I Can't Breathe is a documentary photography project that tells the stories of the men and women who made a sacrifice to take a stand against racism, social injustice, and police brutality that scourges our society. Readers have the opportunity to listen to the firsthand testimonials gathered from participants in the Black Lives Matter movement. It is rare to hear the perspective of a citizen's reasons for participating in a vital movement such as Black Lives Matter.
Every movement or story within history revolves around an inflection point, an event or moment that serves as a defining catalyst for change. I Can't Breathe was born out of the tragedy of Black men and women being murdered and mistreated because of the color of their skin in the 21st century. As protests and rallies erupted in 2020 in response to the injustices against Black Americans, mainstream media focused their brief attention span on the voices of some prominent people for a few minutes in the 24-hour news cycle before moving on to the next story. The news may have briefly focused on a glimpse of the story, but more needed to be told to document the stories of the protests and rallies from the perspective of the members of the community who made the sacrifice to stand up and were not given the opportunity to share with the public why they chose to take a stand against racism and injustice.Eric H. Adeleye hopes that readers are motivated and encouraged to take a stand for what is right and humane, to stand against the plague of police brutality, racism, and social injustice in all of its forms. The men and women who bravely joined the front lines of this civil rights struggle of the 21st century have realized that there are no sidelines in this fight. It is going to take all of us, regardless of our skin color or gender, to come together as a unified collective from all walks of our community to one day vanquish racism, police brutality, and social injustice that fester within our society.
About the Author
Eric H. Adeleye is a married father of five children and two grandchildren.
