Girl + Refugee + Buildings, Camps, Uttar Pradesh, India, November, 2013

Among the discarded buildings they have made their homes, the refugees doing their best to recover from the most recent violence in Uttar Pradesh. I was humbled by their collective strength and the smiles shared with my lens.

We visited eight or so camps and did our best to formally document these stories. Each and every person spoke a different, visual language with the camera, each had a story to tell. This young girl was incredibly gallant, ignoring the waves of men stopping every few minutes to check on our project. She smiled in defiance and brought chills to their opposition. 

While we had the support of the elders and the leaders of these communities, there were those now and then whose voices were presented to me through their expressions. With her by my side we continued in spite of this and perhaps because of this, her story  needed to be told she demanded. 

www.halimina.org

Note: This image was made with a Sony RX100M2, hand-held and edited for size and contrast only.