{"id":10010,"date":"2026-03-31T10:31:50","date_gmt":"2026-03-31T10:31:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/culturalleft.org\/cl\/2026\/03\/31\/sensitive-portraits-show-the-power-of-community-reviews-culture-socialist-worker\/"},"modified":"2026-03-31T10:31:50","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T10:31:50","slug":"sensitive-portraits-show-the-power-of-community-reviews-culture-socialist-worker","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/culturalleft.org\/cl\/2026\/03\/31\/sensitive-portraits-show-the-power-of-community-reviews-culture-socialist-worker\/","title":{"rendered":"Sensitive portraits show the power of community Reviews & Culture – Socialist Worker"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Gathering\n

Gathering on Chisel beach (Photo: Thomas Ralph & Theo McInnes)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

A gallery in Brixton, south London, was abuzz with the packed private viewing of the Bibby Boys exhibition at Photofusion.<\/p>\n

\"Lucy\n

Lucy saying goodbye (Photo: Thomas Ralph & Theo McInnes)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

The exhibition showed the experience of the asylum seekers aboard the Bibby Stockholm barge in Dorset and the community that rallied around them.<\/p>\n

At a time when we are being pitted against asylum seekers by politicians and the mainstream media, it was refreshing to experience an alternative, positive visual narrative.<\/p>\n

Photographers Thomas Ralph and Theo McInnes immersed themselves in the Portland community during the Bibby Stockholm\u2019s tenure on the island.<\/p>\n

They developed strong bonds with both asylum seekers and Portland Global Friendship Group. This was a group established to support those on the barge.<\/p>\n

\"Davide\n

Davide and Reece (Photo: Thomas Ralph & Theo McInnes)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

A unique moment in time was captured within these sensitive photographic portraits. Asylum seekers in limbo, dealing with the adversity of a process increasingly stacked against them.<\/p>\n

It was often a tense situation on Portland, with Patriotic Alternative and other right wing agitators descending into the community.<\/p>\n

It could easily be considered a microcosm of the national situation at that time, culminating in the summer riots of 2024 and 2025.<\/p>\n

However, the message contained within the portraits is one of hope. The power of the human spirit and what can be achieved when a community comes together through kindness, mutual understanding and respect.<\/p>\n