Outside the ICE detention center in Broadview, IL, ICE is harassing and targeting protesters, media, and activists who speak up for civil rights. Sept 19, 2025 Thank you for standing up against injustice, Rachel! @theangrymathprof.bsky.social Here is the article: open.substack.com/pub/adrianok...

New article is up. Please read. It's very important. Content Warning: This article contains explicit material, including a historical photograph of a lynching from the 1930s. The image is central to the subject matter, but it may be disturbing.

If you don’t think he will use ICE at polling places to do voter intimidation, you need to really wake up. He is doing everything in his “power” to obliterate the Constitution, and people’s blind racism is enabling it.

Trump threatening members of Congress not to sign the Epstein files discharge petition saying it would be a “hostile act” against him is definitely something an innocent person would do. And scheduling a military flyover in the middle of the survivor press conference is also totally normal behavior.

Finding peace in the time of chaos by Adriano Kalin.

Trump is building a 200-million-dollar ballroom at the White House while we are financially struggling to make ends meet for our basic needs. I am so tired of this.

A conversation that is not talked about enough is that being disabled and constantly being hounded by medical companies and debt collectors simply because you're trying to survive in a system that does not value you. I desperately want universal healthcare.

“Come here legally,” says the descendant of someone who showed up during Manifest Destiny, committed genocide, and called it progress.

"Your mind races, wondering if you’ll make it home safely or if today will be the day when I am met with my biggest fear, to be abducted and never heard from again."

How having a TBI affects my photography.

I think as AI keeps becoming more annoying in our current timeline, we’re going to crave human interaction and authentic art.

I literally can't think of one department Trump implemented to benefit anyone who is not in the top 1%. I am not trying to be funny, I literally can't think of one thing he has done to benefit any of us.

9 unelected officials shouldn't have so much power, especially when some of them are actively going against the will of the people and representing corporations and religious entities instead.

Photography as Resistance in America. As an immigrant. As a brown man in America. I am tired but I refuse to be silent. Photography is one of the best assets on showing our humanity.

My first YouTube video is a personal introduction to my work as a social justice photographer caught in the crosshairs of Trump’s racist policies targeting immigrants like me.

One reason I love black-and-white photography is that I can't use color as a distraction. I simply have to respond to the chaos in front of me and use compositions to translate an emotion through shadows and highlights.

If my photos bring even a moment of tenderness to your timeline, then I’ve done my job. I try to photograph the empathy that holds us all together. Na vida, tem que jogar bonito.

This book is riveting and so, so infuriating. It follows 5 families in Atlanta who are struggling to remain housed and paints deeply compassionate portraits of each unit. It reads almost like a novel but is outstanding journalism

Take the photograph, it may not be for everyone, and that is okay.

"I am the least racist person in the room." - Trump, 2020 Presidential Debate. These photographs will be relics of history, showing what life was like in our neighborhoods before we were sanctioned to detention centers. Albany, NY 2025.

Funny how the ones labeled “radical” are the only ones actually defending the Constitution and their fellow neighbors. The people who praise 'Don't Tread on Me' motto are the ones standing with authoritarianism. The irony is not lost on us.

Photo Essay: The Constitution Doesn’t Work Unless It’s For All of Us. If you want to see Chicago beyond the mass media lens, I’d love to share my work. As an adopted immigrant from Brazil, I document life as I live it and I will always stand against ICE and authoritarianism.

The Constitution was created to prevent tyranny. Resisting fascism is our duty. If you think we’re being dramatic, you’ll wish someone stood up for you when it’s too late. 🧊

If you're still silent about oppression in America, just know the cross they're burning won't spare your lawn either. Silence is complicity: pick a side.

Traveling at night across state lines shouldn’t feel like running. But when you’re an immigrant in America, survival starts looking a lot like strategy.

The honest truth is that racism, oppression, and authoritarianism only exist when your voice is silenced and you’re afraid to speak up. Silence is an echo chamber of guilt and fear. Oh, the irony, the land of the free for me, not for thee.

Is the new American dream to leave?

I officially renamed my Substack The People's Aperture. It’s all about photography, social justice, disability, human rights, raw stories told through my BIPOC lens. Please help support artists fighting for justice. Link in bio.

Living in the United States is like living in the Matrix and it's absolutely relentless and exhausting.

That is the most explicit expression of white privilege, when your identity is always seen as neutral, and ours is treated as a threat. New article posted!

Machiavelli warned us: take their money, lose their loyalty. Trump may find out the hard way as tariffs clash with the American people and incinerate our civil rights. #handsoff #protests #chicago

"Moving Should Come With Paid Time Off. Period." Because when you’re disabled, it’s not just exhausting, it’s dangerous. Let’s talk about the actual cost of moving.

Nothing like watching the FOTUS throw a tantrum by revoking civil rights to remind us that age and maturity are not the same thing.

I just posted a new article on Substack about moving to Rogers Park in Chicago and photographing in 16:9 ratio.

Writing lets the mind create. Photography lets the soul breathe.

As an independent social justice photographer, the threat of ICE detention looms more prominent by the day. But in the face of rising authoritarianism, Chicago stands its ground.

Just posted my latest article on Substack.

Heading to a protest to support all of you, fight for our rights, and defend Mahmoud Khalil. We will not be silent. First, it’s a stranger, next, it’s your neighbor, and then it’s you. This affects all of us, and we must stand in solidarity. Our rights are being violated. ✊🏾

When we invest in our neighborhoods, it’s not just about money—it’s about showing up, showing respect, and lifting each other up. In a time when DEI and basic empathy are on the chopping block, it’s vital to use our skills as photographers to show up for the community. This is Chicago.

Chicago is starting to defrost after a long winter. ❄️ 🍃📸

So, Trump snitched on himself multiple times that he rigged the election. Any news outlets going to pick this up or any accountability? A recount? Because as far as I’m concerned all of our constitutional rights were violated.

Street photography is a protest, capturing truth when this administration constantly attacks it. Photography holds propaganda accountable when the government tries to manipulate the national archives. New article on Substack:

Every photograph I take is political. My existence as a minority demands it. 📸✊🏾

We’re speaking up, but they’re trying to shut us down. People here and around the world need to know that voices and oppression are rising under authoritarianism. Read, share, and stay aware. Link to the Substack article: open.substack.com/pub/adrianok...

Can Congress do their job and write up the articles of impeachment already before Trump literally starts world war 3. This is not hyperbole.

In times like this, it’s also important to step away and create so you have room to fight injustice. 💙✊🏾

If Republicans are going to be cowards and stop holding town halls due to the backlash against their shitty policies, then Democratic representatives should step in and hold town halls in red districts to educate the people. It would be a power move.

It’s incredibly difficult to write about my experiences as a disabled individual in America—especially when the government is actively working to harm us. But staying silent isn’t an option. Through my work, I’m doing my part to document, resist, and bring these stories to light.

The 'Old Guard' needs to go. Can we get Jasmine Crockett, AOC, & Bernie as the Democratic Minority Leaders? I have no idea what Hakeem Jeffries is doing, he's bringing a bubble wand to an inferno.

The real crime wave isn’t in hoodies—it’s in boardrooms. Billion-dollar fraud, environmental destruction, removing your fundamental rights, wage theft, tax evasion, price gouging, housing crises, and lobbying to keep you oppressed, it doesnt happen in ski masks. I said what I said. 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