I came across a post from a lady on imdb who was discussing about 90210. To those who don't know, this show provides a unique experience behind a black kid who is adopted by a white family. It was an unfortunate event however, when she labeled Dixon as being a "White-Wash Kid." Of course, I responded back in an attempt to correct the errors of her ways, but it got me thinking into discussing these ridiculous terms such as "white wash" and "acting black."
"Acting Black" follows this strange notion that all black people has to act a certain way, anything outside this spectrum is considered "white wash" or "not acting black." What's even worse is that "Acting black" is always accompanied with rather negative stereotypes. He has to wear hip hop clothes, must love rap, hate white people, think the system is trying to keep them down, do horrible in school, and perhaps been in jail a few times. Often when I was living in michigan, I was claimed as acting white solely because I enjoyed Rock n Roll, not just hip hop, and because I wanted to do good in school. For some unexplainable reason, getting an education means you want to be like white people. I could never figure out for the life of me where did they get this rather ridiculous notion. But after a while, I did not care. I wasn't going to fit inside anybody's bubble, I was just going to be me.
The sad notion is the more I became myself, the less black friends I had. It was as if I could not be accepted if didn't fit inside their idea of what a black person is suppose to be. In essence, it's a shame that after all americans of african descent been through to remove labels of the past, that some are now imposing labels on ourselves. Only if we can accept our differences can we move forward towards the next step.
Friday, December 12, 2008
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Double Standards on Both Sides of the Front.
Sorry everyone for the non-activity. Life has just been very busy as of late. I for one would like to give a late congradulations to Senator Obama for becoming president of the US. May he bring great things to this country. With that out of the way, I just wanted to discuss about Double Standards. Double standards is strange exhibited behavior that is not exclusive to any race, gender, etc. Such as lesbian couples being seen on television much more than their male counterparts, as males seem to have a much more difficult time accepting gay partnership than women do.
However, I'll be specifically talking about race in this remark. I was reading an article from the blog racialicious, dedicated towards writers and non-white authors not being seen much. You can locate the article here. http://www.racialicious.com/2008/12/08/on-race-and-ya-lit/
The author goes through this long discussion about the lack of non-caucasian presence within the book community, as most non-white writers are usually seen in the ethnic section. One of the comments give reasons as to why there does not seem to be too many non-caucasian writers. But another person comments stating that these are merely excuses and doesn't justify the lack of writers. She, of course, comment back, saying that to examine the reasons means a possible solution can be developed. Which would be a lot better than just believing that all white people are racist.
Now the strange part from this example is that no one but the originator of the commenter attempt to defend her remark. She was left all alone to respond to this remark in the defence of white people. Everybody was perfectly fine with believing the impression that frankly put, all white people are devils.
Now previously in this blog, they were discussing how Americans of African descent were being blamed for the passage of prop 8 within california, as over 78% of Americans voted for it.
However, they vividly struck against the notion of merely blaming Americans, and instead should focus on the reasons as to why the situation happened. And anyone who rebuked the reasons as merely excuses were falling into the trap. They recently posted a article furthering continuing the discussion. Here is a quote from their piece.
You can find the rest of the article located here:
http://www.racialicious.com/2008/12/09/series-introduction-the-things-we-do-to-each-otherthe-things-we-do-to-ourselves/
Now I definitely agree that examining the reasons to a problem is a much better idea than merely saying something is wrong without a possible solution. My problem is that this type of thinking was only seen of the group in question are African with American Descent. If the group was caucasian, they are merely labled as evil devils out to destroy the world, and a mindset like that would harm race relations, not help it. But than again, racialicious is not meant as a blog to bring racial harmony but merely a blog to discuss racism against non-caucasian Americans. Unfortunately, this type of double standard is seen quite common in certain parts of the community, especially by those who "claim" for equal rights. But this type of behavior is certainly not seen in just one race.
Racialicious also brought up an interesting take on a new video came out called Black College Football, the first ever console game developed by an African descent maker. Racialicious gives remarks that already people start saying where is W.E.T and why it's racist for this game to exist. It is interesting to note that over 95% of video games that come out have caucasian main characters, and less than 50% of video games out possess minority side characters. Unlike television, which continues to make strides in the diversity department, the video game industry is still portrayed as if caucasians are the only race. Yet very rarely does our caucasian brother and sisters stand up and fight against the blatant problems that exist within the gaming community.
