How does Ezra Acayan illustrate activism as an embodiment of hope in his

photographs capturing political demonstrations in the Philippines?

Word Count: 1490

Over the years, the Philippines has sustained decades-long corruption under the

administrations of strong-man leaders such as Marcos and Duterte. The effects of the Marcos

administration have been witnessed from generation to generation since its declaration. The last

administration, Duterte’s, mirrors the past with its implementation of Extra Judicial Killings (EJK)

and other human rights violations. Unfortunately, activists who dare to speak out against these

administrations are killed. Photojournalists like Ezra Acayan, risk their lives to expose the horrid

truth of government corruption.

Throughout Ezra Acayan’s photography collections of activist protests, he emphasizes

the interwoven aspects contributing to activists’ movement toward implementing change. He

shows their journey as activists through his use of symbols, various framing techniques, and

subjects. Thus, Acayan taps into his inner humanity by extending a platform for activists and

their cause.
 Figure 1

Family members of drug war victims hold hands as they watch a livestream of the International
Criminal Court's decision to resume its investigation into former President Duterte's war on drugs, on
July 18, 2023 in Quezon city, Metro Manila, Philippines.

[Ezra Acayan]/[Families Of Drug War Victims Watching Livestream Of ICC Decision On Duterte
Case] via Getty Images

In his series of photographs depicting political demonstrations, Acayan sheds light on

victims of EJK and the struggle of their families to hold the perpetrators accountable. In Figure

1, he portrays the intimate moment between two women holding each other’s hands tightly as

they watch a live stream of the International Criminal Court's decision to resume its investigation into

former President Duterte's war on drugs.

Acayan uses framing to draw viewers to the photo's focal point: the hands strategically

placed in the middle of two portraits that the two individuals hold. He highlights the hands by

framing them under a sliver of light, highlighting the delicateness of their wrinkles. On the two

ends of the photo, we see that their other hands are holding photos of their loved ones who

were victims of EJK. The hands are in the middle as if stitching two opposite ends of the photo

to show their devastating similarity that their loved one is dead. However, joining hands from two

distinct individuals also symbolizes togetherness despite individual differences and uniting
against one common goal: obtaining justice. Viewers can empathize with a unique experience

through the focal point, hand-holding, as a universal symbol of seeking support.

Moreover, the close-up shot physically brings the viewer closer to the hands. The viewer

is confronted with the personal space of the family members and is placed in a situation where

they must sympathize with their fight to achieve justice for their wrongly killed family members.

In this light, these women are painted as activists clinging to all they have, each other, for

strength to persevere for their long-lost loved ones.

As viewers’ field of vision widens, we see the individual portraits of two men with their full

names being held by the two individuals in the photo. One hand holds the other, and the other

has the picture, a hand that is used to remember. The images here symbolize memorializing the

past as a means of demanding justice. Furthermore, the photos serve as the emotional anchor

on top of their support for each other.

Through the use of universal symbols and framing between two pictures of EJK victims,

Acayan personalizes the protest of the family members and allows audiences to root for their

long-awaited triumph.
 Figure 2

A Filipino activist lights candles in front of riot police during a demonstration to mark the 51st
anniversary of the imposition of Martial Law in the Philippines, on September 21, 2023 in Manila,
Philippines.

[Ezra Acayan]/[Commemoration Of 51st Anniversary Of Martial Law Imposition In The

Philippines] via Getty Images

Acayan establishes the forms of community resistance between activists and the police

ever since the declaration of Martial Law 51 years ago up until this day, as a byproduct of large

political demonstrations.

In Figure 2, the use of the low-angle shot frames the two main subjects of the

photograph in parallel lines, the police who are standing behind a barricade looking down below

on an activist continuing the line of candles that light the faces of the dead and missing from the

times of the Marcos administration. The police are portrayed as dominant figures overseeing the

demonstration, however are ironically restrained from interacting physically by the barrier in front

of them. Though the police have an assigned power to stop the demonstration, all they can do is

watch. In contrast, the activist takes a proactive position leaning down to illuminate the

photographs of the dead and missing from the Martial Law Era.
 Despite the police as symbols of opposing forces, Acayan contrasts their dark blue

uniforms with the path of candles as a symbol of joint resistance across time. These candles

shine on the faces of the victims in the posters in front of them, so whenever an individual

places a candle, they emerge from the shadows of secrets and into the light of truth. The

candles take up over half of the picture lengthwise in a line as if the man is continuing a long

path of activists and deeds of defiance. These candles represent the light of hope that ignites

every time a person steps up and contributes to this path toward activism.

The activist’s confrontational yet non-violent deed is a testament to activists and their

ongoing effort to resolve matters that should have been resolved years ago peacefully. The

photograph shows the power of resistance and its effectiveness in portraying truth to institutions

that uphold deceit.

