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CONTENTS Message from Chairperson of the Board
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Who We Are 6 About Us 7 Mission & Vision 7 Education 8-9 Projects 10-11 Academic & Advocacy 12-13 Exhibitions 14-15 PROOF in Numbers 16 Our Impact 17 Our Partners & Funders
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Contact Information 20 Cover photo: Janette Beckman | Photos left: Beatriz Arango
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MESSAGEFROM
CHAIR 2017: THE YEAR OF THE UPSTANDER To quote Charles Dickens, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times”. Certainly, for those of us who advocate for social justice, peace-building and moral courage - three critical elements central to PROOF’s mission and vision - 2017 presented us with unprecedented challenges: the flawed US election and the deracination of western democracies by oligarchs and authoritarian leaders, and the accompanying increase in violence, hate and exploitation of the most vulnerable, mainly women, children, the poor, the powerless. If ever there was a time for upstanders, individuals with the moral courage to act on behalf of peace and justice in defense of those who cannot, 2017 was that year. Hasn’t it always been this way? Haven’t we seen challenges to our progressive vision before? And haven’t we always, always risen to the challenge? Dickens had it right, for if 2017 was despairing, its challenges were also enabling. It is always darkest before the dawn, and the ugliness and despair of 2017 has committed us, more than ever, to the upstander vision and the magical possibilities that are, for now, hidden by the darkness. For those same dark events of 2017 have also given rise to a worldwide movement against injustice. And that’s where PROOF comes in. PROOF’s DNA is all about upstanding: defining it, teaching it, empowering it. When individuals develop the moral courage to stand up and do the right thing, when people are educated to the truth about the power they have to change the world, when we are organized to fight for the justice we deserve in order to insure the peace we yearn for, we are upstanding.
PROOF’s three-pronged vision of education, research and advocacy, realized through its many worldwide teaching, exhibiting, visual storytelling, and organizing initiatives, is fundamentally about creating a world of upstanders. Our 2017 Annual Report highlights the many projects and initiatives that PROOF has achieved, all in the service of standing up. For now is not the time for anything less. In order for PROOF to stand up for justice, we need you to stand up for PROOF. There are so many ways for people to transform themselves into upstanders. Your support for PROOF is a quick and sure first step to becoming a great upstander. We depend upon the energy, resources, belief and commitment of our loyal partners, donors and collaborators. In 2018, we will continue to work towards a better future, to stand up to the “worst” and transform the hidden opportunities of this moment into the “best”. Thank you for your loyalty and for supporting PROOF and our upstander vision. In Peace, Dean Foster, Board Chairperson 5
WHO WE ARE
STAFF
Leora Kahn | Executive Director Willhemina Wahlin | Creative Director Debra Driscoll | Director Mansura Khaman | Photography Instructor Cinthya Santos-Briones | Photography Instructor Andrew Lichtenstein | Photography Instructor Beatriz Arango | Photography Associate Elizaveta Firsova | Education Associate Katherine Francis Cayton | Research and Evaluation Associate Ronnie Weyl | Development Associate BOARD of DIRECTORS Dean Foster | Chairperson Fran Kaufman | Vice Chairperson Corey Sclar | Treasurer Leslie Thurman | Secretary Sherri North Cohen Marla Maritzer Melissa Marr F Robert Stein ADVISORY BOARD Jonathan Alter | Jimmie Briggs | Man Up Campaign Olivia Drier | Karuna Center for Peacebuilding Adrian Edwards | Panos Pictures David Garrison | The Brytemoore Group Alex Gibney | Jigsaw Productions Ed Kashi | V11 Photo Agency Ben Kiernan | Yale University Peter Mantello | Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University Erik Parens | Hastings Center Tali Nates | Johannesburg Holocaust Centre Mark O’Brien | Pro Bono Net
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Marc Skvirsky | Facing History and Ourselves John Withers II | Former U.S. Ambassador
ABOUT US PROOF: Media for Social Justice Inc. is a nonprofit organization based in New York City that uses visual storytelling and education to inspire action on human rights and to create attitude and policy change. PROOF was founded in 2006, with a vision to unite the skills and experiences of internationally renowned photojournalists for social justice advocacy and action.
VISION PROOF envisions a world full of upstanders, standing up and taking action in defense of others.
