A photographer, filmmaker, writer, and musician, Gordon Parks led an extraordinary life echoed in the superb body of work he left behind. Parks was the first Black photographer employed by Life magazine, and he was sent by the editors to cover topics that were out of reach to White journalists. This photograph was created during Parks’ 1963 Life assignment on the Nation of Islam (NOI). Presenting the NOI members cleanly dressed in organized rows, Parks subtly conveyed the benefits of the group on the lives of its members.