Powerful Hashtag Shows How The Media Portrays Young Black Men Who Are Gunned Down
A hashtag that's become popular on Twitter calls attention to how the media often portrays slain black men such as Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown, the Missouri teenager who was killed in a police shooting this past weekend.
People tweeting with the hashtag #IfTheyGunnedMeDown are posting photos illustrating how easily someone's image can be manipulated by the media.
The tweets typically include two photos - one that shows the person looking innocent and another that, taken out of context, could be used to demonize them.
The juxtaposition of the photos is powerful:
In the case of Trayvon Martin, several photos appeared online and in the media showing the teenager allegedly blowing smoke, holding a gun, and looking tough while wearing gold grills. Other photos showing Martin looking more innocent and child-like also circulated online.
Michael Brown, who was 18 years old when he was shot and killed by police in Ferguson, Missouri, is getting a similar treatment.
One photo shows him assuming a tough-looking stance:
And another shows him looking like a normal kid:
As Business Insider's Nicholas Carlson pointed out in 2012 when photos of Trayvon Martin looking tough were circulating online, these photos don't really tell us anything about a person's true character. They're just snapshots without much context.
Teenagers especially post stupid photos of themselves trying to look "cool" or "tough" online. See: "white chicks and gang signs":
It's easy for people to seize on certain images in the midst of a controversial event like this, but it's important to keep in mind that select photos rarely tell the full story.