Zoe Meade

Dr. Brown

English 306

09/12/16

Rhetorical Analysis of “The Emperor Has No Balls”

August 30^th, 2016 was the day that the self-described “anarchist art collective” INDECLINE first came out with their guerilla anti-Trump movement.  INDECLINE’s artist, “Ginger” began the protest by creating a life-size statue of president hopeful Donald Trump, with a stern face, orange, veiny skin, and completely naked, with a very small penis and no testicles. The group then went to five cities, Seattle, New York, San Francisco, Cleveland, and Los Angeles, and dressed as construction workers, bolted the statue down in “public spaces” (Holley), rushing away into the crowd before anybody could stop them. Once noticed, the statues left the people viewing them shocked, confused and amused.  By showing Trump in this ridiculous form INDELINCE and its lead artist “Ginger” are trying to sway the American vote and show Trump as the unfit candidate they view him to be.

But the statues are more complex than just a crude statue of a controversial man. The audience of this perplexing art protest is the American People, particularly, the American voter. The protest is a play on the Han’s Christian Anderson story, “The Emperor’s new Clothes” a story in which two clothing maker promise a powerful but foolhardy and incompetent emperor a new set of wonderful clothes. The clothing makers tell the emperor that anybody who wears the outfit that is too foolish, incompetent or just too dumb for their position, will been seen wearing nothing at all. Then the clothing makers give the emperor fake clothing, and he is too proud to say he can’t see them. When the Emperor shows off his new “suit”, his subjects are too scared to say that they don't see any clothes until a child pipes up, "But he isn't wearing anything at all!" (Anderson).   Additionally, the protest is playing on the Western ideals of manhood. Not only is Trump portrayed as naked, he is emasculate. Ginger shaped this trump caricatured with a micro-penis and, as the title so clearly states, no balls.

By tying their statues to this old moral story, INDECLINE’s “Emperor’s…” purpose seems to be calling out the American voter. Much like the emperor’s subjects in the story, the American people are too nervous or foolish to point out Trump is unfit for the position of President. And by showing the statue naked and scowling, lacking in all modern ideals of manhood, Ginger is using physical cues to lead the audience to a more metaphorical point’ Donald Trump is not a “man” or in if he is, he is a weak one, which the American is still supporting for unknown reasons.

Ginger and INDELINCE use Pathos and Ethos to appeal to the American people on an ethical and emotional level.

When first viewing the statues, one is affected immediately on an emotional level. It is humorous and a little gross to look at.  An audience member might find themselves laughing or shocked when first viewing the statues. Either way, they aren’t emotions one usually feels when viewing a Presidential candidate. Generally, emotions like pride, joy, and most importantly respect, are invoked when dealing with a president-hopeful.  These statues strip Trump of any of those positive emotions. It is very doubtful that anyone view these statues felt respect for the Man.  As fellow voters, INDECLINE is pointing forcing the audience to view Trump the way that INDECLINE see him. An INDECLINE spokesperson who wished to remain anonymous said

“We started thinking a lot about how dictators and tyrants, all though history, were memorialized through statues. Go to any major park in America, you've got some rich white general with a sword. That guy was probably a complete piece of shit back in the day. All the way from Caligula to Lenin, it was always about the statue. And Trump just fit that perfectly."

INDECLINE is saying a lot with their statues; “Can’t you see that Trump is a grotesque fool of a man hiding behind a “suit” of power that you, the American voter, continues to allow him to hid behind? Can’t you see he is the same powerful dictator as the hundred other powerful dictators that only remained in power because the people around them allowed it?”    By making a fool out of Trump and tying him to the dictators of years passed INDECLINED is appealing to the American voter’s pathos. That appeal to pathos is a pretty powerful one.

 Secondly, and less obviously, the statue seems to appeal to ethos. By tying the statue to the Anderson story, INDECLINE is forcing the American voter to see themselves as the emperor’s foolish subjects. Much like the child in the story the American voter has a duty to point out that Trump isn’t wearing anything, that is to say, he is unfit for the position of President. If the American voter can reach this conclusion though Trumps actions and words, then INDECLINE is going to show them. Ethically, should the American people vote for a man that can be so easily compared to a dictator? Should they vote for a man lacking any manhood? Or do they have an ethical duty to vote for a candidate more fit for the job. These are the questions that the art protest is asking the American voter to think about.