Overall, double standards are definitely running rampant in the USA, and until they are acknowledged and examine, they will continue to remain and deprived this great society.
However, I'll be specifically talking about race in this remark. I was reading an article from the blog racialicious, dedicated towards writers and non-white authors not being seen much. You can locate the article here. http://www.racialicious.com/2008/12/08/on-race-and-ya-lit/
The author goes through this long discussion about the lack of non-caucasian presence within the book community, as most non-white writers are usually seen in the ethnic section. One of the comments give reasons as to why there does not seem to be too many non-caucasian writers. But another person comments stating that these are merely excuses and doesn't justify the lack of writers. She, of course, comment back, saying that to examine the reasons means a possible solution can be developed. Which would be a lot better than just believing that all white people are racist.
Now the strange part from this example is that no one but the originator of the commenter attempt to defend her remark. She was left all alone to respond to this remark in the defence of white people. Everybody was perfectly fine with believing the impression that frankly put, all white people are devils.
Now previously in this blog, they were discussing how Americans of African descent were being blamed for the passage of prop 8 within california, as over 78% of Americans voted for it.
However, they vividly struck against the notion of merely blaming Americans, and instead should focus on the reasons as to why the situation happened. And anyone who rebuked the reasons as merely excuses were falling into the trap. They recently posted a article furthering continuing the discussion. Here is a quote from their piece.
"This was drawn into crystal clear focus with the recent passage of Proposition
8 in California. The aftermath of the proposition was an exercise in laying the
blame, with blacks bearing the brunt of the fury. The idea in many sectors was
that black homophobia was to blame for the passage of prop 8, and many
comparisons were drawn to the Civil Rights Movement and how blacks “owed” gays their loyalty - after all, we did just elect Obama. As explored in editorial
after editorial, the narrative eventually emerged that there were too many
assumptions on all sides: that blacks would automatically recognize the movement
for gay rights as kin to the struggle for civil rights; that an exit poll taken
in California could explain the machinations of all of black America; that
counter marketing to the Yes on 8 campaign was done on a limited scale, while
the Yes on 8 campaign had been advertising in targeted media for over a year;
that one group can owe another anything, politically - especially when this
trade off was not discussed before hand by organizers of the respective
communities, nor was there an alliance made where we would be expected to stand
together. (And obviously, basic human decency doesn’t count here - if more
people believed in basic human decency, there would be no need for this site.)"
You can find the rest of the article located here:
http://www.racialicious.com/2008/12/09/series-introduction-the-things-we-do-to-each-otherthe-things-we-do-to-ourselves/
Now I definitely agree that examining the reasons to a problem is a much better idea than merely saying something is wrong without a possible solution. My problem is that this type of thinking was only seen of the group in question are African with American Descent. If the group was caucasian, they are merely labled as evil devils out to destroy the world, and a mindset like that would harm race relations, not help it. But than again, racialicious is not meant as a blog to bring racial harmony but merely a blog to discuss racism against non-caucasian Americans. Unfortunately, this type of double standard is seen quite common in certain parts of the community, especially by those who "claim" for equal rights. But this type of behavior is certainly not seen in just one race.
Racialicious also brought up an interesting take on a new video came out called Black College Football, the first ever console game developed by an African descent maker. Racialicious gives remarks that already people start saying where is W.E.T and why it's racist for this game to exist. It is interesting to note that over 95% of video games that come out have caucasian main characters, and less than 50% of video games out possess minority side characters. Unlike television, which continues to make strides in the diversity department, the video game industry is still portrayed as if caucasians are the only race. Yet very rarely does our caucasian brother and sisters stand up and fight against the blatant problems that exist within the gaming community.
Overall, double standards are definitely running rampant in the USA, and until they are acknowledged and examine, they will continue to remain and deprived this great society.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Can Black People Be Racist?
I do apologize for the long delay in post. I have been rather busy with personal affairs. Today's topic I wish discuss about comes from a person who I've met on a blog. According to her belief, she thinks that it is impossible for black people to be racist. She believes in order for someone to be racist, the person must have institutionalized power to control laws and the fate of other races. Basically put, because white people control the government and has the ability to force laws upon everyone, and because most businesses are own by white people, only they can be racist.
