2003 Photo Contest, General News, 3rd prize
Photographer

Ami Vitale

Getty Images

02 March, 2002

Nisha Rathad, 20, covers her face and giggles as she stands in front of the Hindu Aryan symbol painted on her home on 2 March in Ahmedabad, India. Her Muslim neighbor had been killed a few feet away from her home the day before. These symbols were painted on most Hindus homes to protect them from the religious violence that swept through this region. In February, the city had been the scene of some of the worst communal violence in India for a decade. In retaliation for an earlier Muslim attack on a train carrying mainly Hindu pilgrims, which left 58 dead, people rampaged through city streets setting fire to Muslim homes and businesses. Violence continued into May. Thousands fled their homes, and the official death toll was over 900, though estimates by human rights groups placed the figure much higher.

About the photographer

Ami Vitale

Ami Vitale is a photographer, writer and filmmaker currently based in Montana. She is an Ambassador for Nikon and a contract photographer with National Geographic magazine. ...

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