My passport is ‘unlucky’ – Witness

Photography as an expressive and subjective media operates for me in a way that is similar to Anne Frank’s diary; it’s a special tool that allows me to make sense of the world around me. Photography allows me to share personal glimpses into the nightmarish conflict in Yemen—where I grew up and still call home—in which my documentary practice has been shaped. As a Yemeni, I have always wondered how such a small piece of paper like a passport can define a person? How does a legal document shape us? How does it control us? Why in some airports should I be held aside for another round of security screening just because my passport says Yemen?