Thursday, February 25, 2010

ok computer

So I started this blog to start a dialogue about prejudice and its origins. Most of the things I wrote are opinion-based, but I have tried to do research to stay informed. Please be respectful when commenting on this blog, and have an open mind. I tried to have an open mind, but also make persuasive arguments. Also, this is journal-style, so I wrote each entry in about 10 minutes, so forgive poor grammar. I should probably do better fact checking, so don't be afraid to enlighten me.

I tried to pay attention to the subtle things in media that help to shape prejudice or reflect a focus on white culture today. One thing I noticed was the fact that pretty, white, rich girl Natalie Holloway was still in the news. While her story is tragic, the fact that it gets press time over the hundreds of missing native women in British Columbia, the host of the Olympics, is notable. Also is the fact that the coverage of the disaster in Haiti seems to skirt over and ignore the colonialist policies and even more recent but just as detrimental, “free trade” policies that have helped make Haiti the poorest nation in the Western hemisphere. I think the coverage of the Haitian disaster is inherently racist, because it depicts a country that was not able to help itself strength its society, and was already vulnerable when the disaster struck, rather than a country crippled by policies of rich, white nations. I also noted a news story on the (white) victims of a train crash in Florida. It made a point of mentioning that they were pretty. This seemed interesting because it seemed to show that ugly victims would not have been as tragic. Another thing I found interesting was the constant news coverage and reaction of police to a missing American actor in Vancouver. While sad, this seems to directly contrast the coverage and reaction to missing sex workers in the city, who mostly were native and numbered 500. I wouldn’t be aware of these missing women if it weren’t for a class in college. Also, the police have diverted numerous resources to finding a missing actor, but didn’t seem to care about the missing women, until they uncovered a mass grave at a white man’s home.

1 comment:

  1. I agree with you 100% on the Natalie Holloway situation. What happened to her IS awful but I believe a lot of the coverage she gets wouldn’t be there had she been unattractive or non-white.

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