See the explosive protests of 2019 in stunning photos
2019 has been a year of civil unrest. From the nearly nine-months-long (and ongoing) Hong Kong protests to the recurring climate strikes, people across the world have been taking to the streets to demand change on the issues that matter to them the most. While all the actions have some elements in common, they’re still separate stories with unique context, causes, and repercussions. Therein lies the challenge for photographers who are tasked with distilling that unrest—and the years of policy that precede it, and the waves of aftereffects to follow—into a few snapshots.
[Photo: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images]
As Pancho Bernasconi, vice president of news at Getty Images, puts it, the question is, “How do you cover it in a way that the pictures from Barcelona to Santiago to Hong Kong to the Middle East don’t all look the same? What can we do to make sure each picture stands on its own and helps tell the story locally?” Part of that comes down to the photographer’s eye, but this year’s unique climate of upheaval has allowed for a distinct kind of protest storytelling. Rather than a one-off event, these protests have stretched for days or months, and that means a photographer can spend more time getting immersed in the community of activists.
[Photo: Chris McGrath/Getty Images]
Getty photographer Chris McGrath was on the ground in Hong Kong for nearly 60 days, and that time gave him the space to go beyond the breaking news angle or the idea of getting one dramatic photo. It allowed him to look at the issues surrounding this protest and also set the record straight about what people on the ground are experiencing. “Though it looked like the whole city was burning, a lot of the time it would be on one street and the next street would be life as normal,” he says. “One of the tricks for us is you show the protesters doing what they do—you share the consequences and the reactions to that—but it’s also trying to show the slice of that daily life. How people try to have some normalcy amongst all that upheaval.”
A crucial point about covering protests, Bernasconi notes, is that it’s not just about what is happening today. With every day of action, photographers are recording history and explaining the world, and the importance of these protests lasts beyond 2019. “What are the decisions that countries, people, or government organizations are going to make? And do we have the visual record to kind of help make sense of whatever’s next for us?” Bernasconi says. “These images, these stories help give that broader context of oh, that’s what all happened this year, and how it’s going to affect what we talk about and how we behave next year.”
In Venezuela, Juan Guaidó declared himself president, fomenting unrest between his supporters and supporters of the current president, Nicolás Maduro. [Photo: Marco Bello/Getty Images]
In France, the Yellow Vest protests raged for weeks, started by opposition to an increase in the gas tax. Protesters blocked roads across France and marched in cities. [Photo: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images]
In Sudan, mass protests eventually led to the resignation of leader Omar al-Bashir. [Photo: Fredrik Lerneryd/Getty Images]
Pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong took to the streets for months, in protests that began in response to a controversial bill that would have allowed Hong Kong residents to be extradited to China. [Photo: Laurel Chor/Getty Images]
Rapper Bad Bunny (holding flag), singer Ricky Martin (black hat), and Rapper Residente (blue hat) joined demonstrators protesting Puerto Rican governor Ricardo Rossello, after citizens felt he mismanaged the recovery from Hurricane Maria and leaked text messages showed he and his aides exchanging misogynistic and homophobic messages. Rossello eventually resigned. [Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images]
More from the anti-Rossello protests in Puerto Rico. [Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images]
Protests in Chile – one of the most economically unequal countries in the developed world—included issues such as health care, pension system, privatization of water, public transport, education, social mobility, and corruption. [Photo: Marcelo Hernandez/Getty Images]
On International Women’s Day on March 8, 2019, in Istanbul, Turkey, thousands of women marched to raise awareness for women’s issues, rights, and equality. [Photo: Chris McGrath/Getty Images]
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