Why Audrey Richardson runs towards rubber bullets and tear gas

Audrey Richardson is neither a police officer, a lifeguard nor a paramedic. The 23-year-old photographer can’t pinpoint what drives her towards dangerous situations such as immigration rallies in the US – where she was peppered by rubber bullets and sprayed with tear gas – other than that first responder urge to help.

“My whole life, I’ve only wanted to help people,” The Sydney Morning Herald’s new trainee photographer, who starts in January, said. “The only way I know how to help is by documenting what’s happening and by telling powerful stories.

“If the history of the people in the community and connections, love and sadness isn’t documented, I think you can’t know which side of history you’re on.”

Richardson, from Brisbane, moved to Chicago when she was seven, which is where she began her career in photography. As an intern for the Detroit Free Press, Chicago Tribune and The Seattle Times, Richardson covered national events from the 2024 US election and immigration protests to Michigan Lake freezing over – as well as capturing celebrities such as Chance the Rapper and Chappell Roan.

Richardson attended Michigan State University as a swimmer. When her program was cut, she joined the student paper, becoming the managing editor after covering a campus shooting.

“I didn’t know what journalism looked like, or what it was. I didn’t really know storytelling and the importance of news in general until I joined that paper,” she said. “In my third year at school, there was a shooting on campus while I was on campus. Obviously, the student newspaper has to cover it.

“That experience was super-profound for me, and really solidified that this is the type of work that I want to do for the rest of my life … because I saw how the community at Michigan State rely on the student newspaper.”

Richardson said this work was so meaningful that when she heard of the attack at Bondi Beach, she had to help in any way she could.

“It’s also why I thought it was super-important for me to go to Sydney during the shooting,” she said. “Not just because gun violence is obviously something that I care deeply about, but because of the way that my [university] community was affected – you’re changed forever.”

Richardson will be mentored by senior photographers during her year-long traineeship, in partnership with Canon Australia. Ruby Alexander is the trainee at The Age.

Executive editor Luke McIlveen said both mastheads had a rich history of documenting history through images.

“Working alongside our award-winning journalists, our trainees will not only develop their skills but our newsrooms will benefit from the real-world experience they bring,” he said. “We can’t wait to see how Audrey and Ruby contribute to the country’s two most-read mastheads.”

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