The Problem We All Live With

The Problem We All Live With, was painted by artist Norman Rockwell in the year 1964. It is an oil canvas that depicts Ruby Bridges, a six-year-old African American girl, on her way to a white school in New Orleans on November 14. Ruby is surrounded by four National Guard in crisp uniforms, who are protecting the young innocent girl from the outraged parents of the white kids.

Though you can’t actually see the enraged parents cursing at her and threatening her, by looking at the details you can feel it. Rockwell depicts the hatred through the words “Nigger” and “KKK” written on the yellow wall behind her that is stained with smashed tomatoes and spray paint. Ruby is walking proud, and acting oblivious to the racial hate aimed towards her. Her clothes appear fresh and clean, and she has her new school supplies in her hands. By the looks she appears ready to learn and she doesn’t want to care about race at that time. The National Guards are all white, but you can tell that they are not what are meant to be important in this piece, by the fact that their heads aren’t shown in the painting.

My first impression of the painting was that Ruby Bridges is a little girl who wants to move past the issue of race and is just eager to learn. Ruby doesn’t appear fierce, or determined, she doesn’t even appear scared. Ruby appears to be in a calm demeanor. Obviously she isn’t clueless to hatred white people feel towards her. I’d imagine that even if she wasn’t showing it on the outside, on the inside she must be horrified, depressed, and uncertain of what will happen. I know that I and probably everyone else who sees this painting is struck in awe at just how extremely cruel and mean hearted humans could be to one another just because of the color of their skin. For adults to be threatening and cursing at an innocent little girl for a fault that isn’t even hers, is just so horrific and it shows how out of context humans can become.

I think the artist found this moment in history so important that it could never be forgotten. The fact that the schools were finally being forced to become segregated in the south wasn’t the important message that the artist was trying to portray in this piece. What Norman Rockwell’s intentions were in this piece, I think were to make sure that this dark moment in history would never be forgotten. And what better way is there to show what happened than to paint it. They do say picture is worth a thousand words. This piece is now on display in the hallway in front of the Oval Office in the White House. One cursory glance at this painting and you feel like you know the whole story. I think that Norman Rockwell has solidified this moment in history forever.

This painting is made to look realistic. There is nothing abstract about it. For the most part the colors he chose are kind of dull. The walls are a peach color, the side walk is gray, and the marshals are all in light or dark grey uniforms and shiny black leather shoes. Ruby is in all white which I think he did because it makes the darkness of her skin stand out above all else. Ruby is the main focus of this picture and it is evident because she is in the center of the painting. She stands out because nothing else in the painting is even close to being the same color as her skin. Norman Rockwell has done a great service solidifying this moment in history and he will forever be remembered for it.