I'm sorry but I completely disagree with this notion. It's almost as if this individual did not know what the full meaning of the word, "racist" was. So to those that may be confused as to what racism is, below is a direct quote from dictionary.com regarding what is racism.
So this individual only mention one segment of the definition racism, and conveniently seem to neglect the other two. So let's break it down a notch. Is it technically possible for a black person to be racist due to segment 2? No, and in that aspect, she is correct. White people make up the large majority of individuals within the government and therefore it would be impossible for other races to create discriminatory laws towards white. But that's the only segment she has right.
Let's analyze segment one.
Now do some black people do this? Of course, the most common revolves around something as simplistic as dancing. How often do you hear some black people mention that white people can't dance. Yet, when a white person does dance rather well, they say, "you dance good for a white girl." This is in essence racism. Because this black person believe that because she is white, she does not have the capability to be able to dance well. So basically, in the form of dancing, this black person think she is superior towards another race (white.)
Of course, there is numerous other examples in which this applies. The title, white people can't jump is itself racist. When some black individuals say that white people can't run, or other such topics, that is racism. Of course, the same goes towards white people who says that black people can't swim, are not good in academics, and other such topics related towards race. But regarding this segment, it is definitely possible for a black person to be racist. But that's not the only segment in which a black person can fall under the category. Let's bring out the third segment.
There was an article from rise-up magazine which also tackle the question can black people be racist. I will post it below.
So there you have it. To me, it sounded like this individual wanted to make it seem that it's okay to hate white people, and not put her on the same level as those who are racist within the white community. It's a sad tale in which her own hatred will more than likely ruin her life.
I'm sorry but I completely disagree with this notion. It's almost as if this individual did not know what the full meaning of the word, "racist" was. So to those that may be confused as to what racism is, below is a direct quote from dictionary.com regarding what is racism.
rac·ism
[rey-siz-uh
1. a belief or doctrine that inherent differences among the various human races determine cultural or individual achievement, usually involving the idea that one's own race is superior and has the right to rule others.
2. a policy, system of government, etc., based upon or fostering such a doctrine; discrimination.
3. hatred or intolerance of another race or other races.
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/racist
So this individual only mention one segment of the definition racism, and conveniently seem to neglect the other two. So let's break it down a notch. Is it technically possible for a black person to be racist due to segment 2? No, and in that aspect, she is correct. White people make up the large majority of individuals within the government and therefore it would be impossible for other races to create discriminatory laws towards white. But that's the only segment she has right.
Let's analyze segment one.
a belief or doctrine that inherent differences among the various human races determine cultural or individual achievement, usually involving the idea that one's own race is superior and has the right to rule others.
Now do some black people do this? Of course, the most common revolves around something as simplistic as dancing. How often do you hear some black people mention that white people can't dance. Yet, when a white person does dance rather well, they say, "you dance good for a white girl." This is in essence racism. Because this black person believe that because she is white, she does not have the capability to be able to dance well. So basically, in the form of dancing, this black person think she is superior towards another race (white.)
Of course, there is numerous other examples in which this applies. The title, white people can't jump is itself racist. When some black individuals say that white people can't run, or other such topics, that is racism. Of course, the same goes towards white people who says that black people can't swim, are not good in academics, and other such topics related towards race. But regarding this segment, it is definitely possible for a black person to be racist. But that's not the only segment in which a black person can fall under the category. Let's bring out the third segment.
hatred or intolerance of another race or other races.Now can black people fall under this category. They certainly can and some actually do. The only thing you have to do is go on youtube and you'll easily find some black individuals spitting hatred towards the white race.
There was an article from rise-up magazine which also tackle the question can black people be racist. I will post it below.
Dear Sticky Wicket,
Is it possible for black people to be racists?Dear Perplexed:
In one of comedian Chris Rock’s stand-up routines, he asks the audience who are the most racist people. When he says that it is old black men, the audience lets out a collective gasp of surprise.For many people, black racism is an oxymoron: It’s impossible for blacks to be racists because racism requires power.
We posed the question to a white female college professor, a black city councilwoman and a black male social activist. All agreed that blacks definitely can be racists.
