Literacy Narrative
On the first day of embarking on my college journey, professor Killebrew distributed two contrasting images. One of Ruby Bridges, the first African American girl to attend an all-white school, and one of education secretory Betsy DeVos. At first glance, the pictures seemed similar, but portrayed the same scene but in contrasting political context.
In the first image, a 1964 painting by Norman Rockwell, depicts Ruby Bridges, a little girl walking past a wall plastered with racial slurs and tomatoes depicting the day where Ruby enters an all-white elementary school in 1960, during the heart of the civil rights movement. Attacked by racist bigots who refused integration in the public-school system, a little girl was harassed for wanting to have the same rights that other white children had. The second photo is a political cartoon of Betsy DeVos created by Glenn McCoy in February of 2017, portraying DeVos as Ruby Bridges. The cartoon portrays DeVos, walking past a wall plastered with tomatoes and a “slur”. Created to be a twist on Norman Rockwell’s famous painting of Ruby Bridges, the cartoon was made to create a comparison of the two. Being a cartoon however, makes one think the true purpose of this cartoon is to mock DeVos by using Ruby. DeVos’s situation isn’t anything like Ruby’s but the fact they were disliked by certain groups of people.
The images are representations of satire and historical context. Ruby Bridges actions are a turning point in the Civil Rights movement. That little girl led the way for people of all color to be treated fairly in education and allowed us all to be integrated. If you look around in our classrooms today, every face is unique to their own background and treated fairly regardless of their background, a value that was not shared during the 1950’s. Paintings that hold historical significance are essential for us to view today, especially in a time where racism still exists. It’s essential for us to look back at paintings as such to remind us the sacrifices people made for the future of society. Satire political cartoons are for us to express our thoughts of the world. Betsy DeVos is a very controversial member of the President Trump’s cabinet, as many feel she is not qualified for the job, Secretary of Education. The cartoon pokes fun at DeVos and her political affiliation for her questionable work being done in office. It’s important for us to express our thoughts on matters today that’ll effect our future. Political cartoons are almost like a check on the world today to express our opinions to avoid mistakes of the past.
As Ruby Bridges was once discriminated because of the color of her skin, I’ve been discriminated for the color of my skin. Being a middle eastern appearing man today, I get treated differently in certain scenarios because of the color of my skin. If I were to have bookbag seeming somewhat larger than normal, I may be profiled for having an explosive device because of the color of my skin. Ruby Bridges was verbally and physically attacked for wanting a better education because of the color of her skin. What did a little girl like Ruby do to harm someone? We as a people today still struggle with the same problems that little Ruby did.
The Rockwell painting makes me feel very uneasy about our nation. The fact that a little girl was abused in this country for no reason other than a color disappoints me in who we were once was. It shows that we had no integrity and no respect for one another. But what scares me even more is knowing how great yet how little things changed. We still struggle with racial discrimination and oppression today that Ruby faced.
Discussing the images in class made me feel a sense of hope for the future of our country in that fellow classmates all agreed upon the fact the no one should be judged by the color of their skin. Everyone was respectful of one another and treated with respect regardless of their skin and background. Being discriminated myself because of the color of my skin, makes me optimistic for a future in which no one is discriminated for their appearance.
Viewing the images in class has brought us to discuss a problem of discrimination that still plagues us today as a country. A problem that needs to be resolved. A solution that can be only created if everyone understands it. It’s crazy to think how we once were as a country during the civil rights movement. And I fear that there’s children out there that are being treated the same way Ruby was treated. That the color of their skin still dictates how people treat them. I hope we can one day end this discrimination of color for good and accept each other for who we are.
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