Lee Jonathan Lockwood (May 4, 1932 – July 31, 2010) was an American
photojournalist best known for his coverage of
Communist
Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a ...
leaders behind the
Iron Curtain
The Iron Curtain was the political boundary dividing Europe into two separate areas from the end of World War II in 1945 until the end of the Cold War in 1991. The term symbolizes the efforts by the Soviet Union (USSR) to block itself and its s ...
during the
Cold War era. He interviewed
Cuba
Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...
n leader
Fidel Castro
Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (; ; 13 August 1926 – 25 November 2016) was a Cuban revolutionary and politician who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, serving as the prime minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and president from 1976 to 2 ...
and spent nearly a month in
North Vietnam
North Vietnam, officially the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV; vi, Việt Nam Dân chủ Cộng hòa), was a socialist state supported by the Soviet Union (USSR) and the People's Republic of China (PRC) in Southeast Asia that existed f ...
during the
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
. He also served from 1963 to 1966 as the editor of the journal ''Contemporary Photographer''. During that period he was a member of the Association of Heliographers, and exhibited at the gallery on Madison Avenue.
Biography
Lockwood was born on May 4, 1932, in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...
and became interested in
photography
Photography is the visual art, art, application, and practice of creating durable images by recording light, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. It i ...
as a child. He earned an undergraduate degree in 1954 from
Boston University
Boston University (BU) is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with its original c ...
with a major in
comparative literature
Comparative literature is an academic field dealing with the study of literature and cultural expression across linguistic, national, geographic, and disciplinary boundaries. Comparative literature "performs a role similar to that of the study ...
and later attended
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manha ...
. He served in the
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...
during the 1950s, where he was stationed in
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...
. After leaving military service, he traveled widely around the world, with his photographs being distributed by the
Black Star Black Star or Blackstar may refer to:
Astronomy
*Black star (semiclassical gravity), a theoretical star built using semiclassical gravity as an alternative to a black hole
*Saturn, referred to as "Black Star" in ancient Judaeic belief
Literature
...
photo agency.
[Fox, Margalit]
"Lee Lockwood Dies at 78; Captured Life Under Communism"
''The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', August 7, 2010. Accessed August 8, 2010.
Interview with Castro
During a trip to Cuba in 1965, Lockwood was able to arrange a lengthy interview with leader Fidel Castro, during which they discussed topics ranging from the
Cuban Missile Crisis
The Cuban Missile Crisis, also known as the October Crisis (of 1962) ( es, Crisis de Octubre) in Cuba, the Caribbean Crisis () in Russia, or the Missile Scare, was a 35-day (16 October – 20 November 1962) confrontation between the Unite ...
to racial issues in the United States. Lockwood's book, ''Castro’s Cuba, Cuba's Fidel: An American Journalist's Inside Look at Today's Cuba in Text and Picture'', published by
Macmillan Publishers
Macmillan Publishers (occasionally known as the Macmillan Group; formally Macmillan Publishers Ltd and Macmillan Publishing Group, LLC) is a British publishing company traditionally considered to be one of the 'Big Five' English language publ ...
, was intended to give American readers a clearer picture of the Cuban leader, saying, "If he is really our enemy, as dangerous to us as we are told he is, then we ought to know as much about him as possible".
[
]
Visit to North Vietnam
Having obtained a visa while in Cuba, Lockwood arranged a trip to North Vietnam in 1967, making him the first Western
Western may refer to:
Places
*Western, Nebraska, a village in the US
* Western, New York, a town in the US
*Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western world, countries that i ...
journalist to visit the country in nearly a decade. He traveled around the country during his month-long visit, covering 1,000 miles under the strict supervision of government minders who ensured that he didn't photograph any of the nation's military facilities.
While there, the North Vietnamese presented a confession read by Lt. Cmdr. Richard A. Stratton
Richard Allen Stratton (born October 14, 1931) is a retired Naval Aviator (No. V-11444) and a clinical social worker. He served as lieutenant commander during the Vietnam War from 1966 to 1973. He served on the USS Ticonderoga (CVA-14)/Air Wing 1 ...
