US Military Academy Investigates Black Female Cadets For 'Black Power' Gesture In Photo
Source: Independent UK
Feliks Garcia New York 38 minutes ago
The US Military Academy, commonly known as West Point, launched an inquiry into a group of 16 black, female cadets set to graduate after they posed in a traditional group photo raising their fists - a gesture historically associated with black resistance.
The image prompted an investigation on 28 April to determine whether or not the women broke any rules, West Point spokesperson Lt Col Christopher Kasker said in a statement. Department of Defence guidelines prohibit soldiers and cadets from making political statements while in uniform or on military grounds.
Criticism of the gesture flooded social media streams accusing the women of aligning themselves with the Black Lives Matter movement, which rose to public consciousness after the high profile killings of unarmed black men by police officers.
Army Times, a weekly newspaper that serves active and retired US Armed Forces personnel, said that numerous readers sent in letters that the gesture was, in fact, in violation of the DOD guidelines.
Read more: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/west-point-black-women-us-militarty-academy-fists-up-black-lives-matter-a7018746.html
= new reply since forum marked as read
of weather monitoring stations above the Arctic Cirlce? 
this:
with this?
Seriously?
Racial tensions will only escalate, until people view themselves as human first, and a race second. We need to
cooperate to survive.
Sure, and white people will start doing this when exactly?
vs affirming their life matters
No need to guess much but gotta ask
Maybe all these women were doing was celebrating their accomplishments as they near the close of another academic year.
that would have to be "explained" to anyone who was a member on Democratic message board.
smh.
FWIW, they are not "expressing political beliefs." I can't believe you said THAT, either.... What, being black is "political" and "separate" (but maybe--or maybe not "equal"
from "regular Americans?" 
for those who don't take the point.
Any more than this woman is "expressing a political belief:"
Is that a "political gesture?" Please. And think before you respond, because the frigging WAR DEPARTMENT put that poster out.
I'm even more offended now than I was when I wrote my first post.
Just look at the two photos: the photo of the cadets (in the OP = from the article
in the Independent) and the Black Power one posted by Kelvin Mace (in reply .7).
There is no comparison. There is not even a close similarity.
I remember seeing the Black Power salute at the Olympics (on TV).
They got out their glove, put it on and raised their arm in a straight salute.
The ladies at West Point have all got bent arms, many not even raised above
their shoulders, in a casual group of friends/comrades.
It isn't surprising that a bunch of bigots saw a photo showing not only "black" people
but "black" women - and successful ones at that - then decided to make a
huge fuss about it. They do that a lot.
It *is* surprising that so many here decided to blindly suck up the bigots' attack
and support it from the "military law" approach without even stopping to look at
the damn photo for long enough to realise what they are really seeing.
Yes, military law about political/social commentary in uniform is very clear.
That still has nothing to do with this photo as the only "social commentary" aspect
is that those black female cadets have won through persevering to the end.
FWIW, the weirdest thing about the whole photo for me (i.e., other than the ridiculous
racist fuss being trumped up about it) is that in those uniforms and with that
background, they look more like Civil War reenactors! (My first impression was
"Why are they wearing Confederate outfits?" Maybe that's the reason why the
bigots are upset?
