I know, I know. Reality TV's bad...
Alright, I'm gonna try and grapple with a topic I am no where near qualified to engage. But Hell, this is live journal, let's cause some damage.
I watched the premier of FX's reality show Black White, where they take a black family, a white family, and an army of makeup artists - then start swapping races around. Of course this has some major potential for disaster, but I wanted to give the series a chance before I completely berated it.
First off, the superficial. I loved the makeup they put on the little white girl to change her race around. She became exponentially hotter.
Moving on, it was interesting to see the dynamics of the families they chose. The white father seems to reject the idea that racism is at all prevalent in USA today, insisting that if you don't look for trouble it won't find you. The white mother exudes an obnoxious naivety, regularly spouting off typical stereotypes - but only the "nice" ones. The daughter has a good head on her shoulders. She seems to be the only one concerned about building up friendships while "in the black," and worries about the possible damage that may be caused when it is revealed that she's a white girl in black makeup. She also seems genuinely interested in immersing herself in the new culture, and seems to have the most open mind of the group.
The black father is the most interesting character to me. He assimilates quickly and easily into white culture, picking up a job at a sports bar in a white neighborhood. He uses every white stereotype to his advantage, and becomes quite popular at the golf course as a result. His wife and son haven't been featured enough for me to really form an opinion about them yet.
There was one scene worth noting. The white father in black makeup was walking down the street with the black father all-natural. They had just finished butting heads over the existence of small bits of racism that can be seen all around during day to day life, and each was out to make a point. During their walk, a mother edged her children out of their way. The black father took this as a sign that she was frightened, while the white one said "this isn't anything new, people get out of each other's way!" They continue down, and the white father looks a white woman dead in the eye, smiles, and greats her. She responds in kind, and he points this out to show that not every white person is terrified of black strangers.
What's frightening to me is that I was actually siding with the white guy in this situation. I hate that, because I have seen the horrible racism that still exists today. Hell, I see the racism in myself, when I have those instances of judgment before my rational mind can kick in. It's everywhere, it's ugly, and I hate it when someone can't see that its there. Yet, if you're looking for this wretched thing, you're also likely to find it in innocuous places. Someone dodging you on the sidewalk might just be getting out of your way, that salesman might just be coming over to give you service instead of sizing you up.
The reason I bring this all up is because I fear that my perspective is skewed. I mean, just look at my friend's list. 20/22 people are lily white. I haven't had a whole lot of multi-cultural exposure, and I fear its affected my judgment quite a bit. I just want to get your guy's opinions and experiences. What kind of racism do you see around you today? Where is it happening? Why?
I watched the premier of FX's reality show Black White, where they take a black family, a white family, and an army of makeup artists - then start swapping races around. Of course this has some major potential for disaster, but I wanted to give the series a chance before I completely berated it.
First off, the superficial. I loved the makeup they put on the little white girl to change her race around. She became exponentially hotter.
Moving on, it was interesting to see the dynamics of the families they chose. The white father seems to reject the idea that racism is at all prevalent in USA today, insisting that if you don't look for trouble it won't find you. The white mother exudes an obnoxious naivety, regularly spouting off typical stereotypes - but only the "nice" ones. The daughter has a good head on her shoulders. She seems to be the only one concerned about building up friendships while "in the black," and worries about the possible damage that may be caused when it is revealed that she's a white girl in black makeup. She also seems genuinely interested in immersing herself in the new culture, and seems to have the most open mind of the group.
The black father is the most interesting character to me. He assimilates quickly and easily into white culture, picking up a job at a sports bar in a white neighborhood. He uses every white stereotype to his advantage, and becomes quite popular at the golf course as a result. His wife and son haven't been featured enough for me to really form an opinion about them yet.
There was one scene worth noting. The white father in black makeup was walking down the street with the black father all-natural. They had just finished butting heads over the existence of small bits of racism that can be seen all around during day to day life, and each was out to make a point. During their walk, a mother edged her children out of their way. The black father took this as a sign that she was frightened, while the white one said "this isn't anything new, people get out of each other's way!" They continue down, and the white father looks a white woman dead in the eye, smiles, and greats her. She responds in kind, and he points this out to show that not every white person is terrified of black strangers.
What's frightening to me is that I was actually siding with the white guy in this situation. I hate that, because I have seen the horrible racism that still exists today. Hell, I see the racism in myself, when I have those instances of judgment before my rational mind can kick in. It's everywhere, it's ugly, and I hate it when someone can't see that its there. Yet, if you're looking for this wretched thing, you're also likely to find it in innocuous places. Someone dodging you on the sidewalk might just be getting out of your way, that salesman might just be coming over to give you service instead of sizing you up.
The reason I bring this all up is because I fear that my perspective is skewed. I mean, just look at my friend's list. 20/22 people are lily white. I haven't had a whole lot of multi-cultural exposure, and I fear its affected my judgment quite a bit. I just want to get your guy's opinions and experiences. What kind of racism do you see around you today? Where is it happening? Why?