„Buzzing at the sill“ von Peter van Agtmael

Mit „Buzzing at the sill“ hat Peter van Agtmael seine eigene inoffizielle, traumwandlerische Fortsetzung des Buches „Disco Night Sept 11“ vorgelegt. Die Serie war eine Mischung aus dem wenig heldenhaften Alltag von US-Soldaten im Einsatz und der frustrierenden Zeit danach, wenn sie mit amputierten Gliedmaßen auf dem Sofa sitzen oder mit ihren Kindern und Lichtschwertern ausgestattet Star Wars spielen.

„Buzzing at the sill“ zeigt hingegen keine Kriegsfotos, sondern die Vereinigten Staaten, wie er sie nach seiner Heimkehr vorgefunden hat. Das ist allerdings weniger überraschend als es zunächst erscheint, denn Magnum-Mitglied van Agtmael sieht sich selbst nicht als Kriegsfotograf, sondern als Amerika-Fotograf – sein Buch ist somit eine Art emotionale Bestandsaufnahme einer Nation nach zwei sinnlosen Kriegen und wie sie mit ihrer eigenen, nicht immer ruhmreichen Geschichte umgeht.

Meine Besprechung aus der Photonews gibt es hier als PDF.

Link: Kehrer Verlag, Magnum

: Peter van Agtmael: „Buzzing at the sill“ – Cover

: Des Moines, Iowa. 2010 © Peter van Agtmael / Magnum Photos At the annual Iowa GOP Ronald Reagan dinner, Sarah Palin gave the keynote speech, which was seen as testing the waters for a possible presidential run. She savaged Obama, both for his pacifism (withdrawing American troops from Iraq) and his militarism (ordering the surge in Afghanistan). She praised the armed forces while attacking the press (“people who are out there for the right of journalists to lie”).

: Detroit, Michigan. 2012 © Peter van Agtmael / Magnum Photos Outside Lyniece Nelson’s house. The family was still in shock over Treasure’s death. One of her sisters said, “I don’t know if Treasure is asleep, or up. Because her pictures . . . every time I move around . . . they look like they are following me. She woke mama up to tell her she was leaving, she left . . . and that’s it.”

: Branson, Missouri. 2015 © Peter van Agtmael / Magnum Photos The parking lot of Dolly Parton’s Dixie Stampede.

: Pine Ridge, South Dakota. 2011 © Peter van Agtmael / Magnum Photos While on a road trip with my friend Justin, we met a couple of guys and star- ted chatting. They invited us to check out a spot where they had a rope swing, and on the way we picked up some beer. Dusk was falling and it became a little party; we lit a fire while some of their younger cousins swung over a deep chasm, with just a thin rope around their waist to secure them to the tree. As the beer ran out and the night began to get colder, they invited us back to their home. Upon arrival, their sister (the matriarch of the family) smelled their breath and became furious. She asked us what possessed us to give them beer. She told us there was rampant alcoholism on the reservation and declared we were just another in a long line of white men exploiting the La- kota. We were filled with tremendous shame and apologized profusely. As she explained the history of the tribe she mellowed and invited us to spend the night. We awoke in the morning to a beautiful dawn and the youngest children tending to the horses.

: Maryland. 2015 © Peter van Agtmael / Magnum Photos The KKK had boasted that dozens from their Klan chapter would attend the rally and cross burning, but there were only a few people when we showed up, including a British TV crew and a freelance photographer. After a few vague excuses, the six or seven Klan members changed into their robes and began a show amongst themselves. One of the leaders started his speech. He shouted that there were ISIS trai- ning camps being created by the United Nations with FEMA (Federal Emer- gency Management Agency), whose fighters would then take American’s guns away. This plan was allegedly hatched by Barack Obama (or Barry Soe- toro as he was called by the Klan. Soetoro was the surname of Obama’s step- father, and that he was briefly called Barry Soetoro in elementary school in Indonesia has been used as evidence that Obama was not born inAmerica). After finishing, the hoarse-voiced Klan member burned the UN flag and stom- ped on it, to the tepid cheers from the small crowd.

: Portland, Oregon. 2015 © Peter van Agtmael / Magnum Photos Iraqi refugees in a low income housing community in Portland. The area is home to several thousand Iraqi refugees. One of the main community organizers is Dr. Baher Butti, who fled Baghdad in 2006 after his community activism made him the target of local militias. A psychiatrist, activist, and writer, Dr. Butti spends much of his free time helping the recent immigrants adapt to life in America. Many of them don’t speak much English and don’t understand their rights within the web of bureau- cracy. Although he is constantly overworked, he sees it as his responsibility to help his people get on their feet as fast as possible.

: New Orleans, Louisiana. 2012 © Peter van Agtmael / Magnum Photos A Second Line parade. A local African American tradition where brass bands — known as the first line — march in the streets and are joined by members of the public — called the second liners. The Second Line parades came about after the Civil War because insurance companies wouldn’t cover ex-slaves. So African Americans formed benevolent societies and clubs that helped mem- bers defray health costs. The dues included a band for funerals and a public parade every year. Over time, their popularity evolved, and now there are parades almost every Sun- day in New Orleans.