Wednesday, 22 January 2014

Photo series exposes racial divide among New York nannies and their wards

By

Sadie Whitelocks



PUBLISHED:


21:58, 15 January 2014


|
UPDATED:


22:34, 15 January 2014



A candid picture series exposing the lives of New York City nannies reveals how a deep-rooted racial divide continues to permeate the industry.


Photographer Ellen Jacob, 58, told MailOnline that she was inspired to start the project after noticing how it was often ‘black women pushing white babies around’ on Manhattan’s affluent Upper West Side.


After spending four years scouring the streets for willing subjects she discovered the majority of caregivers, aged 23 to 60, were immigrants living on the minimum wage with no sick pay, holidays or health benefits.


The life of a New York City nanny: Rato, 28, moved to America from South Africa - she takes the children she cares for to one of the parks on Manhattan


The life of a New York City nanny: Rato, 28, moved to America from South Africa – she takes the children she cares for to one of the parks on Manhattan’s Upper West Side almost every day that the weather is nice


Don


Don’t tell your mother! One little boy is treated to an after-school fast-food snack courtesy of his nanny at Broadway near 82nd Street – he cranes over the table as she unloads the paper bag


‘A lot of the women I met were not from America and they were either from The Islands or Africa.



‘They told me how they work very long days and are often paid less than the price of the dance classes they were chaperoning children to.’


But despite the low wages, many of the women were content with life and some had been in the job for many years.


Travel companions: Boblin (left) and Amanda (right) ride the bus up Amsterdam Avenue from morning classes on the way to lunch and then ballet class


Travel companions: Boblin (left) and Amanda (right) ride the bus up Amsterdam Avenue from morning classes on the way to lunch and then ballet class


Tiring job: After a picnic in Central Park, Kim plays with two of the three children she cares for - she says she often feels like a big kid


Tiring job: After a picnic in Central Park, Kim plays with two of the three children she cares for – she says she often feels like a big kid


Stopping for a break: Strolling in Central Park is a daily activity for Ernestine and the boys she cares for - she says she misses the children when she moves on


Stopping for a break: Strolling in Central Park is a daily activity for Ernestine and the boys she cares for – she says she misses the children when she moves on


Indeed, Gemma who Ms Jacobs met on her travels, had been a nanny for more than two decades, working for four families in that time.


She explained that she never got too attached to ‘her children’ because she knew she would eventually leave them behind.


Because of this temporary cycle, Ms Jacob called her photo series ‘Surrogates’.


Bundled up: On a cold winter day a nanny waits for the bus at Amsterdam Avenue and West 86th Street


Bundled up: On a cold winter day a nanny waits for the bus at Amsterdam Avenue and West 86th Street



Dedication: After Boblin


Dedication: After Boblin’s ‘family’ moved to New Jersey, she commuted four hours a day until a new nanny was found


Hold on tight: A nanny-child duo wait for the crosstown bus after school


Hold on tight: A nanny-child duo wait for the crosstown bus after school




Her collection of images show an array of nannies busy at work in the city.


Several are pictured with their children in Central Park while others are seen accompanying youngsters on their commute to school or extra-curricular activities.


One humorous shot shows a nanny with a little boy in McDonald’s with him craning over the table for his fries and Big Mac.


Lifetime career: Gemma stands with her son and two of the children she cares for - she has been a nanny for more than 20 years


Lifetime career: Gemma stands with her son and two of the children she cares for – she has been a nanny for more than 20 years


Strike a pose: Ms Jacob said that many of the nannies she encountered did not want to be photographed


Strike a pose: Ms Jacob said that many of the nannies she encountered did not want to be photographed



Special bond: At a pier along the Hudson River, Caitlin - one of the few white nannies to be photographed - holds one of the children she cares for


Special bond: At a pier along the Hudson River, Caitlin – one of the few white nannies to be photographed – holds one of the children she cares for



Only one of the images shows a white woman and no men are featured.


Ms Jacob says that she thinks the race

and class divide is ‘deeply rooted in culture’ and something that cannot

be fixed overnight.


She adds that most of the nannies are much-loved by families but they still don’t get treated 100per cent correctly.


A wonderful woman: Photographer Ms Jacob included a photograph of her family


A wonderful woman: Photographer Ms Jacob included a photograph of her family’s own black nanny, Martha, in the picture project


‘Mothers talk about who much they love

these women and they’re part of the family yet when it comes to money they

tend to be much more tight.’


The photographer, who has stepchildren but no offspring of her own, says her family also employed a black nanny when she was growing up called Martha.


‘She was a wonderful woman. I remember her face vividly.’


Ellen Jacob’s photography series is on view at SohoPhoto in New York City through February 1











Comments (183)


Share what you think



The comments below have been moderated in advance.





Siege44,


Michigan,


6 days ago


Possibly because they can’t afford to be as generous as you…





dblake864,


VA_USA,


6 days ago


We had a maid/nanny when I was a little girl. I loved her dearly and she taught me to read. The reason we employed here was that my father was disabled and my mother had to work to put food on the table. We were far from wealthy. Don’t assume that, because a family hires someone to help with the children, they are bad parents. Sometimes there’s a very good reason for it.





Tom69,


London, United Kingdom,


6 days ago


Yes, in London they call them au pairs and they r mostly from Eastern Europe





Crownprince2,


Ashford,


6 days ago


I don’t see this as an issue as long as the nannies are paid well. Unfortunately more often than not they are on low wages and are on call 24 hours of the day. There should be some form of regulation by the authorities as this is a profession. The other side of the coin is that there is a need for the world to consider effective ways of bridging the gap between the rich and the poor. Poor nations are often exploited by developed nations, their resources are plundered for little or next to nothing, some major corporations even evade taxes in those countries. There should be a way of bettering the lives of these people while exploiting their resources. The miracle that happened in Asia should extend to Africans.





exodus,


paris rive gauche, United Kingdom,


6 days ago


Nothing wrong with at all. I am black my wife is black. Our 2 kids have a white nanny. And all is perfect. We both go to work and never have any issue with that fantastic nanny and we even feel like part of her family. A job is a job





tinkerbelle,


lalaland, United Kingdom,


6 days ago


it doesnt matter the colour of your nanny, just that they care for your children, totally pointless article. These ladies have a job and are not sponging of the government. They should get good wages though, as they are looking after your child.





paevo,


USA, United States,


6 days ago


And you expected the converse?…






Lucy,


Louisville, United States,


6 days ago


NEWS FLASH! Black person watches white baby! Wait, white woman watches black baby…. and Indian woman watches Asian baby! What?! NO! I only want to photograph/report on a black woman watching white children!!!!!!!!






Jaws,


Moonraker, Trinidad and Tobago,


6 days ago


A jobs a job





JAQUE,


ORLANDO,


6 days ago


Very Disgusting. Why have kids if you are unable to care for them. And to entrust their children to illegals, and green card holders so they can work in wall street or at a high dollar job is dam near child neglect.



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