american lens

Chicago Steppin is a dance style that showcases creativity, personality and spontaneity. For some city natives, it has also offered a safe haven from dangerous streets. American Lens takes us into Steppin parties to learn why this dance tradition has endured.

Colt Wrangler Lyons builds custom motorcycles in New Braunfels, Texas. Now he’s expanding his appreciation for motorcycles outside the shop as an amateur racer.

Growing up in New Lexington, Ohio, Leilah Castro’s parents tried entering her in beauty pageants before realizing dresses and makeup weren’t for her. When Castro saw her brothers competing in wrestling matches, that’s when she found her calling. Her Olympic dream may have been postponed by the coronavirus, but Castro is still focused on gold.

Ryan Sellmeyer considers himself a “stay-at-roam Dad” rather than a “stay-at-home Dad.”

Andrea DoSouto, a Spanish street photographer, was an adventurous child who always wanted to be in the center of the action.

When Jeremy Labreau saw a discarded surfboard on the street, he was inspired to take it home and transform it into something new. That was the start of his business, Labreau Surfboards.

Adam Ison moved his custom knife and sword-making business to Detroit from his parents’ garage in recognition of the city’s long manufacturing history. But Forge Detroit’s geography isn’t the only way it honors the past. The bladesmith said he knows he is also carrying on a tradition that dates back to his ancestors in Scotland.

Social distancing has made the bicycle a hotter form of transportation than ever.

Joe Roberts spends his days as an electronics engineer working for the U.S. Navy and Department of Defense.

Before the pandemic, a surfer organization gave children with special needs a much-needed beach day