When paying close attention to the painting, one can notice that the men who walk with Ruby Bridges are Federal Government guards who were in charge of protecting her from any physical harm that the crowd might cause her. One can also see tomato splashes on the wall and on the floor, which I think Rockwell painted this to show the contempt of the crowd, yet what I think shows more contempt are the “Nigger” and “KKK” scratched on the call. What impresses me the most on this painting is how harsh racism could be even towards a six-year-old.
Rockwell’s intention in the painting was very clear for me after analyzing the scene. The focus of this painting is Ruby Bridges, that’s why the guard’s are cropped out, and that’s why there’s no angry mob seen anywhere. There are some scratches on the wall, and signs of tomato being thrown to show the rejection there is for Ruby. One can notice that even though she is being rejected and insulted, she still has a confident posture, and that shows how brave she is, which is part of what Rockwell saw. In my opinion, I think that Rockwell’s intention - being a favorite artist of that time - was to surprise everyone. To show people what he saw, to express how he felt, the painting was his way to show some sort of empathy towards Ruby, and at the same time, it was a subtle outrage towards the people who disrespected Ruby. Nonetheless even though this painting is very thrilling and gives a feeling of sadness and depression, I think it’s rather beautiful because it expresses Rockwell’s feelings and thoughts so well, that people could realize how wrong and cruel this situation really was.
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