© Donna Ferrato, 1987, ‘The Arrest’ (L’arresto), Minneapolis / USA
I just read this interview with Donna Ferrato from 1998 on ASX and thought it’s worth sharing:
“The boy is saying to his father, ‘I hate you for hitting my mother, and I hope you never come back to this house.’ Nobody, even the parents who signed a release for this picture, realized how powerful it was going to be until they saw it in the magazine and they flipped out.” (Donna Ferrato; read the whole interview and see more pictures here)
In 1987, Ferrato rode along with the Minneapolis police as they responded to 911 calls. A boy named Diamond made a call saying that his father was physically attacking his mother. He was the first child Ferrato had seen stand up for his mother at a moment when most children would be afraid. The image of his bravery not only left an impression on Ferrato and the police, but was hailed as one of the most influential photographs in the world by Life Magazine. Twenty years later, Ferrato searched for and found Diamond. His parents are still together and maintain a healthy relationship with their son.
In 1991, Aperture published Ferrato’s book on domestic violence ‘Living With the Enemy’. Shortly afterwards, a New York battered women’s shelter approached her to collect the photographs as an exhibition for a benefit event. Building on the success of this, Ferrato established the Domestic Abuse Awareness, Inc. to raise funds and to educate the public about domestic violence.
(silfarioneから)
