Analysis of News photo (week 3)

"Flower Power" by Bernie Boston
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flower_Power_(photograph)

This is a famous anti-war photo by Washington Star photographer Bernie Boston. It is taken on 21 Oct, 1967. At that time, a non-violence protest against the Vietnam War is held. The title "Flower Power" was actually "the slogan used for the symbol of passive resistance and non-violence ideology"(Ref: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flower_power). The photo shows a young man putting flowers into the gun barrel of the National Guard. The contrast between the harmful deadly weapons and the pure, harmless flowers is so large. Although the flowers are so fragile compared to the powerful guns, the flowers still have equal or even more powers against the guns. The flowers symbolize the hope of peace of the citizens and the guns symbolize the heartless, ongoing Vietnam War. This photo is nominated for the 1967 Pulitzer Prize (Ref:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flower_Power_(photograph) ) because it is the decisive moment of one of the most important American History that the American citizens fight against war in a peaceful and civilized way. The photo is captured at a high angle so that both the Nation Guard and the protestors can be clearly seen. It is still used nowadays to promote the anti-war concept but ironically, American still has several wars after the Vietnam War has ended. Some of the wars are still ongoing and American President Obama has even recently proposed to have a war on Syria. But obviously the American people are not with Obama this time after suffering in numerous wars in America.