Anastacia Kurylo, a professor of communication arts at Marymount Manhattan College in New York and author of the report “Understanding the Stereotype as a Complex Communication Tool,” says that the very act of saying that blacks can’t be racist actually reinforces differences. “If we can say a black person can be just as racist as a white person, we’re breaking it down to an individual level and not a group level, and we fight against racism by doing that.”
Ramadhan Washington, a St. Joseph, Mo., social activist, says racism is a universal human weakness. “Yes, black people can be racist,” he says. “If the hatred is directed towards another race it doesn’t matter what race it comes from.”
St. Joseph, Mo., Councilwoman Joyce Starr says racism is a matter of the heart, not of skin color. “I believe we’ve got a long way to go on both sides as far as honest acceptance.”
Research has shown that centuries of oppression and racism directed at African-Americans has resulted in intra-racial prejudice. Project Implicit, a collaborative effort between researchers at Harvard University, the University of Virginia and University of Washington, has found evidence of negative perceptions and attitudes among African-Americans directed at their own race. Using data compiled from the “Racial Implicit Attitude Test” — an attitude test administered nationwide — researchers found that 48.3 percent of blacks showed an anti-black bias.
The fact is that racism exists among blacks — whether it’s channeled inward or outward. Racism is a disease, and no race, ethnic group or nationality is immune to it.
Rev. Jeremiah Wright’s recent comments have sparked a heated dialogue about the current perceptions of racial progress and tolerance in America. How that dialogue will play out remains to be seen. But whether it’s discussed in magazine columns, public forums or amidst pews and pulpits, it’s a conversation we must all be willing to have.
http://www.usariseup.com/article.cfm?articleId=28&issueId=2
So there you have it. To me, it sounded like this individual wanted to make it seem that it's okay to hate white people, and not put her on the same level as those who are racist within the white community. It's a sad tale in which her own hatred will more than likely ruin her life.
Thursday, August 14, 2008
At this time, is it possible to not see a color.
A hot topic I have seen as of late is the notion that individuals do not see a color, but a person. This is used occasionally by some individuals with friends and romantic relationships (IR.) Yet many individuals of color feel offended by the notion that they don't see a color, which usually leads to a confrontation. So in this effort of bridging the gap, I will try my best explain both sides equally so we can get to the root of this issue.
On one side, you have the individuals who claim they do not see a color. The majority of times I have seen this statement made by my Caucasian brothers and sisters so it will be tailored more towards them. Unfortunately, a select few of these individuals make this statement in an attempt to hide their "head in the sand" so to speak. What I am referring to is that a few of those who speak this statement, state this to disregard the white privilege that exist within society. So in essence, by denying their color, they are denying that discrimination can exist. However, I believe this is only a small minority. The majority of those who state they don't see a color is trying to look on the inside of a person, not the outside.
In my opinion, those individuals who attempt to look pass a person's color is remarkably brave, because they are attempting to go against the centuries long social construct of race that plagues the USA and the entire world. This construct has lead to the one drop rule that exist, and the rather ignorant statistic that has plagued the USA such as the IQ of blacks are lower than whites. All of these notions are tied towards the idea of Race and Color. So by looking past that, your only seeing an individual who shares the same characteristics of being a human being. So in my opinion, I find this idea extraordinary and truly respect this idea of thinking.
BUT....
The problem lies in situations that are not within the individuals hands. Even though some people wish to disregard the idea of race, unfortunately, many (and maybe more) do not. An excellent example of this is Barack Obama. As we all know, he is a biracial man. Half black, half white. Yet, he is rarely discussed as biracial but black. When his early debut against Hillary, he was constantly regarded as aiming to be the first black president. This line existed in every article msn (a usually suprisely racial friendly news broadcast) published about Barach Obama for around 4 months. Technically, that statement is incorrect. He would be the first biracial male to be president. But many (especially those with power) seems to equalivate any african features with being black. He even stated when he was younger, he was always associated as being black, not biracial, so he saw himself as such. This problem is quite common within our society today.
(An excellent article dedicated towards this struggle can be found by the race relations magazine Rise Up, which is an excellent and free magazine that comes with numerous newspapers. You can also read their articles online. Here is a link to the article. "Walking a Fine Line"
I for example have 3 grandparents that are Native American, so technically I am mixed. But because I appear mostly of african descent, I will always be labeled as black, even though technically I am not. This does not just exist in the caucasian community though, but in America in general. Many times, I have seen black individuals claim their biracial friends as being black even though their friends did not see it that way. It's a society construct that has shape our minds today.