With all that being said, this instillation doesn’t seem to have a lot of logos in it. It isn’t all that logical as the American voter knows, logically, that Trump is a man who most likely, isn’t quite that lacking in the genital department. And, logically, even if he was it wouldn’t affect his abilities as president. Additionally, there are better avenues to appeal to the American voter’s logic. Put out an article listing all the terrible political decisions Trump has made, or publish a photograph of Trump doing something illicit. But the point of the statues isn’t logical, so logos isn’t a focus of this political moment.

As far as effectiveness, this art protest seems to have somewhat achieved its purpose. INDECLINE and Ginger’s piece achieved almost immediate internet fame (even though the statues themselves only lasted about an hour in their respective public spaces) and people immediately began to talk about, and analyze the art instillation. And, they did succeed in making a fool of Trump. However, it is unclear if they actually did change the minds of any American voters.  If the main focus was to sway the conservative vote by pointing out flaws in its candidate, then it was probably not successful.

Worked Cited

Holley, Peter. "These Protesters Wanted to Humiliate ‘Emperor’ Trump. So They Took off His                                                               Clothes." Washington Post. The Washington Post, 19 Aug. 2016. Web. 12 Sept. 2016.

INDECLINECOM. "The Emperor Has No Balls." YouTube. YouTube, 2016. Web. 16 Sept. 2016.

Fuck Tha Police

Beto Hoyos

Dr. Steph Brown

ENG 306

9/15/16

                                                            Fuck The Police

            In the 1980s, Los Angeles was a place full of racial tension and police brutality. In 2016 things are still far from perfect, but today people are constantly connected and therefore are more exposed to the injustices and the unfair treatment of minorities by police. In 1988 the Compton rap group N.W.A released their highly controversial song Fuck Tha Police on their first album, Straight Outta Compton. Police brutality was occurring in L.A before N.W.A and it still occurs more than 25 years after the songs creation.

            The object here is the entire song and its lyrics. Plenty of people may have felt the same way the group felt at the time, but it was N.W.A who had the platform to shake things up. When the song begins, Ice Cube immediately mentions how police treat African Americans with the opening lyric; fuck the police coming straight out the underground/ a young nigga got it bad ‘cuz I’m brown/ and not the other color so police think, they got the authority/ to kill a minority. Listeners are given the reason why the song was made in the first place. Fast forward to today, this song remains relevant with all of the fatal shootings by police across the country in the last couple of years. Today the song has been adopted by some among the Black Lives Matter movement.

            N.W.A was a group that was never afraid to speak their minds. They carried around an attitude which made them intimidating while at the same time made it easy to admire them. After all, the A in the acronym does stand for Attitude, and that attitude was present in their music, lyrics and personas. The lyrics were controversial. The beats were hard hitting, in your face and fast paced. Dr. Dre was great producer then and in 2016 he still holds that reputation. The group formed by Andre Young (Dr. Dre) consisted of his neighborhood friend O’Shea Jackson (Ice Cube) who wrote most of the raps, Lorenzo Patterson (MC Ren) a strong performer and skilled lyricist, Antoine Carraby (DJ Yella) who handled the turn tables and added that extra flavor, and of course Eric Wright (Eazy-E) who was the often grandiose, outspoken lead rapper.

            The story about the songs origin claims that Ice Cube and the rest of the group were standing outside of a recording studio when two officers came up to the group and began questioning them. Immediately the officers had them get down on the ground while they were cuffed and searched. The claim was supported in the bio pic based on the group Straight Outta Compton. Ice Cube immediately began writing down the lyrics and recorded the song that day(Grey). When the group released this song they may have unconsciously appealed to the emotional strings of their audience.

The groups purpose with the song was to enlighten people on what had been going on in the inner city for too long. It was social injustice at the hands of police which sparked the Watts riots of the 60s. The fires of Watts may have been extinguished long ago, a fire still burns in the memories of many. Black lives matter co founder Patrisse Cullors says that the tension from Watts are still smoldering (Mozingo). Not just Ice Cube but the entire group felt they needed to bring these issues to the forefront. In a 2015 interview with Billboard Magazine Ice Cube said he wanted to make a song people from his community could rally around (Gale). Cube tried to warn people about what was going to happen. Although all members were talented in their own way, it was Cube who was the more conscious and political. Once Cube left, the groups music became less political.

