Youngrae Kim

Documentary photographer

youngraekim.com

The New Reality

School: University of Missouri-Columbia

Shoppers walk past outdoor dini...kokie on Friday, Nov. 27, 2020.

Shoppers walk past outdoor dining structures during Black Friday holiday shopping at Old Orchard Mall in Skokie on Friday, Nov. 27, 2020.

A crew member covers up the Blackhawks logo statue outside United Center in Chicago on Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2020, a day after it was covered in graffiti and red paint. The vandalism occurred as many celebrated Indigenous Peoples Day, a day meant to reframe Columbus Day and honor Native American history and culture. Native American advocates have challenged the Blackhawks name, logo and imagery for decades.

Chicago City Wide Orchestra hol...nston on Sunday, Oct. 11, 2020.

Chicago City Wide Orchestra holds its outdoor recording session in concertmaster Martha Ash's backyard in Evanston on Sunday, Oct. 11, 2020.

Crystal Rodriguez, right, and h...ights on Monday, Oct. 26, 2020.

Crystal Rodriguez, right, and her cousin Salvador Gonzalez chat with other family members next to an alter for her late father Miguel Rodriguez who recently died of COVID-19 at her home in Chicago Heights on Monday, Oct. 26, 2020.

The memorial for Brandon McGhee...icago on Friday, Nov. 20, 2020.

The memorial for Brandon McGhee who was fatally shot earlier this year is seen next to his mural near Western Blue Line station in Chicago on Friday, Nov. 20, 2020.

Protesters form a barrier with ...ago on Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2020.

Protesters form a barrier with their bicycle as Chicago police officers do the same across the street after their march during a postelection rally at Daley Plaza in downtown Chicago on Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2020.

Students learn the basics of gu...pression, explain the increase.

Students learn the basics of gun operation using replica firearms in Chicago on Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021. A national survey of firearms dealers shows that Black gun owners accounted for the highest jump in sales in 2020. Mike Brown, a conceal-carry instructor on the South Side, says numerous factors, from rising crime to fears of white oppression, explain the increase.

Matthew Echevarria's ph...ved no response from the state.

Matthew Echevarria's photos are displayed at his mother Denise Bronis' home in East Dundee on Friday, Dec. 4, 2020. Echevarria, who is incarcerated at Menard Correctional Center, was convicted of a 1999 Chicago fatal shooting but has always maintained his innocence. He tested positive for COVID-19 around the Labor Day. Echevarriae has since recovered but still has breathing difficulties and headaches. His legal team made a plea to release him during the pandemic but received no response from the state.

Maria Gonzalez talks to her bro...ng an outbreak at the facility.

Maria Gonzalez talks to her brother and watches her father over a video call at their restaurant in Columbus Junction, Iowa on Monday, May 4, 2020. Gonzalez's father, who was a Tyson Foods employee, fell ill with COVID-19 and is on a ventilator. Gonzalez said everyone in her family, including her parents, children and in-laws contracted the virus after her husband José Gonzalez, a maintenance worker at Tyson Foods, tested positive in March 29 during an outbreak at the facility.

Staff members wear personal pro...icago on Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2020.

Staff members wear personal protective equipment as they work together to tend to Michael Washington at the intensive care unit of Roseland Community Hospital in Chicago on Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2020.

Gary Health Commissioner Roland...been blaming myself.”

Gary Health Commissioner Roland Walker checks in on 1-month-old Deangelo Spencer at his private pediatric practice in Gary, Indiana on April 29, 2020. Walker recently brought his parents to Indiana from their home in Mississippi to protect them from the pandemic. But 12 days after they arrived, Walker and both of his parents contracted the coronavirus, with his father having seizures and mother having to use a ventilator to breathe. “I’m a mess,” Walker said. “I’ve been blaming myself.”

A Chicago firefighter hugs Deme...cago on Tuesday, Dec. 22, 2020.

A Chicago firefighter hugs Demeka Ankum, whose husband firefighter Corey Ankum died a decade ago in the line of duty, after a bell ringing ceremony at the Engine Company 72 firehouse in Chicago on Tuesday, Dec. 22, 2020.

Surgeon General Jerome Adams el...cago on Tuesday, Dec. 22, 2020.

Surgeon General Jerome Adams elbow-bumps ER technician Demetrius Mcalister after Mcalister received his first dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at Saint Anthony Hospital in Chicago on Tuesday, Dec. 22, 2020.

Halo Blacknell, 2, stands next ...hicago on Sunday, Nov. 1, 2020.

Halo Blacknell, 2, stands next to her grandmother Erika Jackson check in for an early vote during the 2020 presidential election at Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Center in Chicago on Sunday, Nov. 1, 2020.

Sloane Griffin, 7, left, and he...39;s 49th marathon in 25 years.

Sloane Griffin, 7, left, and her brother Sean Griffin, 11, cheer for Rev. Michael Bradley as he runs the virtual Chicago Marathon around the Edgewater neighborhood in Chicago on Sunday, Oct. 11, 2020. The run marked Bradley's 49th marathon in 25 years.

Three-year-old Benjamin Schaffe...gton and the country."

Three-year-old Benjamin Schaffer-Dowling throws fallen leaves in the air with his family in the Andersonville of Chicago shortly after the former vice president and Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden was announced as the winner over President Donald Trump to become the 46th president of the United States on Saturday, Nov. 7, 2020. "It's a beautiful weather and the election results came through, so we decided to celebrate and have some fun," Jessica Schaffer, the three-year-old's mother said. "We're thrilled to be in this community where everyone is honking their horns and cheering and excited about the chance that's coming to Washington and the country."