Another negative that happens when you state you don't see a color is you negate the trials and troubles a Person of Color could go through. PoC go through numerous amount of experience. Some go through very little racism in the US (like myself), while others go through a hefty bit. But by removing their color, you disregard the tribulations he/she might go through due to the fact that they are PoC. So just because you are able to look past a person's skin color, does not mean everybody else has.
So perhaps in the far future, we can be a country where skin color does not matter, where everyone is truly treated equal on all fronts and all of our cultures meshes together to make the American culture. But until the day comes, the struggle for PoC will continue. So it's better to have the best of both worlds. To understand how a person skin color might create a different experience than your own, but not let their skin color get in the way of getting to know them as a person.
On one side, you have the individuals who claim they do not see a color. The majority of times I have seen this statement made by my Caucasian brothers and sisters so it will be tailored more towards them. Unfortunately, a select few of these individuals make this statement in an attempt to hide their "head in the sand" so to speak. What I am referring to is that a few of those who speak this statement, state this to disregard the white privilege that exist within society. So in essence, by denying their color, they are denying that discrimination can exist. However, I believe this is only a small minority. The majority of those who state they don't see a color is trying to look on the inside of a person, not the outside.
In my opinion, those individuals who attempt to look pass a person's color is remarkably brave, because they are attempting to go against the centuries long social construct of race that plagues the USA and the entire world. This construct has lead to the one drop rule that exist, and the rather ignorant statistic that has plagued the USA such as the IQ of blacks are lower than whites. All of these notions are tied towards the idea of Race and Color. So by looking past that, your only seeing an individual who shares the same characteristics of being a human being. So in my opinion, I find this idea extraordinary and truly respect this idea of thinking.
BUT....
The problem lies in situations that are not within the individuals hands. Even though some people wish to disregard the idea of race, unfortunately, many (and maybe more) do not. An excellent example of this is Barack Obama. As we all know, he is a biracial man. Half black, half white. Yet, he is rarely discussed as biracial but black. When his early debut against Hillary, he was constantly regarded as aiming to be the first black president. This line existed in every article msn (a usually suprisely racial friendly news broadcast) published about Barach Obama for around 4 months. Technically, that statement is incorrect. He would be the first biracial male to be president. But many (especially those with power) seems to equalivate any african features with being black. He even stated when he was younger, he was always associated as being black, not biracial, so he saw himself as such. This problem is quite common within our society today.
(An excellent article dedicated towards this struggle can be found by the race relations magazine Rise Up, which is an excellent and free magazine that comes with numerous newspapers. You can also read their articles online. Here is a link to the article. "Walking a Fine Line"
I for example have 3 grandparents that are Native American, so technically I am mixed. But because I appear mostly of african descent, I will always be labeled as black, even though technically I am not. This does not just exist in the caucasian community though, but in America in general. Many times, I have seen black individuals claim their biracial friends as being black even though their friends did not see it that way. It's a society construct that has shape our minds today.
Another negative that happens when you state you don't see a color is you negate the trials and troubles a Person of Color could go through. PoC go through numerous amount of experience. Some go through very little racism in the US (like myself), while others go through a hefty bit. But by removing their color, you disregard the tribulations he/she might go through due to the fact that they are PoC. So just because you are able to look past a person's skin color, does not mean everybody else has.
So perhaps in the far future, we can be a country where skin color does not matter, where everyone is truly treated equal on all fronts and all of our cultures meshes together to make the American culture. But until the day comes, the struggle for PoC will continue. So it's better to have the best of both worlds. To understand how a person skin color might create a different experience than your own, but not let their skin color get in the way of getting to know them as a person.
Saturday, August 9, 2008
Does White Privilege Truly Exist?
An often debatable topic among people of different races is the world White Privilege. White Privilege is essentially known as, if you are white, you are given special privileges that others do not enjoy. Things such as not getting pulled over by the cops as frequently, not being watched at the store, easier to obtain jobs because your white, and many many more. Many Caucasians dispute that, saying they have personally not enjoyed any of the privileges associated with being white. In essence, this is one of the key topics that is usually separate lines of racial divide. I believe this topic is a clear situation of people viewing an perspective solely through their own eyes.
