FARZANA WAHIDY
Farzana Wahidy is a young Afghan woman who works as a photojournalist, taking extraordinary pictures of life in her conflict-riddled country. She believes that images serve as an important source of news and education for her countrymen, the vast majority of whom are illiterate. Her work also communicates the humanity and aspirations of individuals, the terrible consequences of life in a war zone, and the particular hardships of women’s lives in an oppressively patriarchal society.
As a woman, Wahidy is able to photograph Afghan women in situations that would be off-limits to male photographers.
Photo by Farzana Wahidy; click to go to website
In an interview in Warshooter, a website of photojournalists covering conflict and crisis, Wahidy said, “In some cases only women can cover the story, like in prisons or hospitals. So if there are no female photojournalists, the story does not get told.” Wahidy’s family supports her work. She quotes her father as saying “… that this is a chance to tell the true story of Afghanistan and that this is a big responsibility and that I should respect it. He tells me that I should do something, not just know about it, but do something about it.”
Of her often dangerous assignments, Wahidy says, “If I die doing this work, I will be proud.”
Please take the time to visit the website of Farzana Wahidy, and browse the image galleries.
To see more images and find out more about Wahidy, visit Lens, the New York Times Photography Blog, and Lightstalker. A good article about Wahidy is posted at Women’s eNews.
Story by Melissa Cooper
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