Humans of New York por el mundo

"Check it out. I’ve got your book on my iPad! I thought you might be around here. A few minutes ago, some old guy reported that some guy was trying to take his picture for some website"

Ya muchos habrán escuchado hablar de HONY. Muchos otros, como yo, ya estarán absolutamente fanatizados con sus entregas.

Humans of New York (HONY para los amigos) nació a partir de una página web y su paralelo en Facebook. La mente detrás de la lente es Brandon Stanton, estudió Historia en la Georgia University, trabajó en compra y venta de bonos (no la podés creer), y cuando eso fue bastante mal decidió borrar y empezar de nuevo.

Así fue que se mudó a New York City y empezó a recorrer las calles de la ciudad con cámara al hombro, retratando a las personas que hacen de esta ciudad el lugar mágico que es. La fotografía es hermosa, quizás porque logra retratar al individuo, mirarlo a los ojos. Pero más aún me atrapan las pequeñas frases que Brandon extrae de sus conversaciones con el protagonista. Estas pocas palabras que acompañan las imágenes, son lo fuerte de sus entregas. Uno se imagina la conversación, se imagina el tiempo que ambos dedicaron al intercambio, se imagina el vínculo que se generó con la excusa de la foto. Y ese "conocerse", en pocos minutos recorre el mundo para llegar a las computadoras y celulares de miles de otras personas.

Me saca una sonrisa encontrarme con una de ellos en mi feed de Instagram o Facebook, es aire fresco inmediato. Y más aún por estos días, en que HONY se embarcó en un nuevo desafío. 

Invitado por la ONU, Brandon está haciendo un "World Tour" durante 50 días para generar conciencia sobre los Objetivos de Desarrollo del Milenio. Como él dice en su web "The point of the trip is not to “say” anything about the world. But rather to visit some faraway places, and listen to as many people as possible." (el objectivo del viaje no es "decir" nada acerca del mundo. Sino más bien visitar lugares alejados, y escuchar a la mayor cantidad de gente posible").

Así es que hasta ahora, hizo llegar a todas partes del mundo, las palabras y experiencias de personas en Iraq, Jordania y la República Democrática del Congo, pero va por más. Lo que logró es mostrar a estos países fuera de los estereotipos llenos de prejuicios que existen producto del desconocimiento y las distancias. Y esto se ve reflejado en los miles de comentarios que dejan en cada foto sus seguidores, algunos compatriotas, otros musulmanes, latinos, africanos, y de todos los rincones de la web.

Escuchando y compartiendo, HONY está logrando achicar un poquito la brecha…

"She said she’d let me take her photo if I bought some peanuts from her. Afterward, I asked if she could remember the saddest moment of her life. She laughed, and said: “You’re going to need to buy some more peanuts.” (Kasangulu, Democratic Republic of Congo)"

"My grandmother remembers the Arab world much differently than people view it today. She remembers a place known for its music, innovation, and intellectual abilities. I may be naive, but I want to help work toward unity in the Arab world— both between our countries and within our countries— so that we can get back to that place again." (Amman, Jordan)

"She raised us on her own. So when I graduated, I viewed it more as her accomplishment than mine." (Amman, Jordan)

"I was going to one of my first exams, and suddenly there was a bombing. In downtown Damascus! I couldn’t believe it! I didn’t think this was possible. Windows were broken everywhere, and there were people on the ground, and the sounds of ambulances. Then over the next few weeks, everything changed. The taxis in the streets were replaced by tanks. You no longer knew who was your friend and who was your enemy. Suddenly you could be killed, and nobody would ask why. Before war, you have rights. People will ask why you were killed. When war comes, nobody asks why you were killed anymore." (Erbil, Iraq)

Algunas otras "seen in New York"...

"I’m a traffic cop. It’s a job. Somebody’s got to do it. I don’t even represent myself when I’m working. If I was representing myself, I’d let everyone off with a warning. I represent a system. Did I design the system? No. I just enforce it. It’s not for me to decide the system. We elect the people who decide the system. When I write a ticket, everyone tells me a reason that they don’t deserve it. If I gave a warning to everyone with a reason, I wouldn’t give any tickets, and the system wouldn’t work. I don’t get any joy by giving a ticket. And I’m not upset if you beat it in court. It’s not personal. It’s my job."

"She wanted to wear her Hello Kitty dress. So we compromised."

"I had a child when I was sixteen. I got kicked out of high school because of all the absences. My family and community pretty much wrote me off. But right away I got a job at a sporting goods store. Soon I was able to get a job as a receptionist at a tax company, and they gave me enough responsibilities that I learned how to do taxes. Eventually I learned enough to become an associate. Then I got offered a job at a smaller company, and even though it was a pay cut, they offered me responsibility over all the books— accounts payable, accounts receivable, everything. It was less money but I wanted that experience so I took the risk. And I’m so glad I did, because six months later, the controller of that company left and I was given that position. They told me they couldn’t officially call me the controller because I didn’t have a college degree. So I finished my degree 5 months ago— just to make it official! So after having a child at sixteen, I made it all the way to controller of a company, without even having a college degree. Can you believe that? Honestly, I’ve been waiting to tell that story so long that I told it to a customer service representative on the phone last week. She was nice about it and pretended to care."

"There’s six people in every relationship: you, the person you think you are, and the person your partner thinks you are. Then there’s your partner, the person they think they are, and the person you think they are."

"He wants to go home"