            The reason this song has such staying power and timelessness is because not too much has changed since the late 80s when the group was seeing and experiencing all these same injustices as today. Ice Cube experienced this first hand one night while walking in front of his house he was mistaken for another person and pushed up against a cop car while bystanders including his parents stood by (Grey). For example, in 2011 612 people were killed in L.A county and 54 people were killed by officers or deputies, almost 70% more than in 2010 (Ruben). In 2015 the Department of Justice issued a report stating that Ferguson Police showed a pattern of clear racial disparities and discriminatory intent prior to and during the protests (Wihbey).

            All of these issues have an effect on the way the public views and feels about police. A USA today poll from August 2014 found that Americans of all races give relatively low marks to police departments across the nation when it comes to holding officers accountable for misconduct (Wihbey). In the previously mentioned Billboard interview, Cube agrees that not all police are bad or racist but thinks those who do act in that manner should be held accountable (Gale).

            Its always been the songs which contain an important message or evoke a certain amount of emotion which stand the test of time. This song managed to do both. Dre and Cube went on to establish successful brands for themselves, Eazy-E sadly passed away in 1995, and MC Ren and DJ Yella went on to live normal lives away from the spotlight. Although the group split up in the mid 90s the music which they created together will be a song to rally around while rallying against police injustices and unfair treatment of minorities.

                                                            Works Cited

Straight Outta Compton. Dir. F. Gary Grey. By Andre Young. Screenplay by Jonathan Herman. Perf. O'Shea Jackson Jr., Corey Hawkins, Paul Giamatti, Jason Mitchell. Universal Pictures, 2015. Film.

Goldstien, Rich. "A Brief History of the Phrase "Fuck the Police"" Thedailybeast.com. The Daily Beast, 23 Aug. 14. Web. 14 Sept. 16.

Ruben, Joel, and Sarah Ardalani. "Killings by Police Jump Sharply." Articles.latimes.com. Los Angeles Times, 12 June 2012. Web. 14 Sept. 2016.

Wihbey, John. "Research on Law Enforcement and Racial Conflict." Journalistsresource.org. Journalist's Resource, 28 July 2016. Web. 14 Sept. 2016.

Mozingo, Joe, and Angel Jennings. "50 Years after Watts: 'There Is Still a Crisis in the Black Community'" Latimes.com. Los Angeles Times, 13 Aug. 2015. Web. 14 Sept. 2016.

Gale, Alex. "Ice Cube: Police Have Become Our Worst Bullies." Billboard.com. Billboard Magazine, 13 Aug. 2015. Web. 14 Sept. 2016.

Strange Fruit

Elizabeth Kennedy

Steph Brown

ENG306

09/10/2016

Stranger Fruit

Strange Fruit, sent a message throughout history since Billie Holiday first performed it in 1939 at Café Society in New York City, with a solitary beam of light on her face, to a small, dead quiet crowd at the end of her set and well after the dinner service. The song was published in the New York Times, originally titled “Bitter Fruit”, two years before it ever hit the stage. The poem was spurned by the rage Abel Metropol, a teacher and activist, felt when he saw a now famous photograph of a lynching in Marion, Indiana of Tom Shipp and Abe Smith, the ‘strange fruit hanging from the poplar trees’. America at the time was either collectively ignoring the inhumanity of lynching, and the implications it would have for the prevailing white supremacy, or actively engaging in the act as though it were a spectacle, an ordinary amusement. Billie Holiday did what Mr. Metropol never could. She gave Strange Fruit a voice, indeed Tom and Abe got a voice and subsequently became a part of a much larger group of people who needed justice. The dead who by the power of song refused to be forgotten and the living who would demand equality.

