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Photographers As Allies:

| UNITING UNDER THE SAME BANNER |

11/2/2022

We are named the Model and Artist Advocacy Council for a reason. 

We are uniting a community dedicated to cultivating transparency in our industries. This is a community made of people on both sides of the lens, who are equally passionate about our cause.

We can all agree, there is enough of a problem in the industry that an organization like ours is warranted and necessary.  Hearing testimonies of experiences, just in our local market, solidifies that.  However, it is very important to recognize that we are not, in any way, supporting a narrative of "us vs. them"... where models are the 'good guys' and photographers are the 'bad guys.'

It is never that simple. 

The truth of the matter is..

There are many more good and respectful people in the industry than there are predators.

..and our community deals with a minority group of bad players,   who severely impact integrity in our worlds.

Because of this, MAAC must be mindful and strategic in its approach. We want to include as many industry members as possible to make the greatest impact. That allows our focuses to stick to education, resources and survivor advocacy, rather than using a cancel culture approach.

We believe that cancel culture encourages shame, not accountability.

Cancel culture is a reactive, harmful and ineffective method that fails to acknowledge the systemic issues that are often at the root of hateful behavior.  Canceling predators can be highly effective to call out injustices and stop perpetrators in their tracks, but often, only momentarily.  Unfortunately, unless a person has a celebrity or high-level status, canceling doesn’t always stick.  Cancel culture does not truly do anything about keeping predators out of the market... they can just lay low for a while before getting back to their same old habits. 

Furthermore, if we spend our time chasing after individuals, we will be far less efficient. Empowering an entire community, rather than attacking a single person at a time, is a much better use of time, talent, and resources.

SO... what is our method?

When we say we want to focus on education, that means we want to bring members of the community together and prepare ourselves for what to do when faced with a problematic character or situation.

That is… 

Models, how are you going to walk into your career safely and with dignity?

Photographers, what will you do to model good practice and will you tolerate poor behavior from your cohorts?

Stylists,  if you see or hear these things happening on set, how do you respond? 

Agencies, how will you protect your models and what will you do with the amount of quid pro quo practices in the industry?

We are the home-base, the safe-space, and the path-makers for those ready to do the front-loaded work of educating themselves on the darker side of our industries.  This means uniting under the same banner and recognizing that it is going to take all of us looking at this thing, dead in the eye, with the same intent. 

Photographers, we need you. 

We are allies, and you play an enormous role in changing our industry.

We need your insight. We need your good practices to set the standard.

We need safe individuals on the other side of the lens.

We are not only talking to models; we are gathering information and testimonies from you.  What stories do you need to share?  What are the things we need to address about your role, and how can we help?

If you think there’s something we should be considering, share your thoughts!

We can’t wait to hear from you, because you are appreciated, and -

We can't do this without YOU.

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