The image of the kneeling protester features a group of protesters kneeling on one knee in front of police officers. The police officers are holding batons and shields, ready to engage with the protesters in case of a riot. The most intriguing aspect of the image is the female protester kneeling in front of her colleagues, and she is nearer to the police officers. Notably, the image’s message had an interesting way of appealing to my emotions, beliefs, and values. In this essay, I analyze how its pathos has impacted me.
First, I feel the image appeals to feelings of brevity. The woman kneeling close to the officers demonstrates this aspect. Unlike other protesters, she kneels very close to the police officers who are ready to engage. One would think that she trembles at the thought of what the officers might do to her, but her head is courageously lifted to look directly at the officers. Here, the image communicates the message of brevity. It makes me feel brave like the woman to demand for justice whenever it is denied. Moreover, the fact that she is the one kneeling and not a man makes me feel confident to stand against injustices no matter how vulnerable and feeble I may feel. Society regards women as the weaker gender, and that is why seeing the woman willing to face off the officers encourages me to want to protest.
The image of the kneeling protester also appeals to my feelings of anger. Arguably, it is with reference to George Floyd’s murder, a black person who was killed by a cop on the basis of racial profiling. The cop kneeled on Floyd’s neck and caused him not to breathe. The protesters’ kneeling on one knee re-enacts how the cop kneeled on Floyd, causing his untimely death. This re-enactment makes me feel angry against how the black community is being discriminated against in a democratic country where all people are supposed to be treated fairly regardless of their race and ethnicity. I think the creator of this image wanted to elicit anger to push people into taking action against racial discrimination against African-Americans.
Apart from anger, kneeling makes me believe in unity. The protesters in the image kneel to show solidarity with Floyd and other African-American individuals who have undergone racial mistreatment at the hands of police. Therefore, they manage to make want join their course and fight for Floyd’s justice because I know that a united effort from all walks of life will push the respective stakeholders to address the underlying plight. The image appeals to the feelings of unity to persuade me to see the importance of their reason to protest. Lastly, the image makes me feel the fear the protesters are fighting against. The protesters kneeling with their hands lifted in the air demonstrate this aspect. Lifting hands while kneeling is a non-verbal cue to show defeat and fear. Therefore, the protesters paint a picture of how African-Americans live fearfully because the system denies them justice by profiling them wrongly. Here, the image makes me feel sacred for the African-Americans’ lives, prompting me to join the protesters in the fight against racism. The image’s creator seemingly understood that people act swiftly when they are afraid. Thus, he evokes fear to prompt the viewers to take action to protect the black community from social injustices caused
