The Souls We Carry
“Stella Nyanzi’s Roses” by Sumy Sadurni, 2020
Months after moving to New York City, I finally paged through the entirety of “What We See: Women and nonbinary perspectives through the lens” - a beautiful photo book featuring the work of dozens of international photographers, many of whom I call colleagues and friends.
The book in its totality is stunning. However, there is one image that stood out to me more than all others - one that I somehow missed until today. It is “Stella Nyanzi’s Roses” by Sumy Sadurni, 2020.
The photo shows Ugandan activist Stella Nyanzi delivering a powerful speech after her release from a nine-month prison sentence for insulating the country’s president on social media.
“Her passion, her attitude and her voice had not been stolen from her during those months in jail,” Sumy writes in the caption. “I hope that by amplifying these voices, my work can one day achieve a fraction of what hers does.”
I met Sumy in 2015 in Kampala, Uganda. I had just moved to East Africa full time, and we were both photographing the annual gay pride celebration in Uganda where homosexuality is illegal. Sumy and I ran loops around Kampala for several weeks that summer, and managed to stay friends after, meeting up in the capital city, as well as Jinja and the border of South Sudan for the next several years.
Sumy was wildfire. Not only was she an incredibly talented photographer, she was also brazen and brave and brash and so damn funny, I often could not handle it.
One of my fondest memories is Sumy letting out the loudest rolling laugh while telling a story about how a Boda Boda (motorcycle taxi) driver tried to kidnap her in Kampala while she was riding on the back of his bike.
“He drove off into this dark side road where no one would’ve found me,” she said cackling. “But, I knew exactly what to do! I punched him RIGHT in the back of the head so hard he dropped the bike and I jumped off! He was so shocked he didn’t even try to catch me!” her voice growing louder and louder. “I showed him who not to mess with!!”
She was truly a woman after my own heart.
Sumy Sadurni died in Kampala, Uganda in March 2021. She was 32.
I started carrying Sumy’s picture in the back of my press badge a few days after the news of her death broke. To me, it is a reminder to always live with purpose and fearless courage, to open your heart wide and full to this deeply grim but even more beautiful world, and to fight to make a difference with every frame - and with every moment - for as long as this tiny little life offers you.
Sumy has been on my mind a lot lately - as have the other loved ones I’ve lost but never, ever forgotten.
But discovering Sumy’s picture, and seeing into her wildfire soul again in this book — felt like the best sign from the universe that one could ask for — or perhaps, I should say, it was akin to receiving a spiritual punch to the back of head, it seems.
Either way, it was good to sense Sumy again.
Check out her work when you have a moment. She would like that.
And then, find something to fight for.
