First Place
Sarah L. Voisin, The Washington Post
Red Taxi: Lediel Escobar, 18, gets out of a shared taxi on the morning of April 1, 2015 in an area called La Virgen del Camino in Havnana, Cuba. Due to the extreme high price of cars and the inability to get parts for them, owning your own transportation is cost prohibitive to most cubans.
Second Place
Mary F. Calvert, ZumaPress
The Jungle: Melissa A. Ramon spent nine years in the US Air Force where she survived several sexual assaults and has been homeless off and on since her discharge. Women's shelters will not admit a young man over the age of twelve, so she and her 13-year-old son live in a drug and crime ridden motel in Pomona, Ca., that she calls 'The Jungle.' Inside her motel room, she clutches her Air Force uniform under the watchful eye of her dog 'Princess.' 'That life is dead to me,' she said.
Third Place
Jim Lo Scalzo, EPA
Drum and Splash: Magnolia Adamas (C-L) prepares to march in an evening parade during the annual 'Drum & Splash' gathering at Four Quarters Interfaith Sanctuary in Artemas, Pennsylvania, USA, 05 July 2014. The sanctuary, which has hundreds of members, bills itself as a 'safe and sacred ceremonial space for the modern practice of ancient religion.'
Award of Excellence
Katherine Frey, The Washington Post
Cold: With temperatures hovering in the teens, Solene Odehouri of France wasn't feeling the freeze as she bundled up against the cold to tour the sights, including the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial February, 16, 2015 in Washington, DC.
Award of Excellence
Mary F. Calvert, Freelance
The Jungle: Melissa A. Ramon spent nine years in the US Air Force where she survived several sexual assaults and has been homeless off and on since her discharge. Women's shelters will not admit a young man over the age of twelve, so she and her 13-year-old son live in a drug and crime ridden motel in Pomona, Ca., that she calls 'The Jungle.' She cries in the relaxation room at the '4th Annual Heroes in the Shadows, San Gabriel Valley Veterans Stand Down' in Pomona, Ca. Homeless veterans attend stand-downs to replenish themselves in a safe environment with hot meals, clothing, shelter and access to area medical and homeless services.
Award of Excellence
Mary F. Calvert, Freelance
Missing in Action: Homeless Women Veterans: For three years, homeless veteran Darlene Matthews has been living in her car in Costa Mesa, CA., next to a graveyard in the parking lot of a mortuary while she waits for a housing voucher and benefits from the Veteran’s Administration, (VA). She joined the US Army in 1976; 'I was going to join this all women's army and there would be no sexual problems but I joined and there were sexual problems. The whole atmosphere was abusive.' She joined the military to escape a chaotic, abusive home life and was forced back into it when she was discharged. 'It's like being in a fun house and every door gets slammed in your face every time you try to leave. I feel like giving up sometimes, and nobody would care.'
Award of Excellence
Olivier Douliery, Freelance
Untitled: A young girl looks at the sky as she floats at the surface of Smith Mountain Lake during summer vacation in Virginia.