Académique Documents
Professionnel Documents
Culture Documents
Victoria Bitner
Professor Collins
ENGL 1301
27 April 2017
photograph of Martin Luther King and Charles Manson. The header and the caption included
with this picture explain that Martin Luther King is more likely to be pulled over by a police
officer than Charles Manson. ACLU wanted to introduce American icons to express their
message on racial profiling and to continue supporting peoples rights with their motto Because
Freedom Cant Protect Itself. This advertisements target audience includes the minority victims
that have previously received tickets from racist police officers. Strong figures Martin Luther
King and Charles Manson are focused on because of their different skin color, label, and
people by delivering speeches across the word, leading protest marches, writing literature about
the civil rights movement, and donating funds to the movement. Explained in
www.biography.com, Manson received jail time for pimping, raping, and first-degree murder by
convincing young women to kill popular Hollywood stars to create shock across the world. The
purpose of this advertisement is to convince past victims that donating will help create a team to
fight against the racist opinions of police officers. Pathos, logos, and ethos from 2000 American
Civil Liberties Union demonstrate minorities helping ACLU to fight against discrimination by
mentioning a sensitive theoretical situation with Martin Luther King versus Charles Manson.
Bitner 2
Pathos is used in the visual argument to shock, confuse, and redirect the public to the real
dangers of the world. The first quote that initiates the shock of the reader on the advertisement
from aclu.org includes, The man on the left is 75 times more likely to be stopped by the police
while driving than the man on the right. Most everyone respects Martin Luther King, The man
on the left and remembers him as a brave man, while the people who know the crimes
committed by Charles Mason, the man on the right, despise him. Once the shock reaction
happens, people become confused on how a well-respected man could get pulled over by a police
officer rather than a convict. After viewing and reading, the caption redirects the public to think
about the real problem of crime instead of judging people on their race. Along with those
emotions of the advertisement, different feelings appear when observing the visual images.
Americans tend to associate Martin Luther King with courage, freedom, and love because of the
fearless leader he became. In contrast, people affiliate Charles Manson with gruesome crimes,
fear, and disgust because of his leadership role within a cult. Both pictures create polar opposite
reactions that lead to the overall emotions of shock and confusion. Pathos is beneficial in
persuading victims to donate in order to help the ACLU protect the rights of minorities.
Logos is used in the advertisement to prove racial bias as a huge issue within America.
Part of the caption on the visual argument states, Police stop drivers based on their skin color
rather than the way they are driving. The biased opinions of police officers lead to unfair
situations for the crimeless individuals, while the convicted continue to avoid penalties due to
their skin color. Results to prove that racial profiling exists are explained within the Washington
Post online, where former President Obama mentioned before his presidency he received tickets
on times he deserved it and times he did not. Former President Obama also includes that he has
known many other African Americans with similar stories, which confirms that the system
Bitner 3
definitely consists of racial bias. Statistics from surveys provide evidence involving higher
percentage rates of Africans Americans getting pulled over than any other race. Since the ratios
between each ethnic group are not identical, this creates unnecessary racism that takes place on
the roads within this country. Logos is valuable in communicating that discrimination is a
Ethos is established in the visual announcement to build trust with American Civil
Liberties Union by convincing people to help defend their own rights. The last few sentences in
the advertisement stated, These humiliating and illegal searches are violations of the
Constitution and must be fought. Help us defend your rights. Support the ACLU. By adding
these sentences within the announcement it causes readers to believe the ACLU is on their side
and willing to help. In order to catch the publics attention ACLU added the familiar figures of
Martin Luther King and Charles Manson to represent their advertisement. Well-known African
American pastor King creates a positive vibe about fighting for civil rights, while murder
Charles Manson releases a negative vibe about the dangerous people among us. By placing these
two opposite famous figures against each other, most if not all of the public will automatically
want to associate with the confident side of the argument, Martin Luther King. Once the public
acknowledges the theoretical situation, their reaction should involve defending the more
respected figure with the positive vibe. Now when ACLU talks about police officers profiling
people by their race and ignoring potential criminals, people are more likely to donate. Ethos is
crucial in proving that American Civil Liberties Union wants to help minorities fight against
racial profiling.
In the advertisement pathos, logos, and ethos are used to persuade victims that donating
to American Civil Liberties Union will remove racial bias and help protect peoples rights. With
Bitner 4
the target audience, ACLU communicated this message successfully. The public was redirected
from the racial profiling to the dangerous people in the country by simply comparing a murderer
and a peaceful protestor. At least a few donations will be given to ACLU because of how they
included familiar American icons. Citizens that have experienced being pulled over for no reason
at all will be the biggest portion the donations. From reviewing the visual argument, it seemed to
Works Cited
http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/1964/king-bio.html. Accessed 12
April 2017.
Provocative New ACLU Advertising Series Uses American Icons in Message on Racial
Profiling.
new-aclu-advertising-series-uses-american-icons-message-racial-profiling. Accessed 12
April 2017.
Soffen, Kim. The big question about why the police pull over so many black drivers. The
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/07/08/the-big-question-about-
why-police-pull-over-so-many-black-drivers/?utm_term=.f514d9653e18. Accessed 12
April 2017.