MISSION
PROOF strives to be a premier visual storytelling institution that galvanizes global and local dialogue on human rights through empowering imagery, research, and educational programs. By countering violence with positive action and raising our collective global consciousness with stories of moral courage, PROOF acknowledges and celebrates upstanders around the world.
PROOF’s mission is to bring together photographers, journalists, academics, students, and activists to create photo exhibitions, publications, and educational workshops that document social injustices and empower people to act. Our photography exhibits and workshops aim to engage the broader public in conversations about human rights, peace, and social justice through first hand testimonies and powerful photo narratives.
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EDUCATION The subjects and stories of our exhibitions form the basis of PROOF’s educational programs. At PROOF, we believe that education is one of the most powerful tools we can use to change the world. In addition to stand alone educational programs like “Picture Justice”, “The Moral Courage Project” and “Witnessing”, PROOF develops symposiums, workshops, and study guides to accompany our photo exhibits.
In 2016, PROOF began the Moral Courage Project in collaboration with the University of Dayton’s Human Rights Center (HRC) and the Human Rights Studies Program (HRS). This program’s goal is to study, collect, archive and publicize instances of moral courage around the world. In 2017, trained by PROOF on the ethics and methodology of collecting witness testimony, a team of students and faculty traveled to Ferguson, Missouri, to collect interviews and photographs, documenting instances of moral courage and Upstander behaviour in the weeks, months and years following the shooting death of Michael Brown in 2014 and subsequent uprising. This work culminated in the exhibition, “Ferguson Voices: Disrupting the Frame”, designed by PROOF’s Creative Director, Willhemina Wahlin, which opened in January 2017 at the University of Dayton, Ohio. The Moral Courage Project team created a podcast, and PROOF partnered with TOKY, a design firm based in St. Louis, to design an interactive website for Ferguson Voices: A Moral Courage Project.
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Picture Justice is a creative photojournalism program designed to educate high school students about social justice issues and empower them with the tools and confidence they need to lead change in their own communities. In 2014, PROOF partnered with the United Nations International School (UNIS) and internationallyrenowned photojournalists to pilot and develop the Picture Justice program, a social justice and photography intensive for New York City high school students. In 2017, Picture Justice included students from more public and private schools:
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Avenues: The World School, Manhattan: Students worked with photojournalists, photographers and educators to explore Economic Justice and the Impact of Poverty. The program created the One City, A Million Stories exhibit.
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Summer Intensive: Participating students conducted research, met with community leaders and spoke to those with firsthand experiences with immigration in the US. Students produced a series of photo stories titled “Inside (un)DOCUMENTED” and an advocacy newspaper titled The PROOF POST.
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Lyons Community School, Brooklyn: An after school program exploring restorative justice, providing the camera as a tool to record their school community and changing neighbourhood.
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Frank McCourt High School, Manhattan: An in-school program of social justice art and its role in advocacy and activism.
refugee testimonies and advocacy “Witnessing: Refugee Testimony and Advocacy” is a professional development workshop that engages participants in exploring ways of drawing out, preserving, and sharing refugee narratives. PROOF, in partnership with Clark University, trains practitioners, researchers, and students in the field of refugees, displacement, and forced migration. It explores methods and ethics of testimony-taking and examines the uses and importance of refugee testimonies.
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PROJECTS LINKBack: Our Elders’ Stories is a community theatre program engaging elders in the sharing of their stories about times when they stood up against injustice. PROOF documented stories of civil rights activism, the fight for equal pay and rights for women and serving the US in times of war, among other stories. The project culminated in a portrait exhibit and a theatre performance inspired by the elders’ stories. Photos: Griselda San Martin
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MOVING STORIES: WOMEN IN TRANSITION
Leora Kahn, photographer Janette Beckman and anthropologist Anita Fabos, from Clark University, worked with refugee women who reside at the City Plaza Hotel in Athens, Greece. The City Plaza Hotel had been closed for years when it was taken over in April 2016 to create shelter and safety for the influx of refugees. 400 stranded people suddenly had a home.
PROOF worked with a group of women, eager to learn more about photography and storytelling. The women worked with PROOF to share their stories of displacement through photography, using cameras donated by Fuji.
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ACADEMIC RESEARCH & ADVOCACY PROOF contributes to a wide range of global research and scholarship on peacebuilding, social justice, and moral courage. Through this academic branch, PROOF produce papers, conference presentations, and expert panel discussions that prompt engaged global responses to crises and encourage the powerful work of activists around the globe. We also conduct practice-based research in exhibition design and visual communication within universities.
