From Maddie Krum’s article discussing Kris Graves’ series “The Testament Project” for The Huffington Post:
“Everyone wanted to tell a story,” Graves said. “One of my friends, a black man working for a Fortune 100 company, told me a story about going to boarding school and having to deal with accusations from his fellow classmates about affirmative action, completely dismissing his worthiness. I hear stories like that all the time. Stories like that are part of every black person’s history.”
In addition to sharing these stories visually, Graves hopes his series will work against the dangerous stereotype that black men must fit into neat, pre-determined categories. “Black men are almost always portrayed as extremes, mainly criminals and the rich and famous,” he said. “None of my subjects fit those categories. We are all working hard to provide for our families, we are all paying bills and trying to go on vacation once or twice a year like everyone else.”