Analysis Of Indian Power Flag Flutters At Alcatraz

The civil rights movement of the 1960s and the 1970s transformed not only how ethnic and racial groups identified themselves, but also how the world perceived these actions and identities. Voices that were hardly heard of prior to the 1960s, such as the Native Indian and the Asian American narratives, finally had the platform to demand change. The media of the time was the linkage institution that bridged the social movements to the general public. The media form of newspapers, have the power to either further or suppress the efforts of social justice movements through the diction, tone, and type of evidence being conveyed. In this media literacy analysis, I will compare and contrast the coverage of the Native American occupation of Alcatraz in 1969 and the Asian American police brutality protest of 1975 in Chinatown, New York, by
In the article “Indian Power Flag Flutters at Alcatraz,” the author’s diction differs greatly with that of the Los Angeles Times’ article, for this account uses positive imagery to illustrate the site of the event by using words such as “peaceful but determined Indians.” The positive diction used in this article, eliminates the racialization of the Native Indians, and instead portrays them and their action as a justified action for an oppressed peoples. Interestingly, this article is longer in length as a result of the author detailing what the Native Indians’ goals were, the challenges they faced upon their arrival at Alcatraz, and quoting much of their perspective. In fact, the article quotes both the Indians and the officials to provide both perspectives of the encounter. By providing the perspectives of the Indians, and describing the event as it really took place, this article helped further AIM’s efforts to be taken seriously by the public present in the positive diction throughout the