
 We are currently living in a world full of violence and conflict, and it is often easy to overlook the heartbreaking effects that wars have on the children living through them. In most of today’s news reports, children are often shown in the middle of the crossfire. They are being injured or witnessing death. Young children are having to cope with living in the heart of a war. Photographer Fernando Vergaro captured this very idea of children amidst war in his photograph of a young girl at a parade celebrating Colombia’s independence. While this photograph is not taken directly in the middle of a war-zone, it does enable us to see the dramatic influence that wars have on young children. Through the photographer’s use of dark and light contrasting colors, selective focus, and the facial expression of the little girl, we are able to see the stain that war has on a child’s innocence and how de-sensitizing war can become to children.

The contrasting colors of the photograph enable us as viewers to see the powerful inconsistency of a child’s innocence in the heart of a war. In the background of the photograph, the soldiers are wearing dark olive uniforms with their faces painted black and green. They are holding guns, and their facial expressions are showing nearly no emotion. These darker colors often symbolize emotions of gloom, evil, and even malice, suggesting that with war comes sadness and despair. Seeing these colors presents the viewer with feelings of distress and depression, casting a dark shadow on today’s war-torn world. Violence in wars is occurring nearly everywhere. It is even hidden in the background when nobody is watching. This is a very daunting thought, as it seems the world can never escape from fighting. These darker, shadowy colors in the background are also dramatically conflicting with the colors of the young girl’s uniform, as she is dressed in a military uniform that is all white. Her uniform is also decorated with bright, colorful badges. The child’s white clothing is representative of her purity and innocence. Although it is a military uniform, she seems friendly and gentle. Our eyes are drawn to her because the colors of her badges are so bright and vivid. It seems as though her military uniform and the color white are at odds with each other. It is important to notice that the child is wearing a uniform not worn in actual battle, whereas the militants in the background are dressed for combat. By making this distinction, we can still see the child as pure even though she is wearing a military unform.  Because the background colors and the colors of the girl are so different, it forces the viewer to constantly look back and forth from the background to the young girl in the middle. This creates tension within the image, as the young girl is so vibrant and the soldiers are so dim and gloomy. This tension is again echoing the stain that war has on children and their purity. The contrasting colors serve as a symbol for this stain. The darker ideas of death and destruction stain a child’s purity just as the child in the picture is being shadowed by the soldiers in the back. Although the soldiers are not directly next to her, we can still clearly see them lurking in the background. 

The child’s innocence is seen through these contrasting colors in the photograph, and when you compare the colors the young girl appears to be displaced in the photo. Should she be there? Should she be exposed to guns and violence at such a young age? While this young girl is simply at a parade, she still stands as a representation for all the children around the world who are constantly being exposed to fighting and warfare. Children are witnessing death and destruction, and it is stripping away their innocence. They are experiencing trauma very early on in life, forcing them to grow up way earlier than they should have to. Because of this, war becomes routine for many children. Constantly witnessing violence makes it easier for them to become used to it. They may even choose to act out violently because war is all they have ever known, and they do not know any better. 

Secondly, the photographer’s deliberate choice to use a shadow depth of field helps to emphasize the child’s displacement in the photo. The entire background is blurry and fuzzy, which immediately draws the viewer’s eye towards the young girl. Because of this, we know that the child is meant to be the main concentration of the photograph. We are unable to decipher any real details from the background behind her. The main things we see are the dark colors, and we can only really see the main features of the soldiers. Also, the soldier’s bodies seem to almost flow together; whereas, the young girl’s appearance is very vivid, and we can see every little detail about her. We can see that her gloves are too big. We can see the glossiness of her belt and the brightness of her badges. All of these choices are meant to draw our focus towards the child. The focus could have been put on the soldier’s guns or the war paint on their faces; however, placing the emphasis on the child and only the child forces us to think about her purpose in the photograph. What is a young child’s purpose in a war? Of course, children do not serve a purpose in the middle of a war. It is not their choice to be there, but they not belong in the middle of such violence and devastation. They do not deserve to have their childhoods stripped away.  While we do not always think about the children living through wars, they are still constantly being displaced by war violence. It is often hard to think about children who have dealt with the atrocities that come with war, but that does not mean that they should be forgotten or tossed aside. 

Lastly, the joyous facial expression of the young girl contrasted with the somber faces of the soldiers symbolizes the innocence of children in war and how desensitized they can become after experiencing war. The young girl’s smiling face is in the very center of the photo, and she is smiling directly at the camera. From her joyous expression, we can tell that she is very happy. She is cheerful, of course, because she is at a parade; however, her expression is a symbol for all of the children around the world who are experiencing war. This young girl’s face is representative of the distressing and complicated emotions children are faced with when they 

become exposed to war violence. Children are experiencing so much hardship at such a young age that the world around them becomes confusing. Think about how confusing it is for a child to witness their loved ones die in the middle of war. Think about how difficult it must be for a child to witness the destruction of their home. They are children, and they deserve to laugh and smile just as this little girl is doing in the photograph. Her joyous expression also makes us think of how children are meant to be joyous and young. Children are going to act like children. They are still going to be cheerful and playful because they do not fully understand what is going on around them. Children will continue to smile through the pain because it is all they have ever known, just as the young child is smiling in the photograph. Children often do not know any differently because they have grown up their entire lives in a war setting. This causes them to become desensitized to the violence. Although they become used to it, it can still be emotionally scarring, and no child should ever have to go through so much suffering. 

Children are being affected by war violence at this very moment. Because war is all around the world, it is important to know how war violence is affecting young children and what we can do as people moving forward. Fernando Vergaro’s photo captures the innocence and hardships that a single child faces during war.  Although this photo was taken at a parade, the little girl is still surrounded by violent symbols such as guns and soldiers. Because children are growing up seeing these types of things, they may begin to think violence and war is the only way to solve issues. This is a problem, as violence should never be seen as the first point of action. Even children miles away from a war are being indirectly affected. Such atrocities are broadcasted everyday on the news, and children are often exposed to seeing violence. By looking at this photograph, we should be inspired to think more about the children facing war violence every single day of their lives. Hopefully then we can become more aware of this and address this issue of more directly, as no child should ever have to live through the traumas and sufferings that come with war.