Figure 3

Martial Law survivor Satur Ocampo takes part in a demonstration to mark the 51st anniversary of the
imposition of Martial Law in the Philippines, on September 21, 2023 in Manila, Philippines.
 [Ezra Acayan]/[Commemoration Of 51st Anniversary Of Martial Law Imposition In The
Philippines] via Getty Images

The subject in Figure 3 is a way for Acayan to bring awareness to the efforts behind the

faces of revolution and invites the reader to learn about the cause he represents.

Satur Ocampo, aged yet resilient, stands proudly in the middle, holding his fist strong in

the air, affirming the slogan in his shirt, "Never again. Never forget." The shadows on his face

display his wrinkles, a product of his prolonged revolt against the Marcos Administration. His

gaze is determined, and his brows furrowed, showing his focus and commitment to preserving

the truth. Acayan photographs the raised fist in the context of a demonstration to contextualize

the fist as a symbol of “power from below,” as to raise a fist means to come from below and to

rise above our heads. Combined with his expression, old age, and the fist, Acayan exemplifies

the struggle of prolonged activism and the frustration and hopelessness that brews through

time. Despite this, Ocampo still stands with his head high and fist up, leading a new generation

towards a more hopeful future. Through the universal symbol of the raised fist, a sign of

resistance and strength, Acayan captures a leader who has united groups of people under the

same motive: to hold the Marcos administration accountable.

Backing him up is a sea of his collaborators and supporters from “Bayan Muna”, an

organization he started during Martial Law, demanding the viewer never to forget the crimes

committed and the livelihoods lost through their vivid posters. The color of a loud yellow

contrasts the black shirt Ocampo is wearing. The colors in the photograph represent the two

sides of a revolution: the yellow symbolizes the untamed vivacity and urgency of the

anti-Marcos movement that contrasts the grief and remembrance represented by the blackness

of his shirt and its verbal statement.

 Furthermore, the yellow attracts our attention to the message of the posters. Acayan’s

recurring theme of exposing the truth is exemplified through the illustrations of victims and the

text below. The posters behind him present the tragedy that there may be fewer survivors than

there are dead or missing victims. The contrast of the multiple images behind one sole survivor

displays the sad reality that few are still alive to continue the story of those who can’t, who are

ready to tell their own story and continue the story of those silenced. Under the photographs,

the verbal text pops out in red on a yellow background, urging us never to forget again and,

more than that, to continue to bring up the past to fight from erasure.

Combining visual and verbal narratives via photos within a photo and a subject

representing a revolutionary movement paints a powerful message that forces viewers to

confront the lives lost at the cost of the revolution. When Acayan emphasizes that, viewers can

see the faces and their souls in the numbers and statistics.

Acayan’s photographs capture a hopeful portrayal of activists and inspire viewers to join

in through them. He uses framing to direct the viewers’ attention toward symbols of hope and

how activists use that hope to propel their demand for accountability. He creates a sense of

familiarity through the universality of symbols, such as the fist as a call to unite, photographs as

memorialization, and candles as a light. However, through the framing and use of the subject,

he adds another layer of meaning, such as the fist of an older activist that shows his persistence

and frustration, the photographs as an anchor to their call for action, and candles as a peaceful

form of resistance and light of truth.

 As Acayan said: “We are allowed to be vulnerable with the images we see, [...] I think in

this work that vulnerability can also be our strength.” At the heart of these photographs is the

raw emotion of the subjects. With framing and symbolism, Acayan tells these subjects’ stories

to allow the audience to witness compassion and participate in the hope for righteousness to

prevail.

APA SOURCES

Evangelista, P. (2018, April 9). Photographer Ezra Acayan: “I am human first before I am a

journalist.”

RAPPLER.

https://www.rappler.com/newsbreak/podcasts-videos/199107-ezra-acayan-video-press-fre

edom-philippines-war-on-drugs/

Acayan, Ezra. Families of Drug War Victims Watching Livestream of ICC Decision on Duterte

Case, 18 July 2023,

www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/family-members-of-drug-war-victims-hold-han

ds-as-they-watch-news-photo/1553292472?adppopup=true. Accessed 23 Feb. 2024.

Acayan, Ezra. Martial Law Survivor Satur Ocampo Takes Part in a Demonstration to Mark the

51st Anniversary of the Imposition of Martial Law in the Philippines, on September 21,

2023 in Manila, Philippines. , 21 Sept. 2023,

 www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/martial-law-survivor-satur-ocampo-takes-part-i

n-a-news-photo/1693481494?adppopup=true. Accessed 23 Feb. 2024.

Acayan, Ezra . A Filipino Activist Lights Candles in Front of Riot Police during a Demonstration

to Mark the 51st Anniversary of the Imposition of Martial Law in the Philippines, on

September 21, 2023 in Manila, Philippines., 21 Sept. 2023,

www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/filipino-activist-lights-candles-in-front-of-riot-

police-news-photo/1693557611. Accessed 23 Feb. 2024.

Note: The images were taken as screenshots from Getty Images with the intent of non-commercial and
non-editorial use. The images by Ezra Acayan are for the IB Higher Level Essay in completion of a
requirement for the Language and Literature Higher Level class.