"Sin & Salvation in Baptist Town"


  • Photographer
    Matt Eich
  • Prize
    Honorable Mention
  • Date of Photograph
    2010
  • Technical Info
    35mm Digital, Archival Inkjet

These images are excerpted from an ongoing book project about the dichotomy between the historically segregated Baptist Town neighborhood of Greenwood, Mississippi and their more affluent neighbors. While many of us would like to believe that we live in a post-racial society it is hard to imagine a place like Baptist Town existing without the South’s troubled history of racism and segregation. In a city where 50.9 percent of the black residents live below the poverty line, my goal is to remind people that the real legacies of racism in the South continue to impact people economically and culturally, in persistent and often pernicious ways.

Story

In late October a young man I know from the corners in Baptist Town, Demetrius “Butta” Anderson, 18, is shot and killed. His older brother and cousin were both previously murdered. The following week I drive 16 hours to Greenwood, Mississippi for Butta’s funeral. Shoulder to shoulder, the community comes together to mourn the loss of one of their own. After songs and short remembrances, the Pastor steps up and quickly clarifies that he is not there to judge, but he speaks very pointedly to the young people in attendance.

“There’s no salvation in hanging out on the corner,” he says. “The only thing that is assured is a visit to a jail cell or an early grave . . . if you see your friend going down a path, you don’t have to follow them . . . if you live by the sword, you will die by the sword.” His admonishment isn’t lost on the adults who nod fervently. They have seen too much violence, too much death over the years. For the younger generation, many of them have never lost anyone so close.

The feedback loop created by media distilled in a person’s behavior and projected to me when I make an image is of great interest and concern to me. My hope is that through intimate documentation it is possible to deconstruct existing stereotypes about young black men and impoverished communities to show the reasons for their behavior in a way that allows for the viewer to achieve a deeper understanding of the individual’s humanity and the underlying motives that drive us all.

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