(NAME-MCE) Name-mce Digest, Vol 738, Issue 1
Sandy Tracy
trace_of_sand at yahoo.com
Mon Feb 18 10:27:58 EST 2008
When I was in college (a small liberal arts church-related predominantly white college) in the 1960s, a group performed a play called "Christ in the Concrete City" by an Anglican priest, Philip Turner. (It is still being performed. See http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/VA-news/VA-Pilot/issues/1995/vp950326/03230171.htm or search the name in quotes.) In my recollection, it started with something like "In the heart of the city stands an arrogant and soot-stained ...bronze bulk... and beside it, white-clad, watches the Christ." The first actor was an ebony-toned Black man and the second actor was a pale white man with black hair.
In the Christian church and in American society, black and dark are often equated with evil and sin, whereas white and light are often equated with innocence, purity, and good. For example, Christian hymns include: "I want to walk as a child of the light, I want to follow Jesus. In him there is no darkness at all, the night and the day are both alike." "Christ whose glory fills the skies, Christ the true and only Light, Sun of righteousness arise, Triumph o'er the shades of night...." "Christ is the world's true light, the captain of salvation." "Peace, perfect peace in this dark world of sin? The blood of Jesus whispers peace within." "O Zion haste, thy mission high fulfilling, to tell to all the world that God is Light, that He who made all nations is not willing one soul should perish, lost in shades of night." "Thou, whose almighty word chaos and darkness heard, and took their flight; hear us, we humbly pray, and where the gospel's day sheds not its
glorious ray, let there be light!" All but the first one came from a 1939 Methodist hymnal, and the first one I heard at a church service in 2007.
I understand that some churches have revised wording of some hymns to decrease the emphasis on light/white as good and dark/night/black as bad. However, the use of these terms as reflective of good and bad persists in American society. We need to increase our awareness of visual images and words that perpepuate racist thinking and black-white dualisms, sometimes without the conscious awareness of the people who are using the images and words.
So in regard to the Godtube video, it would be interesting to hear from the producers.
Sandy Nesbit Tracy
University of Wyoming
307-761-2574
stracy2 at uwyo.edu
----- Original Message ----
From: "name-mce-request at nameorg.org" <name-mce-request at nameorg.org>
To: name-mce at nameorg.org
Sent: Monday, February 18, 2008 6:37:58 AM
Subject: Name-mce Digest, Vol 738, Issue 1
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Today's Topics:
1. Re: GodTube response from Teja (saabsty1 at aol.com)
2. Re: Name-mce Digest, Vol 737, Issue 1 (Crawford Steve)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Message: 1
Date: Sun, 17 Feb 2008 11:21:12 -0500
From: saabsty1 at aol.com
Subject: Re: (NAME-MCE) GodTube response from Teja
To: name-mce at nameorg.org
Message-ID: <8CA3F983EF55970-1138-5EC9 at mblk-d22.sysops.aol.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
I can give you an extension of how this ideology translates as a persistent len of value and race. Recently in a supervisory situation?I visited?a class where the teacher was introducing the?artist of the month. The teacher began by introducing the?local African American artist as an outsider artist. ?The?rationale being that he had no formal training. ??As? I watched the only two children of color and my student teacher process and disengage, they were directed to take out their journal maps so they could place the artist on their ongoing map of the really important artists. Perhaps a little ahead of the teacher, one student yelled out "but this is a map of Europe!?" That evening the PTA was to meet to discuss expanding the traditional elementary school to k-8 while keeping it as a neighborhood school.....
There are things that are quite lovely in the God tube video (integrated worship, bringing the arts to worship, etc) and equallly apprarent is the aesthetic negation systems that are embedded in our American consciousness. In driving back from Atlanta from a recent?visit of schools there I listened to the eight disc series of Dr. King called "A call to consciousness". This series of discs reminded me that although we speak?often of the I have a dream speech, Dr. King really uunderstood?the need to address the complicaated and interwined dimensions that sustain?racisim in our society. One disc? for instance featured Kings speaking?about boycotting the Sealtest corporation in order to effect change. Another CD gives a speech where King advises the impoortance of knowing history while speaking on the history of Africa. Throughout this collection off speeches he often speaks to the importance of the visual and openly confronts the power of negation, actually
giving an examplle of what happens in the classroom when concepts of beauty, good and evil are taught. He?asks why it is that so many examples are available for positive connotations of whiteness and negative associations of blacknesss, while positive connotations for blackness were (and still? are) virtually non existent in the teaching of education vocabulary.??
I continue to write about the everyday embeddiness of aesthetic negation, whether it exists in a work of art, a performance, worship. It is really about the etiology of racism and how it manefests in our lives. As long as we say we are about critical theory. Raising the question has to be a part of the conversation.
Debra
?
-----Original Message-----
From: Teja Arboleda <Teja at EntertainingDiversity.com>
To: name-mce at nameorg.org
Sent: Sat, 16 Feb 2008 5:09 pm
Subject: (NAME-MCE) GodTube response from Teja
I appreciate the reflections on the GodTube video link I posted. It almost
doesn't matter who produced it, and who performed in it. What matters to me
is the perpetuation of images of dark skinned people being the bad ones.