Now, do I believe white privilege exist? Certaintly, but not as strong in some areas as some minorities claim. Due to AA, and just the changing of times in general, it's definitely not common for an individual to be turn down due to his/her race or gender. Does it exist? I believe so, even though it would be hard to gather proof. But I personally believe that for every one company that turns you down because your a minority, especially black or hispanic, there are seven other companies who would be more than willing to give you a chance.
Where I believe white privilege is rather strong is in the media, specifically televison and movies, fashion, and history. It is well known that very little history of minorities are dedicated in public schools. A constant and justified complaiment is the lack of information that is given to children about the history of minorities. Yet very little has been done about it. The majority of people who gather their studies of minorities do so during college in certain college courses. I believe this is partially why black history month was created, to sort of buffer the rather little amount of information we have towards black history. However, black history month was only suppose to be a temporary solution until more history about blacks has been added to school books.
BET was another temporary buffer that was meant to be remove when black individuals were given more prominent and main roles in general television. To this day, there are extremely few roles where a main role in either male or female is an minority within a multi-racial cast. Over 86% of main roles on television with multi-racial cast are filled by whites. Now again, the key statement here is a multi-racial cast. Meaning where there are people of all races but the main actor or actress is an minority. True, there are shows that are dedicated solely towards a minority life such as ugly betty, the bernie mac show. But in shows with different races all together, there is rarely a minority main male or female.
Further proof is by a producer who made the hot television drama called brother's and sisters. He was recently removed from his position as head writer due to conflict of interest with other producers. He originally started as a playwriter until he made it big with his show brother's and sisters. Read what a part of what he had to say among his dismissal.
And of course, you have the quite clear news media bias that only seem to show minorities, especially black individuals in a negative light. Rarely do you see news articles showing black people doing anything good. The majority of articles are either black people doing crime, or pulling the race card against an actual or perceived injustice. In my honest opinion, the media is the strongest area that contains white privilege.
Another very strong area is fashion. I'm not sure if many of my caucasian brothers and sisters heard anything about the doll test that took place not so long ago, where almost all children choose white dolls as good and black dolls as bad. Fashion has always attempted to show as white being the clear choice of beauty. It is this belief as to why lighter skin blacks have an easier chance of making it in the fashion business in comparison to darker skin blacks. Because lighter skin are closer towards the white spectrum than their darker kin.
So there is three prime areas that contain a heavy dose of white privilege. But because it's so enwrap into society, it's hard to take notice of it unless someone thinks outside the box. It is clearly enwrap in our environment all across the USA, and only through awareness will people truly see that.
But, I will say that things has slowly but surely been balancing out. In my previous blog post, I discuss about trixton who was black in 90210. One excellent point is that he is the Main male role for a rich area. Certain shows such as grey anatomy has been applauded for their diversity within the show, and it will only continue to get better. Even with fashion, with tira banks being a role model for women of darker skin to show that you can make it in this business. So I believe overtime, (not sure how long), white privilege will cease to exist, and the media/fashion would truly represent the USA as a melting pot.
Now, do I believe white privilege exist? Certaintly, but not as strong in some areas as some minorities claim. Due to AA, and just the changing of times in general, it's definitely not common for an individual to be turn down due to his/her race or gender. Does it exist? I believe so, even though it would be hard to gather proof. But I personally believe that for every one company that turns you down because your a minority, especially black or hispanic, there are seven other companies who would be more than willing to give you a chance.
Where I believe white privilege is rather strong is in the media, specifically televison and movies, fashion, and history. It is well known that very little history of minorities are dedicated in public schools. A constant and justified complaiment is the lack of information that is given to children about the history of minorities. Yet very little has been done about it. The majority of people who gather their studies of minorities do so during college in certain college courses. I believe this is partially why black history month was created, to sort of buffer the rather little amount of information we have towards black history. However, black history month was only suppose to be a temporary solution until more history about blacks has been added to school books.
BET was another temporary buffer that was meant to be remove when black individuals were given more prominent and main roles in general television. To this day, there are extremely few roles where a main role in either male or female is an minority within a multi-racial cast. Over 86% of main roles on television with multi-racial cast are filled by whites. Now again, the key statement here is a multi-racial cast. Meaning where there are people of all races but the main actor or actress is an minority. True, there are shows that are dedicated solely towards a minority life such as ugly betty, the bernie mac show. But in shows with different races all together, there is rarely a minority main male or female.
