Was Police Brutality Actually The Meaning of The Statue?

In the podcast, “The Foot Solider” by Malcom Gladwell the civil rights act is discussed and Birmingham’s events are mentioned. What was mainly discussed was a sculpture made by Ronald S McDowell. It was called Foot Solider because that was the term used who marched in Martin Luther King’s Army. It was shared that Stevie Wonder cut his hand on the sculpture because the artist didn’t smooth out the sculpture when he created it with bronze. Haze said that cops were never like and the cops did not like the black people. In 1953 there were nonviolent protests that occurred around Kelly Engram park. The protests were supposedly getting out of hands and Dick Middleton was a member of the Canine unit within the police force. Supposedly the Sheriff couldn’t get enough of the protest and so he called Dick Middleton and had him bring all the Canines. There was a No Man’s Land and a fence that separated the police and the black protestors. When the photo was taken a black protestor supposedly ran around the fence and Dick Middleton’s German shepherd leaped at the protestor who then was considered a foot solider. The story got complicated when Walter Gadston was interviewed about how he got involved with the Civil Rights Movement.  Gadston was actually the person who was allegedly attacked. The reason it got complicated was because Walter Gadston was asked why he was a foot solider. Gadston then did said he was not even a foot solider. He then gave an explanation as to why he was not a foot solider which was surprising to the interviewer. He said that on the day of the protest he was at school and an acquaintance of his said that Martin Luther King was in town that day protesting and Gadston wanted to see him. He then skipped school and went to the Kelly Engram Park. He said on his way to the park the protestors were coming towards him and he wanted to get out of there way so he walked off to the side and past a gate. When he went past the gate he was grabbed by Dick Middleton the police officer and as he was getting yanked towards the officer the police dog Leo bit him so he threw out his leg. What Walter Gadston had described then became a clear image once you look back at the sculpture. Leo was lunging and Gadston and Middleton were startled. The police officer was actually restraining the dog and his arm is flexed and his other arm was on him and just touched him. Gadston didn’t think he was part of police brutality and he was surprised that he got such a big reaction out of the wrong story from the movement. I feel like this is a great example of don’t judge a book by its cover. The solution would be to hear Gadstons story before seeing the sculpture, or to take down the sculpture completely.