The first national celebration that focused on the history of Black Americans was Negro History Week in 1925, a bookend timeframe in February between the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. It was so well-embraced that according to BlackHistoryMonth.gov, President Ford expanded it to a month in 1976,
Photographer Dontrius Williams felt like he had to pick a lane about 10 years ago, so he “went straight to film. To me, digital images lie flat, but it’s the look with film. It’s the grain and contrast I like, and that’s when I started photographing with purpose.” Some recent results of his “purpose” are on display