. One of them was Troy Gaston, an activist and a student at Roosevelt University. Gaston has led and participated in protests nearly every day since March 2020 against police brutality and over-surveillance of the Englewood neighborhood.
Legacy media outlets have been criticized for only covering communities of color for crime-related stories, and for portraying the 2020 protests for racial justice without the broader context of their experiences. I wanted to help audiences understand the environment that makes people have to stand up for themselves, so I pitched an idea to the Chicago Tribune for a profile series: “People Behind the Protest.” Gaston’s story was its first segment.
The photo story made the front cover of Chicago Tribune's printed edition and was widely shared across online.
