"The inevitability of socioeconomic stasis"

Craig Easton - named Photographer of the Year in the 2021 World Photography Awards - is realistic about the power of his chosen medium: "It can't change the world, but it can change opinions - and it can inform." With his recent book Thatcher's Children, he's aiming to do just that.

This BJP article by Ravi Ghosh does a good job of setting Easton's project in the context of similar work both past (Nick Hedges) and present (Kirsty Mackay). It saw him reconnecting with the children of the Williams family, whom he first photographed in the mid-90s and who 20 years on have families of their own.

While Easton ultimately remains doggedly optimistic about the possibility of photography having a positive social impact, he does also acknowledge the depressing reality: "I'm making the point that this stuff is constantly being talked about and it's not making any difference." Over the last two decades, politicians spouting rhetoric and soundbites have come and gone, but families like the Williamses continue to find themselves in a socioeconomic rut, trapped by circumstances beyond their control and repeatedly failed by those with the power to effect genuine change.