Beautiful Virgin Islands

Tuesday, Jul 01, 2025

10 Passionate People Who Changed The World

"If we are able to see these activists as relatable human beings, then we can begin to listen to each other and maybe repair this frayed discourse that we need if we're going to move forward."

Portions of this interview first appeared in the BuzzFeed News newsletter JPG, which features behind-the-scenes exclusives from renowned photographers and our hard-hitting photo stories.

In recent years, social activism has seeped into nearly all aspects of our lives. No longer does taking a stand for a cause require a forceful display of dissidence -it can also be made in small gestures, like choosing reusable straws over plastic or sharing personal stories of survival with a hashtag on social media.

Taking note of this proliferation in activism, writer and photographer KK Ottesen set out on a journey to meet with dozens of the world's most influential activists from as far back as the civil rights movement to as recent as the #MeToo movement. Her goal was to listen and learn about what it means to stand up for what you believe in and to trace a lineage from the activists of yesterday to the groundbreaking movements of today.

Her new book, Activist: Portraits of Courage, brings together these encounters in a powerful portrait of passion and motivation. Here, Ottesen shares with BuzzFeed News some of her favorite portraits and stories from Activist, as well as her thoughts on what it takes to effect change today.


How does your book approach the history of activism in America?

KK Ottesen: It's an incredibly polarized time right now in the country, and there have been a lot of upsetting things happening in the last several years. As our national dialogue has gotten more and more poisoned, I realized that we aren't really listening to each other when we share our perspectives.

With this in mind, I thought it would be great to talk with activists from across the ages. Not just people who were recently active, but all the way back to civil rights pioneers. These are people who are still living and could shed some light on how this moment compares to others and why they got involved in the first place.

Some of the questions I sought to answer were: What does it take to be an activist? Who becomes an activist and why? What is it that compels these individuals to get up and do something? Whether they're progressive or conservative, what is it that makes a human being decide that they can't accept the way things are and they have to change it -or at least try?

The reality is that a lot of us would most likely throw up our hands and shout, “Ugh! This is terrible!” So you have to have a sense of agency, and this is something that I found among the activists -the sense that if you do something, things can and will eventually change. What's so interesting about that is many of these activists had some experience when they were young -8, 10, 12 years old -that gave them their first taste that they could do something and effect real change.

That's an interesting commonality between these activists. Was there a certain personality trait that these activists shared?

KO: That was part of my question when I was starting this project. I went in thinking I was going to meet these strong, strident personality characters -and some of them are, for sure! But I'd also say that many of these activists are also thoughtful, reflective, and not the loud, in-your-face stereotype.

I also think that to be an activist, you have to be somebody who shares some sort of optimism if you're going to fight these huge fights and think that things are going to get better. You have to have optimism, humanity, and love.


Is there a particular story of activism that stood out to you?

KO: The story of Bonnie Raines. Raines, her husband, and a couple of other people were professors in Philadelphia and in the peace movement in the early ’70s. They knew that J. [Edgar] Hoover's FBI was spying on peace activists, as well as the Black Panthers, but they couldn't prove it. So they decided the only way they could prove this was to break into an FBI office and take the files, which was what they did! Their actions blew the lid on the whole operation and proved that the FBI was illegally spying on American citizens.

It's so incredibly bold, but they were also very careful about it. The Raineses had three young kids at home that were under 10 at the time. I just can't imagine these risks, but they also felt strongly that they had to do something. So they did it quietly, and then they slipped back into their lives under the radar. Nobody knew about their actions for 40 years. The FBI had hundreds of agents looking for them, and the Raineses never told anybody what they did. There are probably so many stories like this that we'll never know.


Do you consider your book to be a form of activism?

KO: I wanted to do something that was useful at this moment and to contribute to the conversation using whatever tools I had at my disposal, which were writing and photography. I also wanted to do it in such a way that it allowed us to see into the activists as individuals and as human beings, stripping away all the labels around them.

It's my hope that if we are able to see these activists as relatable human beings, then we can begin to listen to each other and maybe repair this frayed discourse if we're going to move forward.

Many of the photos are intimate and meant to take you very close to the person, as if you're sitting down and talking to them face-to-face. I often use black and white for my photographs as well because for me it's a great way to strip away a lot of the noise and to feel like you're focusing on the expressions and having a real interaction.


Have any of these encounters had a lasting impact on you?

