I don't like zoom lenses. I don't want to sit back across the street, i want to be in the mix. I want to feel that energy, that rush.

Devin Allen

Categorized in : US News

I just thought I was just taking good pictures and I just was like, well, I hope these pictures get into the right hands or the right people see it, i never thought this would be born from that at all.

Being able to go to these communities, I'm basically seeing all these different struggles, you know, I was only activist for one movement and now I stand for multiple movements. I'm becoming more, the more places that I go.

Bring this to everyday life. ... Either we're going to progress or we'll move backwards. now I understand how powerful an image can be. I understand I'm not too small to make a change. I'm still an activist. I'm still a protester, you know. But at the same time, I'm in a different place now.

It hit home I think with Freddie Gray, it woke a lot of people up ... that could have been anyone's kid.

It was a crazy day. It was the beginning, and this day changed my... by Devin Allen

It was a crazy day. It was the beginning, and this day changed my life.

[It was] a spark. A new spark, a new light, a new set of eyes that my work has been directed through following this story. Not just the story of Freddie Gray, but the story of Baltimore also.

The next thing I know, the pictures just went viral, within an hour. I saw like a thousand retweets; everyone was reposting it.

You know someone's cousin, someone's friend knows this friend. It's a very small city. So when Freddie Gray passed, I didn't know him personally but I know people that knew him.

Being from Baltimore, I know the streets, I know people here. So I was going to capture every moment.

Now I understand how powerful an image can be. I understand I'm not too small to make a change. I'm still an activist. I'm still a protester, you know. But at the same time, I'm in a different place now, you know, I have a lot of attention on me, so I'm able to give back to the community. I'm able to inspire the youth and sway, you know, them with my words and by telling my story. ... Devin Allen is -- you know, everyone calls me the 'Eyes of Baltimore.'.

People were starting to understand what was going on, it hit home I think with Freddie Gray, it woke a lot of people up ... that could have been anyone's kid.