This photograph, taken by flashlight, is of a small, unauthorized, over-crowded apartment in which a person could rent a spot for five cents. The photographer, Jacob Riis, had immigrated to the U.S. in 1870 from Denmark. Although his first few years in the U.S. were marked by poverty and hardship, he was able to secure employment with the New York Tribune in 1877 as a police reporter. In the 1880s Riis used his position as a reporter and photographer to illuminate the abject poverty present in New York City immigrant communities. This photograph, along with many others like it, was first published in Riis' book How the Other Half Lives, which became a critical work in establishing reforms during the Progressive Era. As you examine this image, consider the effect that such photographs had on government officials and the broader American public as they sought political solutions to the suffering caused by economic depression.

Investigate the source using the zoom and navigational tools in the Flash player and then answer the questions below.

1			Discuss the ways in which the people appear in this photograph. What mood is conveyed? What are the people in the picture doing?
2			Was this photograph staged or was it a realistic snapshot?
3			Discuss the ways in which photographs such as this might be used as effective political tools?