, a United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
pilot
An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they a ...
who had been shot down months earlier. Stratton, who was described by Lockwood as "looking like a puppet" whose "eyes were empty", read a prepared text in which he attacked U.S. military action in the region. The photos that Lockwood took on the trip became the material for "North Vietnam Under Siege", an article that appeared in the April 7, 1967, edition of ''Life
Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as Cell signaling, signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for Cell growth, growth, reaction to Stimu ...
'' magazine, including a widely distributed picture of Stratton in prison garb
A prison uniform is the standardized clothes worn by prisoners. It usually includes visually distinct clothes worn to indicate the wearer is a prisoner, in clear distinction from civil clothing.
A prison uniform serves the purpose to make prison ...
bowing deeply as ordered by a North Vietnamese officer, as well as an array of pictures of the countryside and the effects of American bombing missions.[ ]Robert J. McCloskey
Robert James McCloskey (November 25, 1922 – November 28, 1996) was an American diplomat, ombudsman, and relief services executive.
Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the son of Thomas McCloskey and Anna Wallace, he was spokesperson for the ...
of the U.S. Department of State
The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other natio ...
cited Lockwood's material about Stratton as evidence that North Vietnam was brainwashing
Brainwashing (also known as mind control, menticide, coercive persuasion, thought control, thought reform, and forced re-education) is the concept that the human mind can be altered or controlled by certain psychological techniques. Brainwashi ...
prisoners for propaganda
Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loa ...
purposes.[ Sheehan, Neil]
"Hanoi Is Brainwashing American Prisoners To Obtain Statememts Attacking U.S. Policies
''The Telegraph (Nashua)
''The Telegraph'', for most of its existence known as the ''Nashua Telegraph'', is a daily newspaper in Nashua, New Hampshire, Nashua, New Hampshire. It was founded as the ''Nashua Daily Telegraph'' in 1869, although a weekly version dates back t ...
'', April 4, 1967. Accessed August 8, 2010.
Other books written by Lockwood include ''Conversation With Eldridge Cleaver: Algiers'' (McGraw-Hill
McGraw Hill is an American educational publishing company and one of the "big three" educational publishers that publishes educational content, software, and services for pre-K through postgraduate education. The company also publishes referen ...
, 1970), a biographical portrait of radical intellectual and author Eldridge Cleaver
Leroy Eldridge Cleaver (August 31, 1935 – May 1, 1998) was an American writer and political activist who became an early leader of the Black Panther Party.
In 1968, Cleaver wrote '' Soul on Ice'', a collection of essays that, at the time of i ...
, and ''Daniel Berrigan: Absurd Convictions, Modest Hopes — Conversations After Prison With Lee Lockwood'' (Random House
Random House is an American book publisher and the largest general-interest paperback publisher in the world. The company has several independently managed subsidiaries around the world. It is part of Penguin Random House, which is owned by Ger ...
, 1972), a biography of Daniel Berrigan
Daniel Joseph Berrigan (May 9, 1921 – April 30, 2016) was an American Jesuit priest, anti-war activist, Christian pacifist, playwright, poet, and author.
Berrigan's active protest against the Vietnam War earned him both scorn and admi ...
, a peace activist
A peace movement is a social movement which seeks to achieve ideals, such as the ending of a particular war (or wars) or minimizing inter-human violence in a particular place or situation. They are often linked to the goal of achieving world pea ...
and Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...
priest who had been one of the FBI's most wanted fugitives.[
A resident of ]Weston, Florida
Weston is a city in Broward County, Florida, United States, just west of Fort Lauderdale. It is part of the Miami metropolitan area, which is anchored by Miami. The population was 68,107 at the 2020 census. Weston is 30 miles northwest of Miami ...
, Lockwood died at age 78 in Tamarac, Florida
Tamarac is a city in Broward County, Florida, United States. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 71,897. It is part of the Miami metropolitan area, which was home to an estimated 6,012,331 people in 2015.
History
In the early 1960s ...
on July 31, 2010, due to complications of diabetes
Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level (hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ...
. He was survived by his wife, the former Joyce Greenfield, as well as by a daughter, a son and six grandchildren.[
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lockwood, Lee
2010 deaths
American non-fiction writers
American photojournalists
Boston University College of Arts and Sciences alumni
Columbia University alumni
People from Weston, Florida
Photography in Vietnam
1932 births
Deaths from diabetes