PhotobyBrandon Stanton, Humans of New York
Brandon Stanton, the photographer behind the acclaimed photoblog and best-selling book, Humans of New York, has now turned his attention towards Pakistan in a bid to end bonded labor in the country. Using his far-reaching influence on social media, the photographer managed to raise more than $1.4 million in donations in less than 12 hours.
Bonded labor has become a persistent issue in a country where the brick industry targets illiterate and vulnerable workers for loans that they can never repay. As a result, the workers are doomed to a lifetime of slavery. The money raised by Stanton will be donated to the anti-slavery organization, Bonded Labor Liberation Front, founded by Pakistani activist, Syeda Ghulam Fatima. The organization she leads aims to provide Freedom Centers and legal aids to the workers living in rural areas.
Stanton met Fatima while working on a photo series in Pakistan and was immediately inspired by the activist, who, according to a blog post on HONY is “described as a modern day Harriet Tubman.” Stanton wrote: “She has been shot, electrocuted, and beaten numerous times for her activism. Quite literally, she places herself between the workers and their owners.”
After posting Fatima’s portrait and story as the conclusion of his Pakistani portrait series on his blog, Stanton went a step further and decided to set up a fundraising campaign. With an original goal of $100,000 in three days, Stanton’s campaign quickly grew to over 400,000 donations in just hours. At press time, the funds had reached a whopping $1.9 million over three days.
Stanton wrote: “This was motivated by nothing more than genuine compassion and a desire to empower a woman who’s devoted her life to freeing people trapped in modern slavery.” Stanton’s efforts are a true testament to the power of his particular brand of documentary photography and its ability to capture global attention.
Stanton started his much beloved blog, Humans of New York, in 2010. Featuring simple but touching photographs of strangers on the streets of NYC coupled with a few words about their life experiences and personal struggles, Stanton’s project quickly snowballed into a viral internet sensation, boasting more than 14.5 million followers on Facebook and over 3.5 million on Instagram.
You can view Stanton’s portraits of Fatima and read more about her story on the HONY blog. Donations can be made here.
