From One Survivor to Another

reblogged: (via)

639 notes

August 23, 2011

thefremen:

ronworkman:

If you have children, take the time to explain to them why things like this, are a complex way of creating contrast and saying nigger without technically doing it.
It isn’t simply the words: Obama’s Hip-Hop BBQ Didn’t Create Jobs that make it racist. Bush’s Country-Western cookout didn’t create jobs isn’t racist. It isn’t 4 black men pictured on the front page of Fox even though people like Tom Hanks were there and could have easily been included in the photo. It isn’t even the article itself. If you read it, it is a nice account of the event aside from an out of nowhere “The White House doesn’t create jobs.” quote in the middle of the article and a really shitty title. It isn’t even this “obama-parties-chris-rock-jay-z-and-whoopi-while-rome-burns” in the URL… actually that is pretty amazing. Am I the only person that caught that?
Take time to explain to a child why the combination and context of these things can create a contrast in the brain of the reader (example). Intentional racism is easy for people to understand but, from my experience it is the unintentional and subliminal racism that is confusing for many people. Comments like “She’s pretty for a black girl” or when a security guard might not even be aware that he stares at a black teenager for even a second longer than a white teenager in a store without reason. Articles like this can further those problems.
Be honest with them and help them to understand that it is a responsibility for them to take them time to recognize this, explain this to others and refuse to allow it.
Since you have them there, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to explain to them why this is horrible journalism even if it had no racial context at all.

All of this. This reminds me: I never thought of this before but a non-white woman I know who is a professional dancer said that she was told by an instructor “You know, you’ll never *just* be a dancer, regardless of the company you’ll always have be a ______ dancer.”.

wow at the ridiculousness of that URL. I thought the op was just kidding— nope.

ronworkman:

If you have children, take the time to explain to them why things like this, are a complex way of creating contrast and saying nigger without technically doing it.

It isn’t simply the words: Obama’s Hip-Hop BBQ Didn’t Create Jobs that make it racist. Bush’s Country-Western cookout didn’t create jobs isn’t racist. It isn’t 4 black men pictured on the front page of Fox even though people like Tom Hanks were there and could have easily been included in the photo. It isn’t even the article itself. If you read it, it is a nice account of the event aside from an out of nowhere “The White House doesn’t create jobs.” quote in the middle of the article and a really shitty title. It isn’t even this “obama-parties-chris-rock-jay-z-and-whoopi-while-rome-burns” in the URL… actually that is pretty amazing. Am I the only person that caught that?

Take time to explain to a child why the combination and context of these things can create a contrast in the brain of the reader (example). Intentional racism is easy for people to understand but, from my experience it is the unintentional and subliminal racism that is confusing for many people. Comments like “She’s pretty for a black girl” or when a security guard might not even be aware that he stares at a black teenager for even a second longer than a white teenager in a store without reason. Articles like this can further those problems.

Be honest with them and help them to understand that it is a responsibility for them to take them time to recognize this, explain this to others and refuse to allow it.

Since you have them there, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to explain to them why this is horrible journalism even if it had no racial context at all.

All of this. This reminds me: I never thought of this before but a non-white woman I know who is a professional dancer said that she was told by an instructor “You know, you’ll never *just* be a dancer, regardless of the company you’ll always have be a ______ dancer.”.