Essay Objective: To analyze and interpret a chosen photograph, arriving at a key question about how this image promotes or distorts a certain kind of understanding. And then to explore this question in at least two different contexts (cultural, historical, theoretical, personal, aesthetic, etc.) to arrive at a larger idea that tells us what this photo reveals about the world in which we live. How is the photo (or the representation of the subject in the photo) symptomatic of a larger problem and why should your reader care?
Requirements:
● 6 to 8 pages, double-spaced, one-inch margins
● At least 4 sources that show a range of background sources, exhibit sources, argument sources, and method sources
● At least two moves to context
● MLA in-text citation and Works Cited page
Essay Breakdown
Beginning:
● Start with some particular piece of evidence. This might be your chosen photo, a background source, a theoretical source, etc. However, make sure to start with something particular. Whatever opening evidence you choose should be represented and interpreted in such a way that it leads to a central question that sets off the rest of the essay. This is most likely a question about representation: What are some key differences between the intention of your chosen photograph and the cultural reception of your photograph? What’s problematic, once seen in a certain context, with the way the subject of your photograph is represented? How is the subject of your photograph shaped by audience expectations? There are several other types of questions you can ask, of course, and your question should be inspired by your chosen photo, but perhaps the above examples will help get you started.
Middle:
● Before you jump into contextual analysis, you need to do a few things to orient your reader. First, offer a close reading of your chosen photograph that visualizes the image for an outside reader (if you already did this in your beginning, there is no need to repeat it). Second, offer the necessary background information: Who took the image, when, why, what does your reader need to know about your image’s subject and the surrounding history to follow your thinking? This background info should be concise, but thoughtful.
● The basic rhythm of the rest of the essay involves moving from image, to context, then back to image. In other words, context becomes a way for you to re-see the image, to understand something new about its significance. You could turn to a theoretical context, a cultural or historical context, an aesthetic context (bringing in other like-minded photos or a critic), or a personal context (using a particular experience as evidence). Each time you move to context, you will want to go back to your photo to re-analyze it in light of your original question. Try to do this move from context to image at least two times in this first draft. You don’t need to make use of all of the above contexts, just a couple. So, for instance, if a move to personal context doesn’t make sense for your paper or if an aesthetic context seems irrelevant, feel free to ignore them. However, I do ask that all of you have a move to a theoretical context and you might try to make use of one of the assigned readings.
● Make sure your chosen photo is featured at least 3 times in the essay (once near the beginning, once in the middle, and once near the end).
Ending:
● You want to end your essay on a larger idea that tells us what this photo reveals about the world in which we live. How is the photo (or the representation of the subject in the photo) symptomatic of a larger cultural problem and why should your reader care?
:
Photograph Analysis
Introduction
Both images and videos have played a crucial function within the Black Lives Matter movement. They availed the deep-rooted contexts describing the extreme force and brutality the Black community was facing from the police (Speltz). The images and videos that illustrated the brutality against George Floyd, subsequently causing his death, led to intensified protests around the country and even globally. George Floyd’s images created a stunning impression, proving no need to read words to see what was happening. Therefore, hundreds of people gathered in the American streets to protest the prevailing police brutality crisis. Amid the crowd of protestors, many were screaming unanswered calls for justice via their face masks. Photojournalists would ensure that the protests are documented so that individual history is told in real-time in consideration that the older generation never really had the chance to have their voices heard.
This paper will look into an image of protestors kneeling and standing against armed police officers in this image analysis. These protestors come from different racial groups, all standing against police brutality and calling for racial justice. An analysis of these images will identify the contexts they relate to and what they are communicating to the world.