Lynching has been used as a tool for punishment without due process for as long as America has been a free nation. A punishment that would range from hanging and shooting the victims to burning them at the stake or torture and mutilation. The history and statistics of lynchings leave a little accuracy to be wanted, but most experts agree that while it was not exclusive to the African American community, it was an effective and unfortunate method of terrorism against them. Before 1882 there are no reliable recorded statistics of lynchings in the United States and not for another ten years after did Tuskegee Institute begin to make a systematic collection and tabulation of lynching statistics and 1912 the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) began their independent record of lynchings in the United States. It’s hard to imagine a community that would attempt to excuse and justify such horrific acts of violence, but many lynchings were recorded with a ‘cause’, rape was the third greatest cause of lynchings behind homicides and 'all other causes'. 

From 1930 to 1939 there were 202 lynchings in the United States. As far as anyone knows Billie Holiday never personally witnessed a lynching, she was from Baltimore, Maryland which wasn’t as saturated with lynchings as states further South. Ms. Holiday shared nothing more with the victims than racial identity and humanity, much in the same way that Mr. Metropol shared nothing more with Tom and Abe then fellow humanity. The metaphor in the song implies a beauty lost in the most grotesque way. 

Works Cited

Margolick, David, and Hilton Als. Strange Fruit: Billie Holiday, Café Society, and an Early Cry for Civil Rights. N.p.: Harper Perennial, n.d. Print.

Sanburn, Josh. "ALL-TIME 100 Songs." Time. Time Inc., 21 Oct. 2011. Web. 14 Sept. 2016. references an originally printed Time article

Gibson, Robert A. "The Negro Holocaust: Lynching and Race Riots in the United ..." Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute. Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute, n.d. Web. 15 Sept. 2016.

"History of Lynchings." NAACP. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Sept. 2016.

"Lynching Statistics." For 1882-1968. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Sept. 2016.

Rough Draft

Micah Metz

Dr. Stephanie Brown

English 306

September 15, 2016

Rough Draft

Football, as one of America's most popular sports, is deeply infused with patriotic ritual. The singing of the national anthem before each game, and, on more special occasions, jets flying overhead, creates an atmosphere of national pride and reverence to all institutions that help protect it. With that common understanding in place it's understandable why Collin Kapernick's actions have started so much controversy within the football community. During the latter half of the NFL pre-season, Kaepernick began sitting during the national anthem before games. While widely interpreted as disrespect to flag and country, Kaepernick has identified his actions as a protest for racial injustice in the nation, most explicitly citing incidents of police brutality against minorities. With several isolated incidents of this kind of brutality being publicized in close succession in recent times, there is an air of distrust for authorities and animosity towards institutions that reflect a bias against people of color. With Kapernick's celebrity status and a taboo protest method, this comprises one of the more recent rhetorical strategies employed in the discussion about institutionalized racism.

            Kaepernick's actions follow a series of tumultuous events over the past few years involving police killings of unarmed black men. Individuals such as Michael Brown, Eric Garner, and the subsequent protests that arose because of their fatalities has created a political climate more sensitive to the methods of police forces and the most common type of victims in these instances. While there seemed to be a notion that institutionalized racism has decreased over the years since the days of the civil rights movement, the spotlight on these events has persuaded many that perhaps the nation has not come as far as many people once believed. Kaepernick, in an interview, alludes to the turbulent atmosphere between minorities and police force, and posits that there needs to be greater awareness:

People don't realize what's really going on in this country. There are a lot of things that are going on that are unjust. People aren't being held accountable for. And that's something that needs to change. That's something that this country stands for freedom, liberty and justice for all. And it's not happening for all right now (ESPN).

            Kaepernick’s purpose can be seen as a drive to raise awareness about unjust policies, tendencies, or laws that target minorities. Taking the current political climate into perspective one could assume that many people are already pretty familiar with the topic, but past demonstrations and decries have left many spectators with mixed, undecided feelings on the subject. The rioting in Ferguson, Missouri, for example, were seen negatively for the destruction that ran rampant throughout the town, regardless of the persecution that the residents might have felt regarding their community’s safety. Kaepernick's nonviolent, celebrity-status protest is one that has the potential to speak to a wide audience of people who are both in the category that he intends to represent (minorities who have been consistently been more likely targets for police assault) as well as onlookers whom he might sway. While his actions are still seen as disrespectful to many people, it’s presented in a way that the media tolerates; it has generated discussion with an interpretation more positive than that of a violent riot.

