What Happened in Ferguson

Lately, it seems that all that's it the news is what happened in Ferguson- who's right, who's wrong, and now, what to do to change the law enforcement system in America today. A black teenager, Mike Brown, was shot and killed by a white police officer, Darren Wilson, who was not indicted. Should Officer Wilson have been indicted? I don't feel it's my place to voice my opinion; I simply don't know enough about what happened. However, I do realize that something needs to be done about the law enforcement system in our country.

In the above image, the number of civilians shot and killed by police officers is shown. Alarming, right? 404 civilians in the United States, as opposed to 6 in Australia, 6 in Germany, and 2 in England and Whales. Why do American police officers kill so many more people than other nations? (image and statistics from Business Insider.)

Ladd Everitt from the Washington-based advocacy organization, calls the issue of police violence in America "a product of the continuing arms race between law enforcement and civilians that has been going on for decades." He goes on to discuss why this number is so high in the U.S.: the accessibility of powerful firearms to the general public in our country is alarming, and constantly growing. Police have "legitimate fears" for their lives, as they face civilians with weapons as powerful as their own on a daily basis. The number of police shootings will inevitably continue to increase if nothing is done. How do we, as Americans, change the system that created this problem? How will we decrease the violence that is constantly becoming more of a threat to our country's wellbeing? 

Step Aside, Barbie

This past week, the internet has gone crazy over Nickolay Lamm's release of her "real-life Barbie doll," a doll similar to the famous "Barbie," but with a normal waist size, normal height, regular feet and hands, and brown hair. The doll even comes with accessories: stick-on cuts, cellulite, stretch-marks, or acne. This doll, named the "Lammily Doll" after the creator's last name, will help the young girls playing with the doll create realistic expectations for and images of their bodies.

The purpose of the Lammily doll is to show young girls what "normal" looks like. The average weight of an American woman is 166.2 pounds, and the average waist size 37.5 inches. Barbie, however, supports a 16-inch waist, and, because of her proportions, would be unable to lift her head, have to walk on all fours, and would have room for only half of her intenstines. In a society where children want to look like the dolls they play with (role models), this completely unrealistic doll creates even more unrealistic expectations for the young women in America today. The Lammily Doll has done the complete opposite: created a role model for young women whose body is attainable, admirable, and normal. In the words of the doll's creator, "reality is cool."

Watch how American children reacted to the doll Here.

Barbie

               Lammily Doll

The Sheep are Marching

America values success. An adult's value is measured by where they live, what car they drive, and what clothes they wear, whereas the worth of high school students is measured by their grade point average, ACT and SAT scores, how many extracurriculars they take part in, and, ultimitely, what college they attend. Dr. Nussbaum, author of "American Cultural," deems success the "highest value in American life."

What does America's obsession with success say about our society as a whole? Why can't we judge others based on their personality, values such as kindness, compassion, and hard work? This drive for success has caused many problems for our society. For one, high school students are under more stress than ever before.

According to the American Psychological Association, "30 percent of teens reported feeling sad or depressed because of stress and 31 percent felt overwhelmed. Another 36 percent said that stress makes them tired and 23 percent said they've skipped meals because of it." Teenagers are so concerned with doing well, that it actually affects their mental health. Skipping meals and sleep because of school? And how many of us have stayed home on a Friday or Saturday night just to study? I know I have- a lot.

This stress is because of the overwheming pressure we put on ourselves as Americans to become successful adults. We as teenagers are so afraid for our future, that we let society push us around. In the words of William Deresiewicz, author of "The Disadvantages of an Elite Education," we are "excellent sheep," trained to do well in school and study hard. We are marching coopertively towards the country's best universities, prepared to make a career, not a mind. And if we don't succeed, if we don't become rich or important or what have you, for whatever reason, we feel like failures. If we don't end up above average, we feel like failures. Are we failures?

"No More Fantasy Breasts"

Last week, 29-year-old actress Keira Knightly made headlines after posing nude. Her one condition: no photo-shop. Knightly's reasoning for this rule is simple: "it does feel important to say it really doesn't matter what shape you are." Why can't American media accept this? It would make women feel a whole lot better about themselves. 

We all know that photos in the media are altered- a lot- so why do we keep striving to achieve this image of a "perfect woman"?  Because of what we see in the media. Whether we know it or not, the images that we see every day, whether it be in magazines, commercials, billboards, or advertisements, affect the way we see ourselves. A lot.

