9/11’s most controversial photo
I read this article regarding Thomas Hoepker’s photo taken on September 11th 2011. It shows a group of New Yorkers sitting in a park and in the distance smoke and dust rises above the Manhattan skyline.
This image has become one of the most iconic and controversial photographs of that day, and it was not published by Magnum then. It was excluded until 5 years later appearing in a book and it caused instant controversy.
Frank Rich, wrote in the New York Times, “The young people in Mr. Hoepker’s photo aren’t necessarily callous. They’re just American”. His view was that of where the country’s youth, were enjoying the sun in spite of the scene of mass carnage that has defined the future. His view was disputed, instantly.
On examination of this photo, I feel that the people in the photo are mere bystanders, aware and moved by what has happened but powerless to do anything except watch. Also, we have to remember that this photo is a moment and there were many moments before this one that might have shown the emotions of these people as they stood there.
It can be entirely possible that they were caught unaware by the photographer and he might have misinterpreted them. Regardless, it might look as if they’re “chilling” in view of an act of terror but this photograph captures what most of the world felt after the initial shock subsided; that is they are mere bystanders in something so devastating.
Jonathan Jones, author of the article, said this picture has nothing to do with judging individuals. He said “as an image of a cataclysmic historical moment it captures something that is true of all historical moments: life does not stop dead because a battle or an act of terror is happening nearby”.
