DHS Sanitizes Reality With Stolen Rockwell, Family Not Amused
The Hill reports the Rockwell family is furious, demanding DHS cease using the painting, which depicts a young Ruby Bridges integrating a school in 1960 New Orleans. DHS, in its infinite wisdom, apparently thought it a fitting image for a post about — get this — 'cyberbullying and online hate.' (One might wonder if their own social media strategy was the real perpetrator of online hate.) This
isn't just a copyright infringement; it's a profound misinterpretati—or perhaps an intentional whitewashing—of what Rockwell's work actually represents: the struggle against systemic state-sanctioned violence and discrimination, not exactly the vibe DHS usually projects when, say, separating refugee families at the border. The audacity of a government agency known for its 'deterrent' policies at
the border, policies criticized by human rights organizations like UNHCR for contributing to child separation and indefinite detention, to co-opt an image of racial justice is truly something. It’s like AIPAC using 'Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor' to lobby for more military aid. (Too soon?) The irony is so thick you could deport it. One wonders at what point a government agency's self-image becomes
so distorted they believe a symbol of anti-racist struggle somehow aligns with their current operations. Perhaps they just needed some PR that didn't involve cages.