The media and the heavy editing that goes into the photos we see have a clear negative impact on the self-esteem of women in particular. A study by the "Dove Campaign for Real Beauty" found that only 2% of women find themselves beautiful. Additionally, 33% of women feel that they are striving to obtain a body image that is impossible. Self-esteem is becoming an increasingly more prevalent issue in the United States. America needs to stop romanticizing unnatural, unhealthy, and unattainable images of woman and instead focus on natural beauty and healthy body types.

Victoria's Secret "Love My Body" Campaign

Dove's "Real Beauty" Campaign

Above are images from Dove's "Real Beauty" Campaign and Victoria's Secret's "Love My Body" Campaign. Which image to you feel better about? Think about how the media affects you and how you view yourself. 

Keira Knightly, the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty, and many other celebrities and brands are showing women that it is okay to feel comfortable in your own skin, that you should feel comfortable in your own skin. I hope to see other individuals and organizations jump on this trend.

Haiti: I Promise It's Pretty

Haiti is often thought of as a sad country of extreme poverty and buildings so destroyed they've become inhabitable. While these issues are real and important, that's not all that Haiti has to offer. Paola Mathé, a native Haitian, uses her Instagram account, @findingpaola, to reshape the way Americans view the beautiful country. (A great, positive way to use social media!) In her words, "I have the opportunity and the voice to show what Haiti is also about. It's not just about extreme poverty, which we're also trying to fight and help -- but at the same time, it's a beautiful place." 

Americans truly view Haiti as a horrible place, a country they never want to go to. In an article from Gadling, Port Au Prince (Haiti's capital) was ranked #3 on a list of the "Top 10 Places You Do Not Want to Visit in 2012." #3! The author states that "It is the kind of place where relief workers are swallowed whole by the earth." This doesn't make me want to go down there and help, which is exactly what we as Americans should have been doing in the months and years following the 2010 earthquake. Maybe if more Americans had gone to Haiti to help, it wouldn't have been on this list. 

Haiti has seen so many recent devastations to its land, government, economy, etc., and has made such a strong recovery in recent years, yet outsiders still view the country with such a negative outlook. Perhaps we should look at things a little differently: The 2010 earthquake in Port Au Prince killed 300,000, left 3 million without homes, food, or water, and destroyed 30% of the affected area's capital. 13 billion dollars in damage! Since the disaster, 97% of the rubble has been remover. Additionally, Haiti has seen a recent growth in GDP, a reduction in cholera cases, and the addition of many more health centers across the country. So why do we still view the country as a bad place to vacation? 

I've been to Haiti twice- in the mountains of Kenscoff and Lamardelle, and to the capital, and I promise it's a nice place. The way we view the country needs to change.

A personal photo: Kenscoff, Haiti

The American Dream: Money

The American Dream: nice car, big house, brand-name clothes and shoes, exotic vacations. Why not simply being able to live comfortably, happily, being satisfied with what you have?  

Money and happiness have a clear, evident relationship. Economist Justin Wolfers from the University of Michigan has concluded from his studies that "Wealthier people are happier than poor people. Wealthier countries are happier than poor countries." In my opinion, this issue is much more complicated than researchers make it seem. 

What Americans don't realize is that there is an end to the connection between money and happiness. Research from psychologists and economists have found that "the psychological benefits of wealth seem to stop accruing once people reach an income of about $75,000 a year." Once one is able to

meet the standards of living, at about $75,000 a year, the relationship between money and happiness levels out. This is true today, even with the rise in the cost of living. As you can see on the graph, the curve levels out at $75,000. More money only means more happiness until one is able to live comfortably, and then more money doesn't make a significant impact on that person's level of happiness. 

Money vs. Happiness

The fact that we equate money with happiness reflects our views as a society. America is a "live to work" society as opposed to a "work to live" society. This simply means that Americans in general revolve their lives around their job, and not everything else there is to enjoy in life. If the relationship between money and happiness does have a clear end, why can't one be happy living an average, stable life with just enough money? In reality, money only buys happiness to a certain extent. So why do Americans obsess over it?

Review: "Native Son" at Court Theatre

In his adaptation of the popular 20th century book Native Son, Nambi E. Kelley showed the true colors of American history (black? white?) as well as keeping the story contemporary, a statement as to how little has truly changed. For me, the most interesting choice the director made was to cast two actors as Bigger Thomas: one to show what he actually says and does, and the other to show what Bigger Thomas is truly thinking. This choice gave the audience the sense that Bigger (and all other people of color at the time?) is defined not by his own choices or actions, but what is expected and allowed of him.

Throughout the production "Bigger's conscience" follows "Real-Life Bigger," echoing how Bigger reacts to situations on the inside. The latter Bigger is more polite and reserved- acting how the white characters want him to- while "Bigger's conscience" yells and becomes angry at white people easily.