Image Analysis
A gripping picture of several masked protestors standing up against armed police officers is depicted in these photographs. There is smoke in the air while on the ground; there are many pebbles or stones that protesters normally use in fighting back the police. In another angle, a brown woman is kneeling and raising her hands before the heavily armed police officers. Also, several protestors from the white racial group are rallying for Black lives Matter and demanding racial justice from another angle. The current protests are all masked, indicating that the protests are present during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Generally, an audience to any work of art will not simply and passively accept any creative work presented to them. Rather, they will interpret that work’s meanings based on individual cultural background and life experiences. Their background determines their cultural reception. Noticeably, the diversity in terms of race in the photograph shows that these demonstrations have become very diverse compared to previous protests against police brutality. This may suggest that other racial groups are now easily working together with black people to call an end to this vice. For any individual belonging to the white racial group, police brutality is seldom a matter they have had to deal with in the United States. Therefore, whenever protestors, especially Blacks, came out to fight the police brutality they experienced, the majority racial groups’ numbers were minimal. However, these images are now proving otherwise. A white individual that did not go to the police brutality protests because it was not their issue to deal with has their minds triggered when they see many people of the same background choosing to ally with the Black people.
An audience that expects images of predominantly Black people as the protestors fighting for their rights will now be surprised to find that the protesting community has become very diverse. These kinds of footage will make a more permanent impact beyond the protests and outrage (Hao). The increase in diversity means more people are now bearing witness to the systemic racism within the police organization. This will prompt the implementation of measures focussed on dismantling the racist systems. The benefit here is that the entire community will support their implementation and ensure that police officers remain accountable.
There is, however, a particular matter arising from the photograph, specifically where the protesters are dealing with smoke all over the air, stones are all around the ground, and armed police ready to do anything to stop these protesters from expressing themselves. That indicates police were using forces against people who were calling out the systemic racism within the organization. In many of these protests, police conduct is normally a violation of international human rights and the constitutional civil rights protections that allow free expression and peaceful assembly (Muncy). Generally, the law enforcement organization is a deeply entrenched stem that impedes any meaningful scrutiny and will permit its officers and departments to carry out the abuses with impunity (Muncy).
Contextual Analysis of the Photograph
Historical Context
From a historical context, the minority groups, especially the African Americans, have experienced a long, painful history of police brutality. A placard from a 1963 protest in the Smithsonian collections is similar to the current placards used in Black Lives Matter movements (Nodjimbadem). The protests in the present photograph were against the killing of George Floyd and generally police brutality. In the previous month, after a jury acquitted a former law enforcement officer Jeronimo Yanez of manslaughter after shooting and killing Philando Castile, protesters would shut down Interstate 94 in St Paul, Minnesota (Nodjimbade). They had signs of “Black Lives Matter” and “No, Justice, No peace” as they marched along the highways at night. These were similar scenes experienced immediately after Yanez had killed Castille after pulling him over a broken taillight.
The fact that the same placards calling for racial justice are carried fifty years later only proves the continuous oppression and violence that has disp[roprtionatelt affected the Black communities. The message from the placard of racial justice remains unresolved. The same way the notion of police brutality was on people’s minds in 1963, years later, their subsequent generations are still dealing with it characterized oppression and abuse of power (Harper).
Additionally, during the civil rights era, many of these movements’ leaders called for peaceful protests. However, these protests were marred with violence and destructive riots. The police would use aggressive dispersion tactics against the individuals in peaceful protests. This image is portrayed in the photograph of smoke in the air and stones all over the ground. Smoke that mainly arises from teargas while protestors use stones to fight back the police demonstrates that the police constantly impede peaceful protests through their violent tactics. With the evolution of technology, the police will now use military-grade equipment, their heads covered in helmets and body armor as they walk through the American cities. There is a continuation of an inequivalent relationship that has been aggravated by militarization and an increase in firepower among the police forces.
Notably, the uprising seen in this image speaking on the devastation of black communities due to the ongoing police violence is facing a revolutionary increased diversity within the crowds (Lockwood). This is potentially a good sign of a community moving towards racial equity, which could be attributed to various progressive groups being established to communicate these challenges. The progressive groups are not entirely focused on dealing with racial justice in the United States. They have made significant contributions to the turnout in the streets.
