Abraham No Se Calla (Abraham Is Not Silent)

Producer Noah Friedman-Rudovsky

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Last year Bolivia lost an extraordinary artist. At the age of twenty-six, Abraham Bojorquez had survived just about everything—years on his own as a kid on the streets in Sao Paolo, violent political confrontations (first as a military conscript defending the palace, later as a protester attacking it)—to become the internationally-known leader of Bolivia's hip-hop movement and an eloquent, charismatic voice for El Alto (a poor, urban area north of La Paz).

This slideshow gives us a glimpse of both Abraham’s life and the transformative changes Bolivia has undergone during the past decade.

Noah Friedman-Rudovsky is a freelance photojournalist who has been based in Bolivia since he received a Fulbright fellowship for photography in 2004. His coverage from Latin America appears regularly in the New York Times, and his work has been published in the New Yorker, Der Spiegel, Paris Match, the New York Times Magazine, and Time Magazine.

In 2006 and 2007, Noah documented the presidency of Bolivia’s first indigenous president, Evo Morales, as his official photographer. The following year, he produced a multimedia exhibit on Bolivia’s land reform. Noah is currently producing videos for NGOs and TV networks.

Full HD version on vimeo: http://www.vimeo.com/14144201

Interview with Noah Friedman-Rudovsky

t21: What inspired you to make Abraham No Se Calla?
NFR: When we did a story on Abraham and the hip-hop movement in El Alto in 2005 for the New York Times, I was instantly impressed by Abraham and his music. I’ve met a lot of inspiring, unique and talented people in Bolivia, but he was at the top of the list.

His life story was incredible. He spent many nights in the presidential palace as a young soldier, protecting the life of a conservative president he despised; he saw soldiers die at his side fighting off a challenge from Bolivia’s police; and just two years later he was in the thick of protests toppling the president—and he survived years of living on his own as a kid.

But Abraham was a remarkably unassuming guy, given all the attention and recognition he began to receive. I traveled with him and photographed him a lot over the past few years (as did plenty of journalists), not only because he was a fascinating character, but because he was able to articulate and tell the story of large segments of Bolivian society whose stories don’t often get told. He was a good friend and died tragically last year at only 26 years old. So I made the slideshow as a tribute to him.

t21: What was the biggest obstacle in making it?
NFR: Shooting some of the images during Bolivia’s conflicts in 2005 was a bit difficult, but other than that, this was a fairly easy piece to make.

t21: Favorite/most unexpected response to the piece?
NFR: Well, my favorite response to Abraham’s music, was that a couple weeks before he passed away, Bolivia’s president saw him perform and asked him to perform at an event of his that weekend. Although I know he was excited about the invitation, Abraham declined and kept his commitment to take part in a planned youth festival.

t21: What do want viewers to take away from it?
NFR: A bit of an idea of what is going on in Bolivia, and an appreciation for hip-hop’s ability to tell stories.

t21: When did you start working in photography?
NFR: I started assisting and shooting in New York in 2001, and started working regularly when I moved to Bolivia in 2004.

t21: What is it like working as a photographer in Bolivia?
NFR: It’s been a fascinating six years to cover Bolivia, given the historic changes the country has been through. In a sense it is a perfect place for a foreign photographer: it’s beautiful, photogenic, and surprising. On the other hand, I haven’t been anywhere else where people are more opposed to having their picture taken, especially by a foreigner.

t21: If you were not an photographer, what would you be?
NFR: A print journalist.

t21: First website you check in the morning?
NFR: Erbol (www.ebol.com.bo), a Bolivian news site.

t21: Favorite city or landmark?
NFR: Havana, Cuba

t21: Favorite public figure?
NFR: Allen Iverson.

t21: The biggest global problem today?
NFR: Hunger.

t21: Last song that was stuck in your head?
NFR: "La Perla" by Calle 13.

t21: Coffee, tea or water?
NFR: Strong coffee

t21: Boat, plane or train?
NFR: Helicopter

t21: Latest obsession?
NFR: Finding a decent bagel in Bolivia.

t21: Your first job?
NFR: An internship at the New Haven Register.

t21: Whom would you love to work with?
NFR: Well, photojournalists don’t necessarily work together, but I will list a couple who I look up to: Andre Lambertson, Sebastiao Salgado, Harvey Finkle.

t21: Personal motto?
NFR: Borracho estaba, pero me acuerdo.

t21: Ten-year goal?
NFR: If I am still taking pictures for a living in ten years, I’ll be very pleased.

t21: Your next or current project?
NFR: I have been working for awhile on documenting land reform in Bolivia, and am hoping to publish a big multimedia project on that.

t21: Your question for t21?
NFR: How do we fund professional independent journalism?

t21: ...let's talk over skype.
 

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