The Nahmias Cipher Report

Cattle for wives. The plight of a daughter when an expat goes rogue.

The strength of Parks’ work, resides in its perspicacity coupled with the power of the stories he tells through his photography. It is the reason why doors typically closed to African-Americans during the pre-Civil Rights era, were opened for him. These skills and talents allowed him to work for some of the most prestigious fashion magazines in America, at a time when most African-American photographers, journalist, and models were barred.

Parks’ association with the Civil Rights Movement, and in particular, the two photos of individuals associated with the Nation of Islam; Ethel Shariff, Daughter of Elijah Muhammad, and Malcolm X prompted this post.

He sits alone, lost and unloved, ramshackled eaves choked with dust, a scrawny hen pecks in baked earth, just beyond a porch, parched by African thirst.