"The Two Biggers"

This brilliant choice by the director truly shows the timeless racial divide in America and the relationships between black and white. Plus, the two actors playing Bigger Thomas had such an apparent and strong on-stage connection that this was believable and truly gave the production a deeper meaning.

A Melting Pot of Racial Issues

Last week, popular TV actress Raven Symone stated in an Oprah interview that "I'm not African-American." These four words struck a nerve with the black community in the United States, and immediately after the interview aired controversy began to surface on the internet. But should it have? Raven Symone never said she wasn't black; she isn't denying her race to herself or to anyone else. The actress is simply concerned with the labels we are putting on Americans, which is exactly what she wants to be called. Raven Symone recognizes the importance of the labels we put on people because of their physical appearances. People assume that because she has dark skin, Raven Symone is "African-American." Without knowing it, she has brought up an interesting and complicated topic- how we as Americans view racial identity.

A recent study showed that over 6% of people check a different race (than their own) on surveys.  

But why? Why would one want to be seen as something they are not? Perhaps this is an issue of self-indentity. Many Americans feel that there are certain benefits that come from being part of a certain racial or ethnic group, and may want to associate themselves with the societal privileges that come with being white in the United States.  It seems to me that whites sit at at the very top of our society's hierarchy, benefiting from social, economic, and political privileges, that other races do not. This past month, the University of Chicago police were accused of racial profiling.  Doesn't America realize that there is something morally reprehensible about singling people out because of the color of their skin? 

This is a much larger and more complicated issue than the internet has made it out to be. Why can't we all simply view ourselves (and each other) as American? What can be done to fix this issue of self-identity, and why has this issue of racial identification become such a controversial and profound problem? If America wants to live up to its self-proclaimed "melting-pot" status, we need to stop putting the focus on race.

Raven Symone and Oprah Winfrey on The Oprah Show

Many Opinions, One Truth

In my last blog post, I discussed my opinion on Jennifer Cramblett suing Midwest Sperm Bank over a sperm mix-up that resulting in her becoming pregnant with a black man's child. In this post, my evidence was an article that I believe supports my opinions on the matter and portrayed Cramblett and her partner positively. However, while I was researching the topic, I found another article that I feel portrayed Cramblett and her partner as the "bad guys."

Which article is telling the truth? I suppose every article you look at will view the story differently and shed a different light on the facts. This is what we have to be careful about when reading about anything factual- history textbooks, articles on current events- facts are often left out, and the truth is often depicted in different ways depending on what you are reading. Some truths could be completely forgotten in one piece of literature yet focused on it another. It's like "The Stories We Tell," a documentary by Sarah Polley; the stories we tell are based on fact but full of opinion.

Mother Sues Over "Wrong" Sperm

Last week, Jennifer Cramblett sued Midwest Sperm Bank because of a mix-up that led Jennifer to become pregnant with the sperm of a black man, not the sperm donor that she and her partner had chosen as the biological father of their child. This law suit has caused immense controversy primarily because people assume that Cramblett and her partner are angered over the race of their daughter. In reality, however, the two mothers are suing the sperm bank- rightfully, in my opinion- simply because they were given the wrong sperm. This is understandable and justifiable for many reasons.

Cramblett and her partner are suing the sperm bank with the intentions of proving someone accountable for the mistake. Their attorney stated that "since the sperm bank is responsible for the mix-up, the bank should be held financially accountable." This is completely rational. The two

Jennifer Cramblett and daughter Payton

parents have the right to be upset, not because of the fact that their child is of a different race, but because they did not know. What if they had been given the sperm of someone with a genetic disorder? What if there were complications that Cramblett and her partner were unaware of? 

This lawsuit inevitably becomes an issue of race, but should it? 

Store Keeps Up With Bad Times

Last week, Urban Outfitters displayed a "vintage Kent State sweatshirt" with holes, tears, and what seems to be fake blood stains for sale. After facing an alarming amount of controversy, the store pulled the sweatshirt from the rack. It later showed up on eBay for over $500.  Earlier this year, the store pulled another shirt- one with the words "eat less" in large lettering across the front- off the racks as well. It seems to me as though Urban Outfitters is "keeping up with the times" in all the wrong ways.

Society should be working to fix these issues- eating disorders, violence, etc. Stores should not be using them as a way to make money. Similarly, buyers should be wearing clothes that represent a better America- perhaps a shirt that reads "You Are Beautiful" would have been better. As a culture and within our communities, we need to work to respect others and fix our society's issues, not turn

Urban Outfitter's Kent State Sweatshirt 

them into jokes and ways to make money. Urban Outfitters took both items off their racks and later apologized for any controversy, though the damage had already been done.