            Kaepernick’s contribution to this wider civil rights movement is rife with the ethos of American values and how they are not being upheld in key areas. The flag that is honored ceremonially along with the singing of the anthem is an important item of national identity and is closely associated with military forces who are said to protect the freedoms that it represents. Any protests involving the display of the flag necessarily bring up the positive attributes of our nation that it is commonly said to represent; the choice to use this object of protest in a way deviant to the customs of respecting it is taboo and generates emotional response. But when asked about whether or not his form of protest was acceptable or not, the NFL player said:

To me, this is a freedom that we're allowed in this country. And going back to the military, it's a freedom that men and women that have fought for this country have given me this opportunity by contributions they have made . . . This is something that has to be said, it has to be brought to the forefront of everyone's attention, and when that's done, I think people can realize what the situation is and then really affect change (ESPN).

            While national pride is alive and well in America, an important distinction that Kaepernick makes and is popular in the minds of citizens is that the honor due to the flag is still optional; being a symbol of freedom, it grants the freedom to behave deviant from norms. This commonly held notion makes Kaepernick’s demonstration and proclamation of beliefs effective because it’s meant to deviate from norms in a way that doesn’t denounce the intended framework of the norm’s original implication. That is to say, his subtle decry of national trends is meant to say that the standards outlined by patriotic belief are not in effect in the real world, but need to be, and that there is potential for them to be.

            Considering Kaepernick’s purpose to raise further awareness and to inspire people to affect change, the media coverage his actions have garnered demonstrate, in some respect, a degree of success in his strategy; most notably by targeting an emotionally changed aspect of patriotic ritual. Kaepernick has received support from his teammates, and while the public’s reception of him tends to be mixed, he hasn’t been made into an anathema for his actions. The notion of his that national policy and trends need to change before the identity of this country is to be respected calls for a higher level of performance from Americans, which some could interpret as an important patriotic value in itself, and it is this social criticism that is made out of a deeper identification as a member of the society that makes this protest usable to a wider audience.

Works Cited

Wagoner, Nick. “Transcript of Colin Kaepernick's comments about sitting during national           

anthem.” ESPN.com. 28 August, 2016. Web. 15 September, 2016

Tucson Walk Out rough draft

John Chestnut

Dr. Brown

English 305

September 15, 2016

TUSD School Walkouts (Rough Draft)

In January of 2012, ethnic and Mexican American studies were stopped indefinitely in the Tucson Unified School District. The district would even go as far as to confiscate books about Mexican American history from children. An extreme action that checks off the Ethos of the whole situation. A super intended for the district would even go as far as to tell students to “go to Mexico” if they wanted to study their history. The cut was a controversial one that only happened because Arizona state superintendent, John Huppenthal, wanted to withhold millions of dollars from the district if they did not cut the programs. It was befuddling, and to almost every teacher and student, who worked or attended the schools wrong. Especially when you take in the fact that 60% of the school district was of Mexican descent. The students would lead a day long protest, by way of walkout on January 23^rd, 2012. It would rock the district to its core.

                The Pathos in this whole protest comes from each and every student who participated in the day long walkout from schools. The walkout would make its way into the downtown Tucson area. Capturing the attention of TUSD administrators. Every student and even some teachers believed that it was not only just a class getting cut but it was part of their culture and part of their lives being cut out. The students believed that staging this walkout was a way to show that the classes were wanted and needed. It was a way of fighting for what they wanted and believed in.

                The walkouts would continue for the next few days but the classes would not see a return. This whole situation could be seen as a type of discrimination, and blackmail. Withholding money from a district that was already hurting was a dirty move and one that would be brought a federal appeals court. This story would reach not only hit in Tucson, but would hit national levels of news. Stars such as Eva Longoria would chime in and slam the way Arizona school district. There was another protest before this when the talk of cutting the Mexican American studies first started. On April 26^th a group of nine students would interrupt a school board meeting and chain themselves to chairs. The whole reason for this sit in, was to at least force the school board to change the classes to electives. Of course that did not work and we found ourselves at the district wide walkouts.

On July 7^th, 2015 a federal appeals court would see this case titled “Maya Arce vs Huppenthal”. Leslie Cooper, the attorney for Arizona who would represent Huppenthal, claimed that the ban only prohibits classes for an ethnic group, but not classes that are about the ethnic group. After hearing both sides of the argument the court pointed out that there is a law which prohibits courses that promote the overthrow of government. The problem with this ban, is that it only happened in one district. This would back up the claims of discrimination that so many people had started bringing up from when the district wide cut began.

