Accessing package and protected class members

AwtHelper.java

package java.awt

public class AwtHelper {
  public static Component getChild(BorderLayout layout, String key) {
    Component result = null;
    if(key == BorderLayout.NORTH) result = layout.north;
    else if(key == BorderLayout.SOUTH) result = layout.south;
    else if(key == BorderLayout.WEST) result = layout.west;
    else if(key == BorderLayout.EAST) result = layout.east;
    else if(key == BorderLayout.CENTER) result = layout.center;
    return result;
  } 
}