West Point is investigating this photo of black female cadets

West Point is investigating this photo
(Image credit: Twitter/Chicago Tribune)

The U.S. Military Academy has launched an investigation into a photo that's been circulating online of 16 black female cadets raising their fists, spokesman Lt. Col. Christopher Kasker said Saturday.

"For them it's not a sign of allegiance to a movement, it's a sign that means unity and pride and sisterhood," said Mary Tobin, a 2003 West Point graduate and a mentor who has talked to the cadets about their photo. "That fist to them meant you and your sisters did what only a few people, male or female, have ever done in this country."

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Julie Kliegman

Julie Kliegman is a freelance writer based in New York. Her work has appeared in BuzzFeed, Vox, Mental Floss, Paste, the Tampa Bay Times and PolitiFact. Her cats can do somersaults.