The Problem We All Live With
a painting by Norman Rockwell

    For a history project, we were told to choose a piece of American artwork and answer the following question:

     "How is your chosen piece of art a reflection of ( or a reaction against) the events attitude / issues in America at the time it was created?" 

     We chose the painting shown above: The Problem We All Live With by Norman Rockwell. It was painted in 1964 at a time when the government was trying to accomplish desegragation in society.
     Our piece of artwork directly relates to the time period it was painted in. Ruby Bridges, the girl in the painting, was the first black student to be admitted into the New Orleans, Louisiana William Frantz Elementary School . She entered the school protected by U.S. Marshals because angry white people ( known as racists)  protested school integration and were trying to prevent her from attending school . They believed if they protested enough, the government would not allow Ruby to continue attending the white school.  Norman Rockwell  allows the viewer of the painting to feel the emotions of  Ruby as she  walks to school accompanied by the marshals.  The graffiti on the wall in the painting demonstrates the mood of the racists. "Nigger," a slang and cruel way to call a black person was written above Ruby's head.  Also, KKK was written on the wall: symbolic of the Ku Klux Klan's  intimidating power and its affect on Americans. All of these aspects will be discussed in this webpage.


To learn more about the Civil Rights Movement, go on to the next page

To learn more about Ruby Bridges, click here

To learn about the artist, Norman Rockwell, press here

To see more of Rockwell's paintings, go to this page

Click this to go to the Norman Rockwell Museum Website

To read our analysis of The Problem We All Live With, click here

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