Further proof is by a producer who made the hot television drama called brother's and sisters. He was recently removed from his position as head writer due to conflict of interest with other producers. He originally started as a playwriter until he made it big with his show brother's and sisters. Read what a part of what he had to say among his dismissal.
Baitz, an accomplished playwright before trying his hand at creating his own show, says he was "ousted, not fired, an important distinction," in an article he wrote for The Huffington Post. If his article is any indication, he won't be longing for a return to mainstream television anytime soon.
"I can no longer argue for tone and can only watch as the demographic demands that have turned America into an ageist and youth-obsessed nation drives the storylines younger and younger, whiter and whiter, and with less and less reflection of the real America, which is made up, to the sorrow of the research departments, of people over 35 years of age and of many ethnicities and incomes,"
http://www.tv.com/brothers-and-sisters/show/58012/story/10645.html?tag=story_list;title;6
And of course, you have the quite clear news media bias that only seem to show minorities, especially black individuals in a negative light. Rarely do you see news articles showing black people doing anything good. The majority of articles are either black people doing crime, or pulling the race card against an actual or perceived injustice. In my honest opinion, the media is the strongest area that contains white privilege.
Another very strong area is fashion. I'm not sure if many of my caucasian brothers and sisters heard anything about the doll test that took place not so long ago, where almost all children choose white dolls as good and black dolls as bad. Fashion has always attempted to show as white being the clear choice of beauty. It is this belief as to why lighter skin blacks have an easier chance of making it in the fashion business in comparison to darker skin blacks. Because lighter skin are closer towards the white spectrum than their darker kin.
So there is three prime areas that contain a heavy dose of white privilege. But because it's so enwrap into society, it's hard to take notice of it unless someone thinks outside the box. It is clearly enwrap in our environment all across the USA, and only through awareness will people truly see that.
But, I will say that things has slowly but surely been balancing out. In my previous blog post, I discuss about trixton who was black in 90210. One excellent point is that he is the Main male role for a rich area. Certain shows such as grey anatomy has been applauded for their diversity within the show, and it will only continue to get better. Even with fashion, with tira banks being a role model for women of darker skin to show that you can make it in this business. So I believe overtime, (not sure how long), white privilege will cease to exist, and the media/fashion would truly represent the USA as a melting pot.
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Does being from a different race mean you can't understand?
I hear this statement quite often from some people of color and some whites. The constant believe that we all see things through different lenses. That black people and white people view the world in different contact lenses. That white people can never understand what it's like to be black in this world, and that black people can never understand what it's like to be white in this world. Do you all believe this to be true?
I surely don't. History has proven time and time again that even though we might not directly be inflicted by the hurt, we have the compassion for our fellow man/woman to dive into their cause and fight battles together as humans. Quite often you will see some blacks blame whites for slavery, but rarely would you ever see some blacks give credit to the whites who were against slavery. It usually take one of our caucasian brothers or sisters to bring it up, just for it to be acknowledge. True, there were whites who fought in the war for different reasons other than slavery, but that does not mean we should discredit the whites who fought and died bravely along their black brothers so that we can be free.
The same, and to a greater degree comes with the civil rights movement. Whites were willing to be considered traitors by their own race as they were hosed down with their black brothers and sisters. They had the compassion to know that even though the discrimination did not effect them, they wanted to stand up for what was right.
So if some whites could relate to the issues of the past, why is it so improbable that they cannot relate now.
The biggest issue that prevents us from understanding one another is communication, or the lack of it. Often, I have seen sides only wish to talk, and not take the chance to listen to each others perspective. When your only interested in telling your side of the story, than your not open to what can be a different side to the issue. So because of this, you relate to those who only have the same belief as you. In my opinion, this is partially how the racial divide is created. So only when we truly exercise what it really means to communicate can we understand each other even though we are of different "races".