KO: One of my very favorite quotes is from [Rep.] John Lewis. He was talking about when he was attacked by the Klan when he was a Freedom Rider. One of the former Klan members who had attacked him came to visit his office many years later. The man had his son with him and said, “Look, Congressman Lewis -it was me who beat you. Will you forgive me?” John Lewis embraced this man and forgave him. It's very beautiful, this ability to forgive and love despite everything.

John Lewis later explained that one of the key principles he learned during his nonviolence training was that no matter if you're being kicked and on the ground -sorry, it's hard for me to say this without crying -you try to make eye contact with them so that you never let the person who's hurting you forget your humanity.

That's the whole point: recognizing humanity in each other. The idea of trying to hear each other, forgive each other, and listen. That's what I hope comes out of this project and what so many of these activists said in such beautiful ways.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Robots Compete in Football Tournament in China Amid Injuries
Trump Administration Considers Withdrawal of Funding for Hospitals Providing Gender Treatment to Minors
Texas Enacts Law Allowing Gold and Silver Transactions
China Unveils Miniature Insect-Like Surveillance Drone
OpenAI Secures Multimillion-Dollar AI Contracts with Pentagon, India, and Grab
Marc Marquez Claims Victory at Dutch Grand Prix Amidst Family Misfortune
Germany Votes to Suspend Family Reunification for Asylum Seekers
Elon Musk Critiques Senate Budget Proposal Over Job Losses and Strategic Risks
Los Angeles Riots ended with Federal Investigations into Funding
Budapest Pride Parade Draws 200,000 Participants Amid Government Ban
Southern Europe Experiences Extreme Heat
Xiaomi's YU7 SUV Launch Garners Record Pre-Orders Amid Market Challenges
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez's Lavish Wedding in Venice
Russia Launches Largest Air Assault on Ukraine Since Invasion
Education Secretary Announces Overhaul of Complaints System Amid Rising Parental Grievances
Massive Anti-Government Protests Erupt in Belgrade
Trump Ends Trade Talks with Canada Over Digital Services Tax
UK Government Softens Welfare Reform Plans Amid Labour Party Rebellion
Labour Faces Rebellion Over Disability Benefit Reforms Ahead of Key Vote
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Host Lavish Wedding in Venice Amid Protests
Trump Asserts Readiness for Further Strikes on Iran Amid Nuclear Tensions
North Korea to Open New Beach Resort to Boost Tourism Economy
UK Labour Party Faces Internal Tensions Over Welfare Reforms
Andrew Cuomo Hints at Potential November Comeback Amid Democratic Primary Results
Curtis Sliwa Champions His Vision for New York City Amid Rising Crime Concerns
Federal Reserve Proposes Changes to Capital Rule Affecting Major Banks
EU TO HUNGARY: LET THEM PRIDE OR PREP FOR SHADE. ORBÁN TO EU: STAY IN YOUR LANE AND FIX YOUR OWN MESS.
Trump Escalates Criticism of Media Over Iran Strike Coverage
Trump Announces Upcoming US-Iran Meeting Amid Controversial Airstrikes
Trump Moves to Reshape Middle East Following Israel-Iran Conflict
Big Four Accounting Firms Fined in Exam Cheating Scandal
NATO Members Agree to 5% Defense Spending Target by 2035
Australia's Star Casino Secures $195 Million Rescue Package Amid Challenges
UK to Enhance Nuclear Capabilities with Acquisition of F-35A Fighter Jets
Russian Shadow Payments via Cryptocurrency Reach $9 Billion
Explosions Rock Doha as Iranian Missiles Target Qatar
“You Have 12 Hours to Flee”: Israeli Threat Campaign Targets Surviving Iranian Officials
Macron and Merz: Europe must arm itself in an unstable world
Germany and Italy Under Pressure to Repatriate $245bn of Gold from US Vaults
Airlines Evaluate Flight Cancellations Amid Escalating US-Iran Tensions
Starmer Invites Innovators to Join Government Talent Scheme
UK Economy’s Strong Opening Quarter Shows Signs of Cooling
Harrods Seeks Court Order to Secure Al Fayed Estate for Victims
BA and Singapore Airlines Cancel Dubai Flights Amid Middle East Tensions
Trump Faces Backlash from MAGA Base Over Iran Strikes
Meta Bets $14 B on Alexandr Wang to Drive AI Ambitions
WATCH: Israeli forces show the aftermath of a massive airstrike at Iran's Isfahan nuclear site
FedEx Founder Fred Smith, ‘Heart and Soul’ of the Company, Dies at 80
Chinese Factories Shift Away from U.S. Amid Trump‑Era Tariffs
Pimco Seizes Opportunity in Japan’s Dislocated Bond Market
×