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Storm Berberoglu
English 101
Paper #3
October 30th, 2015

This photo seized one of the many intense moments of the

riots that broke out in Ferguson. The citizen and the lit tear gas
canister are the focal points, and the two blurred citizens in the
center of the photo in the background. These objects related to
each other in focal points, continuation, color and figure ground
contrast. The correlation of all these objects represents the racial
tensions there are between the black population around America
with the police and how they are fighting back.
For hundreds of years people of color have been at the
bottom of the totem pole. They have faced years of slavery, then
racism, apartheid, and prejudice. People would think as time goes
on and we develop and grow this hate would decrease, but sadly
it hasnt. The police were once protectors and moral leaders.
Back in (search year and event) police assisted to school. They
have become new found bullies and it is seen everywhere. The

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news, media, videos, and headlines all over the place about police
brutality. This photo captures the moment when people broke
and have finally had enough. Maybe without realizing it, the
photographer caught the perfect photo of the riots captivating all
the energy from the scene.
This iconic photo is the exact representation of how we need
to start or continuing to fight back. The focal point of the photo,
the man with the lit canister, is the whole focus of this photo.
This man became an icon for the riots just by simply standing his
ground. He had a spike of bravery to pick up the lit canister and
throw it right back at the police. He has had enough of the
looting, the violence, and the broken system. If you watch videos
you see people being terrorized by the justice system that is out
of control. Police shooting rubber bullets at civilians. Setting stick
unnecessary curfews. Men being thrown to the ground by cops.
Cops threatening citizens. This man has had enough, along with
his community. They are done being funds to the government. No
more being just a number to the police.
Still focusing on this man the continuation he has flowing
through his body says plenty. The canister in his has with a huge

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cloud of smoke flowing through him and his stance. The energy
from both objects match each other perfectly. The spewing toxic
gas from the canister and the anger from this man creates a
powerful explosion of motivation for change. The straw on the
camels back that says enough is enough.
Red, white, and blue. The color of the greatest country in
the world. White signifies purity and innocence; Red means
hardiness & valor,; Blue, signifies vigilance, perseverance &
justice. In this photo those colors could not be any farther off.
The boiling hot red signifies the anger behind all these riots. The
anger inside everyone of these people who are affected by the
racially motivated police. Red also signifies the fire that sparked
within everyone when Mike brown was killed, when people of
color are racially profiled, when their innocence means nothing
when the color of their skin is dark. The fire that made this man
pick up that lit canister and strike back. The white for purity
instead is referred to the cloud of smoke emitted from the tear
gas. I see it as a cloud of the past. All the past issues that have
been built up and figuratively cloud peoples minds. The color
gradient of the cloud from almost a translucent white smoke to a

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thick solid cloud is almost like the built up tension in these people.
As the cloud gets closer to the man it begins to get brighter and
more lively. The blue in the photo is seen as black and blue. Like
how police have beaten people to color to a pulp and even to
death. The black symbolizes darkness, a curtain even, of how
police try to hide everything or sweep it under the rug. Or even
how invisible people of color feel because they have been so
belittled throughout time. Now theyre no longer going to be
invisible. Theyre no longer going to be unheard. The darkness of
this color can provide calmness and a mask. Depending on the
situation it can easily become the scariest thing there is.
While the majority of this picture is fixated on the man and
the smoke since theyre the most focused and upfront, we cant
ignore the two men in the background. They show the reality of
this photo. Not only is this man there fighting against the police
but two men cheering him on. Theyre not of color but you can
tell that theyre affected by this so much that they are on the
people of colors side. The size of the men compared to our main
guy says that theyre also significant but not as much. They show
support, not just from people who are directly affected by the

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discrimination, but also from others who notice the moral

corruption.
When searching for other sources I aimed to find someone
who agreed with me and then disagreed. I believe it is important
to stay open minded and understand where another side is
coming from. The first article I found was about way before the
riots happened in Ferguson, people of color have always been
targeted by the police. The tensions between the majority white
force versus the black community has been growing for years.
There have been many instances that prove the discrimination
that they face, but like most cases they get dropped or ignored.
The author said that there was an annual report if you were
African American, you were twice as likely to be arrested during a
traffic stop than a white person. Although, the black community
faced this type of discrimination daily they kept their cool. James
Nye stated Residents in Ferguson have become so used to this
that they have dubbed it DWB, or driving while black. These
people have some how made light jokes about this to keep their
composure and make the best of what they could. That was the
case until Mike browns fatal shooting. This erupted the stagnant

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anger these people have been holding in. This article eloquently
described the exact scene and the uprising it caused. There were
people in the street screaming Hands up! Dont shoot! while
others held signs asking for answers about Brown's death.
The second article I found contradicted what I believe which
is what I was aiming for. This article was claiming that cops do
night strike without probable cause. Personally, I disagree but I
can see where he may be coming from. OReilly states Anyone
thinking clearly can see that the homicide rate among blacks [is]
way out of proportion. Thus the police intrusion into black
precincts. I believe what he is trying to get across is, cops cannot
be racist theyre killing people of every color!
Although trying to view the situation from both sides I still
see this photo as a breaking point. I see people who have been
through countless years of racism and every other form of hatred
thrown at them breaking. I see a change happening and this
photo captured it.

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Work cited:
Source one: Nye, James. "A Decade of Racial Profiling: How
Tensions between Ferguson's Police and Black Community Boiled
over after Years of Ill-treatment." Mail Online. Associated
Newspapers, 14 Aug. 2014. Web. 4 Nov. 2015.
Source two: "OReilly: There Is No Plague of White Cops Acting
Violently Against Blacks." Mediaite OReilly There Is No Plague of
White Cops Acting Violently Against Blacks Comments. 17 Sept.
2015. Web. 4 Nov. 2015.