A father's response to those who called him a sicko and a pornographer for the pictures he took of his daughter

A father's response to those who called him a sicko and a pornographer for the pictures he took of his daughter
A father's response to those who called him a sicko and a pornographer for the pictures he took of his daughter
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The News Minute | August 24, 2014 | 05:51 pm ISTWhen photographer Wyatt Neumann went on a two week road trip with his two-year-old daughter Stella in April this year, little did he know that the photographs he took of her during the trip would cause such furore. But he wasn't one to just listen quietly; he gave it back in full spirit. Neumann had clicked his daughter throughout the trip, capturing their journey, in different places; in some pictures she is wearing clothes, in others not. When he uploaded the pictures on Facebook and Instagram, public groups, including Get Off My Internets, took offence to some of the pictures to the extent where both the social networking sites shut Neumann's account temporarily. According to media reports, the images were called 'pornographic' and 'perverse'. While many found the pictures to be vulgar, some seemed to be concerned about the safety of the child. In an interview with the Huffington Post, Neumann said, "The anonymous public made their opinions about my work. It was the actions they took against me, the reality for me was that these people could actually affect my ability to express myself. They took down my Instagram and Facebook; those are huge digital platforms for a photographer. It had a physical effect on my ability to communicate with people. The fact that they had that ability to control my experience in this life made me want to fight back. I really believe that the work is beautiful and [reveals] the innocence of childhood."Instead of bowing down to criticism, Neumann organised an exhibition titled 'I FEEL SORRY FOR YOUR CHILDREN - The Sexualization of Innocence in America'. In the exhibition, he displayed the photographs that people found inappropriate and captioned them with the nasty comments that some made. In a report uploaded on YouTube by Vocativ, Neumann talks about how people treated him after he uploaded his photographs from the trip with such contempt. People's perception of what is obscene and what is not often defines how skeptical they are; to an extent where they cross their limits and enter someone else's zone. And as Vocativ puts it, the society 'tends to sexualize the natural acts of children'. Some of the comments he received for the photographs were downright vulgar. Neumann fought back and gave it back to those who criticised him and called him a 'sicko', through his exhibition; which was a hit with people, who also brought with them their kids. Here is Vocativ's video.

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