Re: Does a [street] photographers background matter? > Phil Penman
1bwana1 wrote: RomanMF wrote:
You admitted you don't have the cultural capital to discuss this, so you should probably stop commenting on matters of racial equity.
Total B.S.. We all have a race, and we all have lives and experiences, so we all have the cultural capital to discuss the topic. I would say you have no right to judge him based on race which you have clearly done. He has just as much right to have opinions on equity as anyone else on the planet. So sad and so inappropriate. How does a discussion on the merits of an artists work turn into a race issue. I guess just like it did here unfortunately.
Coincidently I will be having dinner with the Chief Equity and Diversity Officer of one of the largest companies in the World in about an hour. I will be sure to get her thoughts on your comments. It should be interesting. One question I will have is "What the hell is cultural capital, and where do you earn it?'
He started his comment with "You know, I was born in a country where there was never any discrimination based on skin color or gender," which is already a red flag, but even if you take it at face value, it makes it objectively clear that he does not have the cultural capital to invalidate someone else's lived experience, which the rest of his comment does. People have very different lived experiences and insight based on their identities. Photography has historically been a craft outside the reach of many groups due to race and economics. The OP suggesting that it plays a role in how successful or famous an artist is it not a controversial statement. I don't know if it applies to Phil, but in general, the statement is not controversial.
You don't even know what the phrase cultural capital means and you jumped out the window to defend someone's right to it. Bizarre. Hopefully your meeting with your fancy schmancy guest results in some learning.
Jul 13, 2026 at 01:24 PM
Previous versions of RomanMF's message #17071205 « Does a [street] photographers background matter? > Phil Penman »