I surely don't. History has proven time and time again that even though we might not directly be inflicted by the hurt, we have the compassion for our fellow man/woman to dive into their cause and fight battles together as humans. Quite often you will see some blacks blame whites for slavery, but rarely would you ever see some blacks give credit to the whites who were against slavery. It usually take one of our caucasian brothers or sisters to bring it up, just for it to be acknowledge. True, there were whites who fought in the war for different reasons other than slavery, but that does not mean we should discredit the whites who fought and died bravely along their black brothers so that we can be free.
The same, and to a greater degree comes with the civil rights movement. Whites were willing to be considered traitors by their own race as they were hosed down with their black brothers and sisters. They had the compassion to know that even though the discrimination did not effect them, they wanted to stand up for what was right.
So if some whites could relate to the issues of the past, why is it so improbable that they cannot relate now.
The biggest issue that prevents us from understanding one another is communication, or the lack of it. Often, I have seen sides only wish to talk, and not take the chance to listen to each others perspective. When your only interested in telling your side of the story, than your not open to what can be a different side to the issue. So because of this, you relate to those who only have the same belief as you. In my opinion, this is partially how the racial divide is created. So only when we truly exercise what it really means to communicate can we understand each other even though we are of different "races".
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
The Token Black Guy in 90210?!
For those who are interested in television drama's, there has been very few shows that has generated as much hype as the new 90210 series. Set to debut on September 2, the show has some rather huge shoes to fill by taking on the title 90210. What's gathering a lot of publicity is the return of older characters, but what's also creating a bit of a buzz is the black adopted child Dixon Wilson played by Tristan Wilds. Tristan has played in earlier shows like the wire and was given praise for his performance. But some in the black community had complaints towards the character as being the "token black guy" in the cast. Some complaints were due to the fact that he was adopted by a white family, instead of being with a black family. Some blame it on the fact that you do not see black characters as main characters on drama, action, or suspense television shows.
From my personal perspective, I'm am definitely interested in Triston's character. I definitely disagree with the "white savior" mentality solely based on the fact that quite a few caucasian parents adopt black children. I knew a co-worker when I was in the USN who was adopted by caucasian parents, and truly saw them as her parents, not her birth parents. So to bring that perspective to television will be new and exciting, as I cannot recall to this day a television show where a caucasian parent had an minority child. What's even more exceptional is that they are truly stepping away from the stereotypical black young male. He's not a thug that speaks ebonics no matter what situation he is and does horrible in school. He's a preppy young male that is a star athelete in lacross. I for one welcome this change as a significant step in the right direction to provide an alternative side to what is shown in the media.
What also makes a first is that Triston is the Main Role/Character in a drama, something rarely (if ever) seen before in a television drama. I believe that this will give him a huge amount of time on the screen and won't make him appear as just a side character.
Lastly, Triston is pulling in fans that usually do not watch these type of shows. Many posts on the IMDB boards state that they are watching the show because of Triston and his character Dixon. The producers definitely took a step in the right direction with this decision.
Overall, I am very excited about this show. If the writing is as good as the older show, than we might have a hit on our hands, and hopefully this will show to other producers that audience of America is perfectly fine with having a minority as one of the star roles in a drama.
From my personal perspective, I'm am definitely interested in Triston's character. I definitely disagree with the "white savior" mentality solely based on the fact that quite a few caucasian parents adopt black children. I knew a co-worker when I was in the USN who was adopted by caucasian parents, and truly saw them as her parents, not her birth parents. So to bring that perspective to television will be new and exciting, as I cannot recall to this day a television show where a caucasian parent had an minority child. What's even more exceptional is that they are truly stepping away from the stereotypical black young male. He's not a thug that speaks ebonics no matter what situation he is and does horrible in school. He's a preppy young male that is a star athelete in lacross. I for one welcome this change as a significant step in the right direction to provide an alternative side to what is shown in the media.
What also makes a first is that Triston is the Main Role/Character in a drama, something rarely (if ever) seen before in a television drama. I believe that this will give him a huge amount of time on the screen and won't make him appear as just a side character.
Lastly, Triston is pulling in fans that usually do not watch these type of shows. Many posts on the IMDB boards state that they are watching the show because of Triston and his character Dixon. The producers definitely took a step in the right direction with this decision.
Overall, I am very excited about this show. If the writing is as good as the older show, than we might have a hit on our hands, and hopefully this will show to other producers that audience of America is perfectly fine with having a minority as one of the star roles in a drama.
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