This photo shows one of the largest islamic mosques in America situated in Dearborn,MI. I chose this as my positive image of America because many people believe America to be a "christian" nation but miss out on the fact that the country was set up to be free to all faiths and race, unlike many other countires such as England where we still have the Church of England as our official state religion. Eventhough there has been alot of stigma attached to islam since 9/11, muslims have as much right to be in America as Jews, Buddhists, Rastafarians etc.
My negative image of America is a child in a KKK robe, this represents the still ever present racial tension and hatred in many areas of the country, although America has come along way from the 1950's and even now with a mixed race president there are still people who obviously feel America should be a "white" country and with images like the above bringing up children in these groups and brainwashing them with these ideas it looks asthough there is still long way to go before this is erradicated (maybe it never will be).
I have chosen this picture of a NFL game as a positive image for America because to me it symbolises team work and effort put in by all the people involved including the fans. For many people across the US football is not just a game but it is a major event for friends and family to come together to celebrate a sport which is played an honoured by hundreds of people nation wide, this boosts team spirits and morale. The NFL also grants some students scholarship programmes for colleges and they also have a grant programme whereby they give schools and colleges sufficient funds for them to buy sports equipment. Many NFL players give back to their communities which acts as a incentive to get children off the streets and interested in something more productive such as sports. Sports promotes team work, teaches responsibility and discipline.
I have chosen this image to represent America in a negative way because of the affect of gang violence on day to day life of some communities. There are approximately 30,000 gangs in the US with approximately 800,000 members which have an impact on over 2,500 communities. A 2006 survey showed that 40% of gang members were children an 10% of gang members were female. Many people are forced to join gangs and violence will be used to make individuals to become members by telling them they must “kill or be killed”. Most gangs also live by “blood in, blood out” meaning that you are a member for life. Gang violence is a growing threat to society, which is getting harder for the law to control. Gang violence has struck fear into hundreds of people and their communities. This is negative for America as it is giving some area's within the US a bad reputation. 
