Archives: Securing Liberty

In the wake of 9/11 there has been a steady increase in surveillance and security measures justified as necessary to protect citizens against future attacks. The visible manifestations of this new security have become mundane through repetition and familiarity. In New York City in particular we are subjected to being searched, surveiled, and monitored with such regularity that it becomes a largely unquestioned part of our daily lives. As a result, sights that seemed jarring and disturbing in the days and months following 9/11 (such as soldiers with automatic weapons guarding the financial district and public transportation centers) have become an innocuous part of the daily landscape. These images are still visible but no longer “seen” by the thousands of pedestrians passing by each day. Concurrently the war in Iraq continues and citizens seeking to exercise their civil liberties by voicing dissent with the war are, as we all are, confronted with questions about how these heightened security polices impact our civil liberties.  

These images comprise a series of moments that document both the new security mandate, and the civil liberties that that “security” puts at risk.This project is driven by my conviction that our democratic society is at risk when it either does not “see” or is afraid to reflect on, or question, this new “security” mandate.