Theoretical Context
The conflict theory was pivotal in providing insight and explanations concerning protests and clashes between minority groups and law enforcement in the 1960s and 1970s. The conflict theory has been effective in unmasking the real nature of law, order, and the use of authority during turbulent periods characterized by struggling civil rights, the liberation of women, among other fundamental societal movements (Anderson et al. 12). Through the conflict theory, police officers have been seen not to engage in even-handed justice but will routinely violate the country’s constitution through the repression and agitation of citizens engaging in peaceful demonstrations.
During the frequent encounters between the minority groups and the police during the protests against police brutality, among other issues, the conflict theory will provide a contextual framework explaining the violence and deadly encounters that are happening. According to this theoretical perspective, power and authority are fundamental in maintaining social, political, and economic inequality in conjunction with exerting control on the people that are considered the surplus population (Anderson et al. 12). Equality does not exist in this theory, and hence the criminal justice system will be biased to favor the powerful groups, for those who are not part of the mainstream society who are normally those viewed as problematic in the society, they will engage in social protests as allowed by the Constitution. Subsequently, among other governmental agencies, the police will choose to violently disrupt these groups from exercising their rightfully granted protections (Anderson et al. 13). The conflicts within society will use government agencies such as the police to promote the interests of powerful groups by putting the powerless groups at a disadvantage. The police will use excessive force that causes the deaths of particular segments within the population without any parties being criminally prosecuted for claiming responsibility for the wrong actions.
The image of black protestors standing up against the police for the persistent police brutality just illustrates a conflict within the society. Notably, these current protests have seen an increase in diversity among the protestors, such that there are more white individuals involved in the protesting. This could only mean that powerful groups still exist within the American society whose actions are now seen and felt by other racial community members. Police brutality will affect numerous elements of society despite it happening to a particular minority group. These targetted individuals remain to be part of American society, and the negative things they face will always have a ripple effect on others. Therefore, with the persistence of conflict between the powerful and powerless groups, more people will be involved in fighting for American citizens’ rights as per the Constitution.
Conclusion
The photograph of diverse people standing up against police brutality and racial justice just demonstrates that the American community and the world are still lagging in protecting the rights of minority groups. There are a cultural conflict and tension between the African Americans and the police. It is time that the police do proper reform of their strategies and daily activities to end the systemic racism within the American community.
Works Cited
Speltz, Mark. “How Photographs Define the Civil Rights and Black Lives Matter Movements.” TIME | Current & Breaking News | National & World Updates, 2016, time.com/4429096/black-lives-matter-civil-rights-photography/.
Muncy, C. S. “Kettling” Protesters in the Bronx.” Human Rights Watch, 30 Sept. 2020, www.hrw.org/report/2020/09/30/kettling-protesters-bronx/systemic-police-brutality-and-its-costs-united-states.
Harper, Daria. “Gordon Parksâ??s 1960s Protest Photos Reflect the Long History of Police Brutality in the U.S.” Artsy, 5 June 2020, www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-gordon-parkss-1960s-protest-photos-reflect-long-history-police-brutality.
Hao, Karen. “How to Turn Filming the Police into the End of Police Brutality.” MIT Technology Review, 10 June 2020, www.technologyreview.com/2020/06/10/1002913/how-to-end-police-brutality-filming-witnessing-legislation/.
Nodjimbadem, Katie. “The Long, Painful History of Police Brutality in the U.S.” Smithsonian Magazine, 27 July 2017, www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/long-painful-history-police-brutality-in-the-us-180964098/.
Lockwood, Beatrix. “#AskReuters: Why the U.S. Protests Against Police Brutality Are Different This Time.” The U.S, 8 July 2020, www.reuters.com/article/us-police-brutality-askreuters-idUSKBN24937W.
Anderson, James F., Kelley Reinsmith-Jones, and Willie M. Brooks Jr. “Black shootings, conflict theory, and policy implications.” Int’l J. Soc. Sci. Stud. 4 (2016): 10.