This would have to be the logos in the whole story. As a court would think logically as to why the school would cut all these programs and classes, and then overturn the cuts. It was a time where everyone who protested the cuts came together and thought logically of a way to bring their studies back. Many people compare this case to another classic school court like “Plessy v Ferguson”. One that shows a restart for democracy.

I graduated from a TUSD school in 2009, and Mexican American studies were a huge thing. The school as a whole was proud of its Mexican heritage. Folklorico was and I believe still is offered and it’s one of the premiere things that the schools in the district offer to the students. Almost every teacher I had was fluent in both English and Spanish so the Mexican culture is something that you really get to experience. As someone who was raised in a white dominant family learning about the Mexican culture through my high school was something I’ll never want to give back.

My analysis of the walkouts was that was a necessary measure to take. The students, their parents, and everyone who participated in the walkout never wanted to incite any violence, they only wanted their voices to be heard. It’s unfortunate that the school board thought they would be able to get away with it, but as we see, democracy wins every time. If the school had been able to do this then what would have stopped them or any other district from banning any teachings about other cultures.

To me learning about different people’s cultures helps us understand one another better. It helps us as a civilization adapt and grow not only individually, but together. The best thing about this whole protest was that it was a peaceful one that everyone could easily get behind. During the case the judge has asked the attorney for Huppenthal about a Chinese language class helping Chinese students and if it would be illegal in AZ. The lawyer responded with a flat “yes”.

That is wrong on many levels. These classes that were banned helped Mexican students who might not have been fluent in English develop better English speaking skills by having students who might be fluent in both languages. I took a number of classes that had students who spoke English only but by the end of the semester could actually pick up on what was being said in English. These classes were not there to single out groups of student but instead were there to help students reach other equally. They were there to help all students grow and learn from one another. The walkouts brought every student closer and they brought the ban down. This was a success that people will be able to read about in a Mexican American class when I am hopefully teaching many years down the line.

Work cited

Biggers, Jeff. "Tucson School Walk Outs Grow: Protest School District's Folly and Mexican American Studies Banishment." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 23 Jan. 2012. Web. 15 Sept. 2016.

Tony_Diaz. "Arizona Gets Schooled: Update on Ban of Mexican American Studies #MayaVsAZ." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, n.d. Web. 15 Sept. 2016.

Herreras, Mari. "A Broken Community." Tucson Weekly. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Sept. 2016.

Biggers, Jeff. "Tucson School Walk Outs Grow: Protest School District's Folly and Mexican American Studies Banishment." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, n.d. Web

The World vs. The West Boro Baptist Chruch

Hope Galmarini

Eng. 306

15 September 2016

Rhetorical Analysis Assignment- Draft

The World vs. The West Boro Baptist Chruch

            Extremism is seen throughout the religious realm, and does not discriminate. Therefore, extremism can be seen throughout the Church of Islam, Judaism, Catholicism, and Christianity. The West Boro Baptist Church is a Baptist congregation that many would argue are the epitome of extremism. They are famous for creating a public spectacle of themselves, by protesting gay pride events, the funerals of fallen military members, movies, Comi Con, and an assortment of other public events throughout the nation. These protests have garnered the attention of the nation by the use of their imagery, language, and sheer anger. The church is small, being only members of the Phelps family, and share their ideals to the world through their website called ‘godhatesfags.com’. () On this website, they also share statistics such as ‘how many people have been damned since you’ve been on this site’ and ‘how many people God has killed in the Middle East’. Sensationalism is the key to success for this particular group, particularly the incitement of anger from their audience.

            The anger incited by the West Boro Baptist Church has also been met with comedy. For instance, in 2011 at the Sundance Film Festival semi famous director Kevin Smith attacked the group head on when they attempted to protest his movie Red State. Coincidentally the inspiration for the film was actually the West Boro Baptist Church. Smith was prompted that the group would be protesting the first showing of the film. He decided that he had to do something, had to counter the protests in one way or another. Kevin Smith chose comedy.

