Sharon Hughes

As a photographer and new mom, Sharon Hughes wanted to do something to explore racism beyond the words thrown into social media echo chambers. She could read all the books about what it meant to be black in America but she didn’t have the first clue what it was actually like. She could however, identity with motherhood and look towards mothers with black sons as a window for learning and ultimately working towards dismantling systemic racism. Sharon has been a professional photographer since 2012. After the death of Laquan McDonald in 2014 and continuous killings of unarmed black men, Sharon has found a lot of passion and purpose in this photo series which began in 2017. In 2018 she moved to Cleveland and has continued photographing and interviewing mothers, especially in the wake of Ahmaud Arbery and George Floyd's death. Sharon approaches social activism and community bridge-building through narrative based photography.