This past weekend, Chris and I road-tripped down to New Orleans for a NOH8 Campaign photoshoot with photographer Adam Bouska. From the NOH8 Campaign’s website:
On November 4, 2008 Proposition 8 passed in California, amending the state Constitution to ban same-sex marriage. The defeat provoked a groundswell of initiative within the GLBT community at a grassroots level, with many new political and protest organizations being formed in response.
The NOH8 Campaign is a photographic silent protest created by celebrity photographer Adam Bouska (http://www.bouska.net) and partner Jeff Parshley in direct response to the passage of Proposition 8. Photos feature subjects with duct tape over their mouths, symbolizing their voices being silenced by Prop 8 and similar legislation around the world, with “NOH8″ painted on one cheek in protest.
Two years since its inception, the NOH8 Campaign has grown to over 8,000 faces and continues to grow at an exponential rate. The campaign began with portraits of everyday Californians from all walks of life and soon rose to include politicians, military personnel, newlyweds, law enforcement, artists, celebrities, and many more.
The NOH8 Campaign has received overwhelming support from around the world, appearing on various local and national news programs and publications. The images are currently being used on various social networking sites to spread the message of equality, predominantly Facebook and Twitter. Eventually the images are expected to be compiled for a large-scale media campaign.
Start to finish, the photoshoot was a kick-ass experience. The official photographs will be ready in three or four weeks, but for now, I’ll give you a little teaser. First up, here’s Adam himself:
And here’s some behind the scene photos of our shoot, including me and Chris, and our new friend, O.T. Porter, who posed with his father’s war medals.
If Adam and the NOH8 Campaign ever roll into your city (or neighboring state), don’t miss it.