            After reading about the group, and seeing a multitude of media coverage on their pickets, Smith decided that he found their sensationalistic behavior to be ‘ridiculous’ and out right silly. So, his friends and colleagues took it upon themselves to make their own counter protest signs. Along with their own picket signs, Smith prompted all attendees of the showing to bring their own signs. Whoever came with the best, most ridiculous, and maybe offensive, sign would win a free ticket to the screening. Some of the signs created by Smith and his friends read things like: “God hates press screenings”, “God hates Mondays”, “Shirley you can’t be serious”. All of these picket signs directly mocked signs previously used by the group. The winner of the free screening ticket created a sign simply with the image of an Ewok, covered in a ‘Ghosbusters-esque’ ‘no’ symbol, as Kevin Smith described in his filmed Q & A session “An Evening With Kevin Smith.” Weeks after the initial protest, Kevin invited the Phelps family to further screenings… In which they attended. Smith has described their relationship as comical and it almost can be said to be a sort of friendship (Smith, Kevin).

            Kevin Smith came to the conclusion that ‘people like them’ are in search for sensationalism, and attention. Through this counter protest of sorts, Smith attacked their want for attention and sensationalism by simply making them a big joke. Humor was the key strategy in this debacle, and in further protests against Kevin Smith he has reverted back to this. It may be for his own fun, or to make a statement about the West Boro Baptist Church. Nevertheless, it has changed the worldly perspective of the church. Now, many news outlets do not even discuss the group, because that fuels the fire. Outrage on social media is at an all time low: the group, in short, is loosing steam. That is, they are loosing an audience. The audience for the group seems not to be those that particularly agree with their preachings, but those who are outraged by the language used and the messages shared by the Church. Those who are religious are outraged by the incorrect teachings of the Church, those who are not believers are outraged that a group speaks in such a hateful way, The West Boro Baptist Church has a goal of attracting outrage. Therefore, the intended audience is those who are outraged and are willing to feed into their outrage instead of attempting to deflect it.

            The West Boro Baptist, on their website, gives no clear indication of their church’s purpose. Other than to ‘spread the word of God’ it is unclear why ‘spreading the word of God’ means picketing funerals, parades, and movies. The assumed purpose would be that these protests incite anger, disgust, and overall attract attention. In turn, the church get’s media coverage, and presumable that’s the avenue in which they have decided to spread the word of God. However, there is no clear indication from any of the Phelps family why this is the rhetorical strategy they have decided upon. The question is always deflected by more rhetoric of the church, more slogans, more “God hates fags” type of language.

            If the group’s intended goal is to incite outrage, they have been successful in doing so over the last decade. However, if their intended purpose was to gain followers, it is not clear if they have been successful. The rhetoric used by the group is usually categorized as ‘hate speech’. The group is mainly successful by their use of pathos, by inciting rage in the audience. Authority is a key rhetorical strategy as well, but it is not the authority of the Phelp’s family or the audience, it is the authority of God and the Bible. The group utilizes their own translations of the holy text to create their rhetoric, and when it is argued by the audience the main response is ‘it’s the word of God’. The group uses the ultimate authority, and does this in such a way that it is almost indisputable. That’s why Smith’s counter protest was so successful in deflecting the hate group, because the rhetoric used by Smith and his friends had very little to do with religion or even in response to the actual rhetoric of the West Boro Baptist Church. He simply mocked them, and utilized the rhetorical strategy of inciting laughter to deflect the group.

            Overall, the West Boro Baptist Church may be successful in their own purpose of attracting attention. However, Kevin Smith’s counter protest deflected the attention they so wanted, and therefore at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival, Smith was successful. Through his use of pathos, and sheer comedy, his message of positivity was communicated successfully and clearly. Both identities, both sides of this ‘argument’, utilize pathos as a primary rhetorical strategy, but it seems that the Church’s claims to the greatest authority have failed them and humor and positivity prevailed.

Works Cited

“Cult Kids: Westboro | Vice | United States” VICE. Web. 14 Sept. 2016

Smith, Kevin. "Kevin Smith: Burn in Hell." Youtube. N.p., 21 Sept. 2015. Web. 1 Sept. 2016.

“Westboro Baptist Homepage” Westboro Baptist Home Page. Web. 14 Sept. 2016