The War Is Here: Newark 1967

In July 1967, Life magazine photographer Lee (1941–2015) was sent to Newark, N.J., to cover the civil unrest convulsing the city, notes journalist Campion (Walking on the Moon) at the outset of this harrowing visual account. The uprising was triggered by the beating, arrest, and incarceration of cab driver John Smith by police, but more broadly resulted from decades of “endemic poverty, institutional racism, corruption, and abuse that found the black majority population of Newark... with little hope for change.” Lee captured the event as it unfolded, including store lootings; the arrival of the National Guard; their violent, heavy-handed response; and 26 deaths and countless injures. Especially striking is Lee’s photo of 12-year-old Joe Bass Jr., who lies in the street, limbs askew, in a pool of his own blood; the image was selected for the cover of Life magazine and fueled national dialogues about racial justice. But most of these photos have never been published, including those of apocalyptic-looking streets emptied out post-looting, and National Guard soldiers outfitted in uniforms and helmets, juxtaposed bizarrely with the plainclothed people of Newark. Fifty-six years later, the images resonate in their ability to capture with depth and honesty the particularities of a historical moment, and in their disturbing timeliness. This is powerful. (May)