Every year, the World Press Photo Contest reminds us what journalism is actually for. Not clicks. Not outrage cycles. Not engagement metrics or juicing algorithms. The real thing: bearing witness.
The 2025 winners — selected from nearly 60,000 entries by photographers from 141 countries — document a world in upheaval. Migration. Conflict. Climate collapse. Uprisings. And in every frame, people refusing to disappear quietly.
Below, we look at five of this year’s most powerful winning stories, what they mean, and the kind of apparel that speaks to the same causes — made by independent artists, not corporations.
For a deeper dive into the history of photojournalism as protest, read our sister piece: Iconic Photojournalism Images from History.
1. Photo of the Year — Mahmoud, Gaza (Samar Abu Elouf, The New York Times)
Palestinian photographer Samar Abu Elouf was evacuated from Gaza in December 2023. She now lives in the same apartment complex in Doha as Mahmoud Ajjour, a young boy who lost both arms fleeing an Israeli attack. Her portrait of him — facing a window, warm light falling across his face, his expression quietly devastating — won the 2025 Photo of the Year. Abu Elouf has been documenting the small number of badly wounded Gazans who have made it out for medical treatment. This is one of them.
Shop the cause: Palestinian solidarity apparel from independent makers — keffiyeh-inspired prints, free Palestine tees, and artwork by Arab artists on Redbubble and Etsy. Search “Palestinian solidarity art print” or “free Palestine independent artist” and filter by individual sellers rather than print-on-demand mills.
2. Kenya’s Youth Uprising (Luis Tato, Agence France-Presse)
In June 2024, Kenyan youth took to the streets in mass protests against a proposed finance bill that would have imposed sweeping new taxes on an already struggling population. The protests turned deadly when security forces opened fire. Luis Tato’s images — protesters raising fists against water cannon, bodies of the fallen, the particular fury of the young being failed by their governments — won the Africa Stories category.
Shop the cause: Anti-authoritarian protest tees, raised fist prints, and Pan-African artwork from independent African artists on Redbubble. The raised fist as symbol crosses every uprising — you’ll find it rendered in every flag color imaginable.
3. Women’s Bodies as Battlefields (Cinzia Canneri, Association Camille Lepage)
This long-term project documents violence against women in conflict zones across Africa — specifically women who have survived rape, shooting, and deliberate bodily harm as tools of war. It is not easy viewing. It is necessary viewing. Winner of the Africa Long-Term Projects category.
Shop the cause: Feminist activist apparel — “My Body My Choice,” reproductive rights prints, and artwork supporting women in conflict zones. Look for artists explicitly donating proceeds to organizations like CARE or Women for Women International.
4. A Transgender Teen in the Netherlands (Marijn Fidder)
Dutch photographer Marijn Fidder documented the life of a transgender teenager in the Netherlands — a country that has seen growing political pressure on trans rights even as it remains one of Europe’s more progressive societies. The work is intimate, quiet, and humanizing in the way that only long-form documentary photography can be.
Shop the cause: Trans pride apparel from LGBTQ+ owned independent sellers on Etsy. Filter specifically for LGBTQ+-owned shops — Etsy makes this searchable. Your money goes directly to community members.
5. The Climate Crisis in Peru and Brazil (Musuk Nolte, Panos Pictures)
Peruvian-Mexican photographer Musuk Nolte’s South America Stories winner documents communities on the front lines of climate collapse — glaciers retreating, floods displacing families, entire ways of life disappearing within a generation. Abstract policy debates made viscerally human.
Shop the cause: Climate activism and indigenous rights apparel. Look for artists explicitly working with or donating to indigenous land rights organizations. Search “climate justice art print” or “indigenous land defenders” on Redbubble for independent work.
The photographers above risked — and in some cases lost — enormous amounts to make these images. The least the rest of us can do is stay informed, stay angry, and put our money where our values are.
Continue reading: Iconic Photojournalism Images from History — 100 Years of Bearing Witness
SHOP THE RESISTANCE
These photographers risked everything to make sure you couldn’t look away. The least the rest of us can do is put our money where our values are. Below, independent artists working in the same spirit — every purchase goes directly to a creator.
Palestinian Solidarity
- Palestinian Tatreez Embroidery Art T-Shirt
redbubble.com/shop/palestinian+art+t-shirts
- Free Palestine Peace Dove Tee
redbubble.com/shop/palestine+t-shirts
Anti-Authoritarian & Protest
- Raised Fist Protest Prints — Pan-African and global uprising artwork
redbubble.com/shop/protest+art-prints
- Activist Art Collection
redbubble.com/shop/activist+art-prints
Feminist & Women’s Rights
- My Body My Choice — Reproductive Rights Tees
redbubble.com/shop/activist+art-prints
Trans Rights & LGBTQ+
- Trans Pride Apparel — LGBTQ+-owned Etsy shops
etsy.com — search “trans pride tee” and filter by LGBTQ+-owned
Climate Justice
- Climate Justice Art Print
redbubble.com/shop/activism
- Indigenous Land Defenders Tee
redbubble.com/shop/activist+art-prints
All links go to independent artists on Redbubble. We earn a small affiliate commission if you buy — at no extra cost to you. Full disclosure [here].
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