Sometimes it’s been peaceful, sometimes painful, sometimes beautiful and sometimes violent. But there’s no denying, the last few weeks in Raleigh and the nation have brought on a reckoning—one that looks, at this moment, to promise lasting change. In a photo essay, we share thoughts and images from those who protested racial injustice and police brutality peacefully last month as well as the faces of those impacted by looting and destruction and the beauty and creativity that emerged in colorful murals on ply board panels all over downtown.