Black Lives Matter.
Our Statement:
NSP Studio unequivocally believes Black lives matter. We stand against racism in all forms. We commit our platform to highlight and support people of color through our photography and through fundraising efforts. Neutrality in the face of injustice supports the oppressors. We believe it is time to take a stance, and (long past) time to take action.
Our Studio's Mission:
The mission statement of our studio is (and has always been) to celebrate love, and promote the success and safety of women. We do not specify or discriminate against certain women, or certain types of love. Our commitment is inclusive of all love, and all who identify as women regardless of race, skin color, biological “gender”, or sexual preference.
Results of our internal audit:
While we are focused on how we can be an even stronger ally to the Black community moving forward, our longstanding commitment is evidenced in both our portfolio and our financial donations.
Fundraisers / Donated Services: Over 75% of the dollars we've raised for charities in the last 4 years have gone to organizations that support predominately black and brown people in our community. Namely: YWCA, Teen Empowerment, Dress For Success, and Young Women's Prep. Our other beneficiaries provide support and services to wider demographics (still mostly female) that also benefit black and brown people – including Willow Domestic Violence, Junior League, RMSC, Brides for a Cause, and the Women's Foundation.
Real Women Of Rochester: A platform we've created to allow women to share their personal stories, of the women featured in this series about 40% of our RWORs have been women of color.
Styled Shoots: Only 20% of our models for “styled shoots” have been women of color. We have an opportunity to do better here.
While we are happy to report that all of the photography vendors that we spend many dollars with each year have all made statements in support of BLM, we are also looking for ways to patronizing more black-owned businesses in our community and industry (we are noticing there are few in the photography industry, which is a problem).
Current actions in support of BLM:
Real Women Of Rochester – We have decided to dedicate our RWOR platform to sharing the stories and photos of women of color for the rest of 2020.
We are promoting a fundraiser for our friend Gianni White (The Rebel Flower Bomb), a local poet who is incredibly gifted at her craft, sharing her story and the story of the Black community. We are giving away a $1000 credit to our studio to help promote sales of her book. See our facebook page for details.
Continued awareness, discussions and education for me and my staff as to how we can do better.
Who I'm endlessly thankful for:
The Black community: I am grateful for those who have been patient and caring enough to take the time to educate (us) white and other people of color regarding their experience and teaching us how we can be allies. They are doing this at a time when they are already hurting, and have been for many years (perhaps all of their years). It is a privilege to be educated about racism rather than learning about it first-hand. I am grateful for your time, energy, and continued patronage of our studio.
Our clients – We have had countless people of color over the years share their culture with me and my staff. This has come in the form of teaching us their wedding customs, explaining their personal hair and makeup considerations, showing us shoot inspiration from their social and cultural icons, and bringing traditional clothing and accessories in which to be photographed. Sharing your cultural traditions and how you express love and beauty within your families with us has truly been one of the most enriching experiences of my career.
My team – I cherish the kindness in my employees' hearts, and their personal support of the BLM movement. A shout out to Alyssa DeWitt who is always the first to make sure our portfolio and marketing pieces are representative in terms of skin color, shape, sexual orientation and gender identifications. Thanks also to our hair and makeup artist Christina Weyrauch who is incredibly informed and skilled at providing styling for women with every skin tone, eye shape and hair texture. Thank you for taking many opportunities to educate me and my staff.
We will continue to ensure our actions support progress towards equality and opportunity for all members of the human race. Black lives matter.