Finalist
Matt Eich
Freelance
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"SIN AND SALVATION IN BAPTIST TOWN"
Since early 2010 I have been drawn to the Baptist Town neighborhood in Greenwood, Mississippi. It is a pocket of poverty, crime and violence that exists in close proximity to the more affluent and predominantly white north Greenwood, a picturesque southern town. Historically divided, I am examining the current socioeconomic and cultural divide between the white and black communities that coexist in a strained harmony and depend upon one another for survival. I have heard countless stories of unfulfilled promises and watched as the town struggles to reinvent itself in recent years. Greenwood has the potential to be a beacon of hope for the Delta, if they are able to own their past. When complete I intend to display this work to the community in a space that is designed to allow for a safe conversation about contemporary race inequalities and ways that the town can move forward.
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A young man lit only by the dim glow of street lights stands on the corner of Young and Pelican late at night in the Baptist Town neighborhood of Greenwood, Mississippi on Thursday, November 4, 2010.
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