This Far and No Further: Photographs Inspired by the Voting Rights Movement

In this powerful work, Abranowicz (American Originals) presents over 100 photographs of locations, landmarks, and people that figured in the civil rights movement. While taken in the present, the images easily capture the scars of the past. Among them are photographs of Birmingham’s Sloss furnace—where “leased” Black convicts worked without pay—and the Leesburg Stockade in Georgia—which served as an ad hoc holding cell in 1963, when 33 young girls were imprisoned there after participating in a peaceful march. A photo of a defaced memorial to Emmett Till leaves a piercing impression, particularly when juxtaposed with the frequently grandiose monuments to Confederate figures. In spite of the racism and acts of violence conjured within, Abranowicz also points out—with images such as one of a community center in Selma, Ala.—that peaceful change propelled the fight for equality. He also reminds readers the work’s not over: in a caption below a photo of the Alabama governor’s mansion, Abranowicz notes that voter suppression still continues in the South. Eye-opening and moving, these images commemorate the past and have the power to energize leaders of the future. (Feb.)