Semiotics #2 (Jhonatan Larrocha)

This is a famous painting by Norman Rockwell called "The Problem We All Live With". We see many things in this painting. There is a black girl carrying what seems to be school supplies. There's four white men in suits walking in front and behind her, each with a yellow armband that says "U.S. Marshal". They are walking next to a wall that, on the top left corner, has etched out "KKK" and in even bigger letters in the center a racial slur, There is a tomato on the ground, and its pieces and juice marks against the wall, implying that the tomato was thrown. The color scheme of the painting is also very light, giving contrast to the skin color of the school girl.

This painting is a depiction of Ruby Bridges, the first black student to attend an all white school, at the beginning of desegregation in America. By knowing the context of this piece, one can understand the meaning behind it a whole lot better. While the Civil Rights movement was making progress, and laws were created to bring equality forward, that did not mean that the hearts of the American people had changed. The thrown tomato exemplifies this: a fruit that is used to revitalize and give life is used here as a symbol of shame and hatred as it is thrown at this girl because of her skin color. The racial slur is a derogatory word used to not only insult its target, but to dehumanize them and create a division - which is the opposite of what desegregation is supposed to do.

The white men with authority point out two main things to me: the first is that it is a white man's government. There is no women, there is no ethnicity, there is only white power. This is a great symbol for the times its representing and the feeling of powerlessness that black people felt (and some may continue to feel to this day). The second point is that the school girl, in order to do something as ordinary as walking to school - something people may take for granted - has to do it with the protection of the government bodyguards around her. What would happen if she were to walk there all alone? Would she be kidnapped? Would she be raped? Would she be killed? It speaks volumes about the lack of safety black people felt by just trying to live in the same country as white Americans and do ordinary things, or things that in this case may even push them out of the hole they may be stuck in due to their ancestors being slaves and having generation after generation of no education.

This is a powerful piece and its connotations should never be forgotten, as racism still has not died out.