Portraits

___

Prisoners of Conscience
The portraits are of some of the many incarcerated for their activities promoting human rights.
Sources
Amnesty International provides case studies of many political prisoners.

___

Freedom Riders, 1961

The portraits were from police mug shots of the civil rights workers arrested for trying to desegregate the South. Their virtue and sacrifice were validated by historical perspective.

Source

Breach of Peace by journalist-photographer Eric Etheridge

Prisoners of Conscience

mendez

Bárbara Italia Méndez (1979-). Mexican activist who fought and protested police sexual assault and brutality. 2015, acrylic on canvas, 11 x 14 inches

mannley

Chelsea Elizabeth Manning (born Bradley Edward,1987). American activist and whistleblower imprisoned for revealing US military abuses. 2013, acrylic on canvas, 16 x 16 inches

E_debs

Eugene Debs (1855-1926). American socialist, labor lawyer, imprisoned for anti-war beliefs. 2021, oil and wax on board, 18 x 24 inches

dietrichBonhoeffer

Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906-1945). German Lutheran theologian, murdered in prison by the Nazis. 2013, acrylic on canvas, 18 x 24 inches

Dunne2

V.R. Dunne (1889-1970). 1934 Minneapolis Truckers’ Strike leader imprisoned for union organizing activities. 2016, acrylic on canvas, 18 x 24 inches

FriereBlue

Paulo Freire (1921-97). Brazilian literacy educator, scholar and activist imprisoned as a traitor for his teaching. 2013, graphite on paper, I6 x 16 inches

Yu

Gao Yu (1944-). Chinese journalist imprisoned for reporting on the 1989 Tiananmen Square Massacre and other topics. 2015, acrylic on canvas, 11 x 14 inches