by Kathleen Cross | Oct 31, 2011 | "race", activists, education, identity |
Fed up with the annual parade of white folks in blackface, “Indian squaws,” and other culturally insensitive Halloween costumes on their campus, a group of students at Ohio University decided to do something about it.
Members of the campus club STARS (Students Teaching Against Racism) created a poster series with the theme “We’re A Culture, Not A Costume,” featuring Halloween revelers dressed in costumes STARS members consider sterotypical and offensive.
The group says the intention of the posters is to:
“Educate and facilitate discussion about racism and to promote racial harmony and to create a safe, non-threatening environment to allow participants to feel comfortable to express their feelings.”
The campaign has definitely incited dialogue, though some of what is being posted on the Internet is not fit to be printed here. Melissa, who blogged about the poster campaign at her website Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, had to disable her comments due to the volume of racist remarks she received.
Arizona University student, Kristine Bui, wrote this about the posters in her school’s paper:
“It’s hard to explain exactly what is so wrong about being a geisha or a sheik for Halloween. It’s unsettling. It’s a feeling I’ve always struggled to articulate — a discomfort that sort of just sits in the place between your heart and your stomach, quietly nagging. It’s a sense of being wronged without knowing exactly what was done to you.
“People who think racism is dead think so because they don’t see active discrimination. They think, ‘But minorities are allowed to do everything I’m allowed to do, so where’s the harm?’ STARS’ poster campaign calls attention to another problem: Minorities are often made into caricatures … As a minority, you’re a character, not a person. People dress up as you on Halloween. On TV, you’re the token black guy, easily replaced by some other black guy after one season.
“Racism is so much stealthier now. It doesn’t announce itself, and it’s complicated.”
STARS President ‘Sarah’ recently posted this update on her Tumbler page:
POSTER CAMPAIGN UPDATE:
Any questions about the posters can be sent to [email protected]. We are so proud of all the support but it’s overwhelming; We have less than 10 members in our group. lol We ask that you do not personally email any of the exec’s or message their personal tumblrs. Thank you guys so much for the love! The purpose was to educate and create dialogue and it did 🙂 We have a meeting with a lawyer on Monday so we can protect our posters and the posters will be all over Ohio University’s campus this week! Again, thanks for the support and have a happy Halloween!
Best, Students Teaching About Racism in Society (STARS) at Ohio University Executive board
Although I’ve never been one to wear ethnically stereotypical or disrespectful costumes, I am definitely thinking more deeply about this issue. These posters have inspired me to take a mental inventory of my own Halloween costume choices over the years, and I don’t think a casual walk through the costume store will ever be the same.
Congratulations on all your hard work STARS. You’ve got people thinking, talking, and costume changing.
by Kathleen Cross | Oct 26, 2011 | authors, health, michelle obama |
I don’t know if the first lady of the United States named her book “American Grown” with the intention of b***h slapping those who’ve accused her over the years of being unpatriotic (the same ones who accused her husband of being a non-American.)
But, ahem, take that.
Though the title could easily be a tongue-in-cheek reference to Michelle Obama’s American roots, the book is actually about roots of another kind–the ones you find beneath the dirt in the White House garden.
“American Grown: How the White House Kitchen Garden Inspires Families, Schools, and Communities aims to explore “how increased access to healthy, affordable food can promote better eating habits and improve the health of families and communities across America,” according to a press release issued Monday by the Crown Publishing Group.
“Mrs. Obama will describe how her daughters Sasha and Malia were catalysts for change in her own family’s eating behavior, which inspired Mrs. Obama to plant an edible garden on the South Lawn — the first since Eleanor Roosevelt’s ‘Victory Garden,’ planted during World War II.”
The first lady did not receive an advance for the book and all proceeds will be donated to charity, the statement says. Random House Inc., Crown Publishing Group’s parent, will also make a donation of the books sales to a charity.
American Grown will be on sale nationwide starting April 10, 2012.
by Kathleen Cross | Oct 26, 2011 | stereotypes |
Fed up with the annual parade of white folks in blackface, “Indian squaws,” and other culturally insensitive Halloween costumes on their campus, a group of students at Ohio University decided to do something about it.
Members of the campus club STARS (Students Teaching Against Racism) created a poster series with the theme “We’re A Culture, Not A Costume,” featuring Halloween revelers dressed in costumes STARS members consider sterotypical and offensive.
The group says the intention of the posters is to:
“Educate and facilitate discussion about racism and to promote racial harmony and to create a safe, non-threatening environment to allow participants to feel comfortable to express their feelings.”
The campaign has definitely incited dialogue, though some of what is being posted on the Internet is not fit to be printed here. Melissa, who blogged about the poster campaign at her website Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, had to disable her comments due to the volume of racist remarks she received.
Arizona University student, Kristine Bui, wrote this about the posters in her school’s paper:
“It’s hard to explain exactly what is so wrong about being a geisha or a sheik for Halloween. It’s unsettling. It’s a feeling I’ve always struggled to articulate — a discomfort that sort of just sits in the place between your heart and your stomach, quietly nagging. It’s a sense of being wronged without knowing exactly what was done to you.
“People who think racism is dead think so because they don’t see active discrimination. They think, ‘But minorities are allowed to do everything I’m allowed to do, so where’s the harm?’ STARS’ poster campaign calls attention to another problem: Minorities are often made into caricatures … As a minority, you’re a character, not a person. People dress up as you on Halloween. On TV, you’re the token black guy, easily replaced by some other black guy after one season.
“Racism is so much stealthier now. It doesn’t announce itself, and it’s complicated.”
STARS President ‘Sarah’ recently posted this update on her Tumbler page:
POSTER CAMPAIGN UPDATE:
Any questions about the posters can be sent to [email protected]. We are so proud of all the support but it’s overwhelming; We have less than 10 members in our group. lol We ask that you do not personally email any of the exec’s or message their personal tumblrs. Thank you guys so much for the love! The purpose was to educate and create dialogue and it did 🙂 We have a meeting with a lawyer on Monday so we can protect our posters and the posters will be all over Ohio University’s campus this week! Again, thanks for the support and have a happy Halloween!
Best, Students Teaching About Racism in Society (STARS) at Ohio University Executive board
Although I’ve never been one to wear ethnically stereotypical or disrespectful costumes, I am definitely thinking more deeply about this issue. These posters have inspired me to take a mental inventory of my own Halloween costume choices over the years, and I don’t think a casual walk through the costume store will ever be the same.
Congratulations on all your hard work STARS. You’ve got people thinking, talking, and costume changing.
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