Activestills

Activestills collective was established in 2005 by a group of documentary photographers out of a strong conviction that photography is a vehicle for social and political change. The collective views itself as part of the international and local struggle against all forms of oppression, racism and discrimination. It is composed of Israeli, Palestinian and international photographers, operating locally in Palestine/Israel and abroad. Activestills approaches the region between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea as one, working to expose the most blatant attack on human rights and freedom within these borders: the Zionist settler-colonial project led by Israel against the Palestinian population. One of our main topics of documentation is the various forms of resistance against the colonial project, on both sides of the Green Line. The collective believes in the power of images to shape public attitudes and raise awareness on issues that are generally absent from public discourse, or presented in a misleading way by the media. Israeli public opinion is shaped first and foremost by the Israeli mainstream media that is becoming more racist and inciting against non-Jewish populations. The impact of this process is evident in increased public support for violent military operations, racist legislation and discriminatory policies. On the international level, the mainstream media often repeats the Israeli narrative, failing to expose the settler-colonial project as the main cause of violence and human rights violations in the area. We wish to challenge this state of affairs by producing work which supports the efforts of the oppressed in bringing their narrative into the visible public sphere. In addition, Activestills covers various topics including women's rights, LGTBQI rights, animal rights, migrants and asylum-seekers and other struggles for freedom and equality.* For any kind of use of our images please contact Activestills@gmail.com