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MOVING STORIES: WOMEN IN TRANSITION
PROOF and Clark University convened a workshop in Luxembourg with geographers, designers, refugees, and anthropologists to work on a multi-interactive platform that captures individual narratives of sites and experiences of displacement.
THE LIGATURES OF LIFE: COMMUNICATION DESIGN AND ‘DIFFICULT EXHIBITIONS’
PROOF’s Creative Director, Willhemina Wahlin has been undertaking a practice-led design research doctorate with Charles Sturt University in Australia, where she is also a Lecturer in Graphic Design. Her research, based on her work with PROOF, explores the role of designers within teams that create ‘difficult knowledge’ exhibitions, which contain information on subjects such as war, contested histories, genocide, gender violence and postcolonialism. (Photo above: Riccardo Gangale.) 13
EXHIBITIONS The heart of PROOF’s work lies in our photographs and visual stories. We produce exhibitions in partnership with organizations around the world that highlight the untold testimonies of people who have stood up to human rights violations. These visual productions provide the impetus for ordinary citizens and policymakers to respond to injustice and empower others.
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(un)DOCUMENTED Realities of immigration in the U.S. >> Photoville, NYC Premier Photography Event, NYC >> New York State Leadership Council, NYC >> Gary Lichtenstein Editions at Mana Contemporary in Jersey City, New Jersey >> Community Resource Center, Westchester BROKEN? Mass incarceration & criminal justice in the U.S. >> Lyons Community School, Brooklyn FERGUSON VOICES: DISRUPTING THE FRAME Racial Justice >> Dayton University , Dayton Public Library, Ohio >> St. Louis Public Library & St. Louis University, Missouri >> Newark Public Library, NJ ONE CITY, A MILLION STORIES Economic Justice >> Avenues: The World School, in-school exhibit RESCUERS Upstanders in times of Genocide >> Youth for Peace, Cambodia (originally exhibited in 2011) celebrates seven years of exhibits and touring of Cambodia. BLURRED LINES/MY BODY A WAR ZONE Advocating an end to rape in the U.S. >> Upcoming project with PROOF with work by photographers Janette Beckman and Blake Fitch.
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Fundraising: $9,000
Operating Activities: $21,000
Program & Project Activities: $114,000
EXPENSES
Donation Revenue: $63,555
Grant Revenue: $45,945
Exhibit & Program Service Income: $41,000
REVENUE & SUPPORT
PROOFIN NUMBERS
global partners
students
2,010,000+
1200+
exhibition attendees
stories of moral courage
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30 academic conferences, education workshops, and creative events
host countries
survivors of rape
180
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SINCE OUR FOUNDING, PROOF
OUR IMPACT
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OUR PARTNERS & FUNDERS Funding Partners AEGIS - Preventing Crimes against Humanity Amnesty International Beacon Group Craigslist Charitable Fund Gould Family Foundation Holocaust Museum Houston Karuna Center for Peacebuilding Leonian Foundation North Atlantic Treaty Organization New York City Council New York Foundation for Eldercare United Nations Population Fund UNIS United Nations International School University of Dayton U.S. Department of State USAID Yale University
Education Partners University of Dayton Clark University New Visions for Public Schools Yale University United Nations International School University of Northampton
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Project Partners The Legacy of Rape United States Institute of Peace Columbia University Institute for Research on Women, Gender, and Sexuality United Nations Population Fund TRIAL: Track Impunity Always Man Up Campaign American Bar Association Open Society Foundations Himalayan Human Rights Monitors photo.circle
Unearthed: Stories of Courage in the Face of Sexual Violence Centre for Social Research India Columbia University Institute for Research on Women, Gender, and Sexuality National Foundation for India The Rape in India Project
Child Soldiers: Forced to be Cruel Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict Amnesty International The RomĂŠo Dallaire Child Soldiers Initiative High Commissioner of Canada Genocide Museum in Johannesburg
Picturing Moral Courage: The Rescuers
Picture Justice
Yale University
United Nations International School
Holocaust Museum Houston
Democracy Now!
Kigali Genocide Memorial Centre
Youth Initiative for Human Rights
The Anne Frank Center USA
NYS Youth Leadership Council
Karuna Center for Peacebuilding Open Society Foundations Youth for Peace
Creative Partners
Sarvodaya
Braenchild Media
Post-Conflict Research Center
Parsons The New School of Design
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