Brittany Greeson : Framing Resilience in the Water Crisis of Flint , Michigan
By Alison Reba
For photojournalist Brittany Greeson , the most important aspect of her work is relationship building .
“ Embedding yourself in the community is crucial because you offer a pair of eyes that national media don ’ t have ,” she says . “ You see what ’ s going on on a daily basis .”
G r e e s o n ’ s photography series We Fear the Water on the water crisis in Flint , Michigan captures the intimacy of trauma . That is , the seemingly invisible
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I want to keep the attention on Flint . People are still living with this problem . People still can ’ t shower . People still can ’ t drink their water . That ’ s not going to change for awhile .
issues , the things we don ’ t immediately think about when we hear an entire community lives with lead-contaminated water .
She photographs Flint residents in the privacy of their homes : a woman rinses chicken in the sink with bottled water as she prepares dinner , a father bathes his child with baby wipes , and a boy brushes his teeth without turning on the tap . These moments captured on camera evoke the visceral .
However , you see more than anxiety and fear in Greeson ’ s images . You also witness the resiliency of this community as young people distribute truckloads of water , police officers travel door-to-door to pass out filters to the elderly , and indigenous community members send prayers over the contaminated water and for the people of Flint .
— Brittany Greeson
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