U.S. Focus: Democracy in Georgia
In the first story from a new collaboration between Magnum and Le Temps, Eli Reed travels to Georgia with reporter Simon Petite to document ongoing challenges to democracy in the contested state
Four Magnum photographers have teamed up with two reporters from the Swiss newspaper Le Temps to document key issues in the United States ahead of the upcoming presidential elections in November.
Alongside Simon Petite and Léo Tichelli, photographers Eli Reed, Larry Towell, Cristina de Middel and Peter van Agtmael explore themes of economy, democracy, abortion, foreign policy, and immigration in several key states. The collaboration will also explore images from the Magnum archive in special publications in October and November.
For the first report in the series, Eli Reed traveled to Georgia in July 2024 with journalist Simon Petite to document ongoing challenges in the face of democracy. Over the course of several days, they met with election officials, African-American voters, and Republican candidates, bearing witness to the climate of heightened tension in the contested state.
In the 2020 election, the traditionally Republican state was one of several to turn blue, as Joe Biden secured a narrow 0.2 percent margin over Donald Trump. As Petite recalls in the article, the Republican candidate immediately contested the results.
“Once again, the focal point of this electoral contest will be Atlanta, a city of nearly 500,000 people, the hometown of Martin Luther King Jr., the celebrated civil rights leader who was assassinated in 1968,” writes Petite regarding the competition between the Republican and Democratic parties in the city. Atlanta continues to attract a significant number of tourists, many of whom visit the site of his birth close to the Sweet Auburn neighborhood.
Reed, now in his late 70s, has been documenting the African-American experience in the United States since he began his career as a photographer in 1970. His 1997 book, Black in America, chronicles his life’s work on the subject, touching on everything from casual moments in the lives of the community to momentous occasions such as the funeral of Yusef Hawkins, whose death sparked the 1991 Crown Heights riots in Brooklyn.
“This is such an important time, especially with all the corruption going on,” he says.
One of the individuals that Reed and Petite met was Milton Kidd, director of elections in Douglas County, and one of the 30% of election officials in the United States who have received threats regarding their job. Speaking to Petite, he explained how he constantly receives anonymous voicemails or texts that tend to be very violent and personal.
The pair also visited a Baptist church named First Iconium, where Reed photographed Shaun Smith, a pastor coordinating Black Push, an initiative that works “to fight against recidivism and aid individuals transition from prison back into society,” according to the organization’s website.
On Sunday, July 28, the photographer and the journalist attended a weekly Republican brunch meeting at an Atlanta country club. Two key speakers, Josh McKoon, chairman of the Georgia Republican Party, and Hilary Breyel, Republican coordinator for ensuring the “integrity” of Georgia’s elections, called for pressure on election officials to ensure the validity of November’s results.
Read the full article, in French, via Le Temps.
