It’s ironic that in a time where we are literally saturated with media and information, our access to information is still controlled. Capturing accurate images of war and conflict today is very difficult, especially when the US Military is concerned. “Embedded” journalists are able to photograph public-friendly images of the endless American wars, in military regulated places and at military regulated times, but the days of being able to photograph or film at the scene of war crimes is over. The problem is, when people see the actual victims, they are less inclined to holler U-S-A! in blind patriotism, and more apt to question the necessity for such slaughter. In 1862, Matthew Brady exhibited Alexander Gardner and James Gibson’s photos of the Battle of Antietam for the American Civil War. 23,000 people were murdered in one day, September 17th, 1862, and the photographers captured the senseless slaughter to display to the American public in New York a few weeks later. Today, war is glorified in movies, TV and in print media, and images like these are kept away from the mainstream public as much as possible. Because seeing bodies strewn haphazardly across fields or children maimed by drone strikes begs the question – who is ordering these deaths, and why? And are we culpable, because they are carried out on our dime? Rest assured, it’s not for the reasons the government is encouraging us to believe and stand by. Below are some of Brady’s exhibits as well as a collection of other Civil War battlefield images.
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