Urban Outfitter's "Eat Less" T-shirt

Let's Stop Pretending We're Colorblind

      This is the thing that some people hate each other over. 

Let's face it- there are a lot of problems with how today's society functions. And, sadly, a lot of these problems revolve around the issue of race. A few days ago, my five-year-old Haitian brother, Donsley, came home from kindergarten crying because he wanted his hair to look like everyone else's. He then went upstairs and applied my mom's makeup all over his face and arms to "make himself pretty." Another family-friend who also has a child of color, living in a different town, has confided in our family that students have told their daughter her skin is the "color of poop." I suppose that for a five-year-old, the only black kid in the entire school, his English poor and virtually oblivious to his racial situation, is the perfect object of bullying. But are these other kindergarteners, and American children in general, racist, or just toying with race- something there parents have talked little about to them, and something they have been taught not to speak of, not to notice? This problem of racism needs to be solved, needs to be talked about, and fast. 

          Students do not experience a lot of  diversity within schools, which is 

                one of the reasons for this supposed racism among young children. 

The studies of Rebecca Bigler and her colleagues have shown that "nearly all White mothers in their research study adopted a “colormute”/ “colorblind” approach when discussing a book that was either directly or indirectly about race with their 4-5 year old children; most chose not to discuss race at all."  On the surface, this makes sense to me: don't discuss something with your child, and they won't talk about it, they won't notice it. However, children are not colorblind. In fact, children whose parents do not discuss race with them are more likely to point out differences they see in others and are more likely to appear "racist.".  

So how do we make sure the children of today are not racist, for lack of a better term? When a child notices a difference in someone, that someone's skin is darker than their's or that their hair is more straight or more curly, acknowledge that they are right. Talk to your kids about race so that they are educated about the topic, not left wondering why it is such a big deal. 

Let's stop pretending we're colorblind, because we're not. There is black and there is white, and everybody can see that. We need to teach are kids that these differences are okay, that they are normal. Not discussing the problem doesn't make these issues go away, and it doesn't make everybody's skin the same color. I'm not saying the problem will go away when we start talking about it, but I'm sure that it will start to get better. 

Is "The Bachelor" Scared?

Every Monday, as many as 12 million viewers tune into the reality television series The Bachelor (or The Bachelorette) on ABC. The show follows a single man or woman in their search for "true love" among 25 twenty-something, conventionally attractive contestants. The show is controversial in and of itself- the vast majority of the contestants are white, young, and conventionally attractive. The fact that a single man or woman is shown simultaneously dating 25 potential suitors- and on television!- has caused extreme controversy. And, in 26 seasons, there has not been a single non-white bachelor or bachelorette featured on the show. An article in The Hollywood Reporter stated that a group of Nashville residents have planned to file a lawsuit against the television series: "The potential plaintiffs point out that over 10 years of the show and 23 seasons, the programs have not featured a single person of color as the featured Bachelor or Bachelorette."

Now here I am- an adamant  viewer of the series and firmly anti-racist- utterly confused and not knowing what to think about The Bachelor. What kind of audience is The Bachelor trying to attract? Why, after 26 seasons, haven't they featured a single bachelor or bachelorette of color?  And- most importantly- would people stop watching the show if there was a non-white bachelor or bachelorette?

What are the producers of The Bachelor/The Bachelorette so afraid of? Other shows have featured non-white characters as their stars- Black-ish, The Prince of Bel Air, The Cosby Show, Family Matters. Is The Bachelor Nation, as the series is commonly referred to, scared to change? Scared to lose money? Racially discriminate? I'd naively like to assume the former, that the producers of the show are not in and of themselves racist, but simply trying to appeal to and maintain a larger audience. However, this may be worse. This transfers the blame from the television series to its viewers- are Americans as a society afraid of seeing a non-white bachelor or bachelorette?

Perhaps this law-suit is a much needed call for change. American society as a whole needs to realize that though there are many issues raised from The Bachelor and The Bachelorette, race should not be one of them. In fact, I'd argue that we should be more concerned that we are teaching the American youth that dating 25 suitors at once is acceptable, that to find a spouse one must be young, conventionally attractive, skinny- virtually flawless. Above all this, we are teaching our youth that to find a spouse, you must also be white. The Bachelor Nation is only playing into this undying circle of discrimination and social normality.

As a member of a biracial family- two of my siblings are adopted from Haiti- I hope to see the day
when having or not having a person of color as the bachelor or bachelorette does not raise question, when the producers of popular television shows are not afraid to have a non-white star.



Another opinion on the topic- from a Bachelorette contestant himself