This is a world-wide issue, has been for a long time, and will be for
generations. I went to a Catholic school in Japan - we represented 64
nationalities, and whenever we had a Christian based school play, Jesus was
always White and Blond, and Judas always was dark with black hair. In this
particular GodTube video, the dark-skinned man was throwing money at the
White 'victim', and the dark skinned woman sauntered around as 'temptation'.
Even James Earl Jones who I interviewed for PBS years ago said that as a
Black man, it's important to get powerful roles, like any actor should, but
the consistency of Black characters who are bad is overwhelming, worldwide.
Check out Japan and Germany? - you'll know what I'm talking about. So, let's
switch it around. Do you think this video would have been as acceptable and
effective to the general public if the 'victim' was the Black woman, better
yet, the Black man, or the Black man throwing the money around played our
main character, the savior? Probably not because the world is taught
differently. It is OUR job as educators to look at all media critically
because we HAVE to. I'm not saying the producers did any of this
intentionally, nor am saying they are bad, irresponsible or even racist
people. Just unaware.
on 2/16/08 12:00 PM, name-mce-request at nameorg.org at
name-mce-request at nameorg.org wrote:
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> Today's Topics:
>
>??? 1. Re:? Godtube video (McKevitt, Susan)
>??? 2. Re:? Multicultural Science Curriculum (Doug Larkin)
>??? 3.? Indian Education -- Demonstration Grants for Indian Children
>?????? (Tova Stabin)
>??? 4. Re:? Name-mce Digest, Vol 735, Issue 1 (KATE!)
>
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Message: 1
> Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2008 16:11:42 -0500
> From: "McKevitt, Susan" <SMcKevitt at ed.state.nh.us>
> Subject: Re: (NAME-MCE) Godtube video
> To: "NAME-MCE - National Association for Multicultural Education
> EmailDiscussion Group" <name-mce at nameorg.org>
> Message-ID:
> <B88A80AD4AF15F4390CE908A11F8B04503F0743E at sopsdoemail01.EDUCATION.gov>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
>
> Hi Steve, it would be interesting to know what the producers had in mind other
> than what was to me the obvious which is religion (not sure which one was
> being portrayed, my ignorance showing) saves people from despair, drugs, self
> abuse, etc.? The fact that the side of "evil" was portrayed by both white
> skinned and people of color leads me to believe color was not an issue with
> these actors.? Perhaps Teja saw it that way (was that your point Teja?)
> because of the way we here in the state see the world, through race sensitive
> eyes and consciousness.
> Thanks!
>
> Sue
> "Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter" Dr.
> Martin Luther King
> Susan McKevitt
> New Hampshire Department of Education
> 21 South Fruit St. Suite 20
> Concord, NH 03301
> phone: 603-271-6613 fax: 603-271-4079
> email: smckevitt at ed.state.nh.us
>?
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: name-mce-bounces at nameorg.org [mailto:name-mce-bounces at nameorg.org] On
> Behalf Of Crawford Steve
> Sent: Thursday, February 14, 2008 1:46 PM
> To: name-mce at nameorg.org
> Subject: (NAME-MCE) Godtube video
>
>
>
> Greetings, Teja,
>
> I read with interest your post about the Godtube.com video. My
> comments here focus specifically on this video and not on Godtube.com
> in general because I have no prior experience with this website. I
> hope that you realize that this video was performed in another
> cultural context. This church and its members are located in Turku,
> Finland. You ask if America sees what is "obvious" here. What could
> possibly be so obvious when viewing such a production cross-
> culturally? I agree that in the USA race and ethnicity is often
> portrayed in unfair and stereotypical ways. But these perceptions and
> related lenses do not transfer cross-culturally by assumption. What
> peoples do and think in the USA can have little meaning in another
> culture, or another meaning entirely!
>
> I would not want to speculate about the motives or values of the local
> producers of this skit and I have no idea who wrote the skit or where
> it originated from. I cannot speak directly to the scriptwriters or
> the producers. In short I do not know much about this particular
> phenomenon. For us to preemptively condemn this skit and its actors
> based on our own "American" points of view would of course be
> culturally-centric, and there appears to be no opportunity on this
> forum for a defense by the accused. As a long time resident of Finland
> I have observed Finns (there are always some exceptions) to be
> extremely tolerant and uncritical of others, which I compare favorably
> with my experiences and observations in the USA. We Americans seem
> rather quick to the punch these days and the idea that something could
> be so obvious to Americans as a group I find an odd assumption. I
> would like not to take a reductionist approach in this case, things
> are never so simple as they might seem, and would suggest that the
> accused be allowed to speak on their own behalf. Such a dialogue could
> in fact be quite constructive, and in this manner meaning can be
> negotiated and not imposed by one upon the other.
>
> If you are open to such a dialogue I would be pleased to attempt to
> help arrange this with the producers of this video from this side of
> the chasm.
>
> Sincerely,
>
> Steve Crawford
> Jyv?skyl?, Finland
>
> On Feb 14, 2008, at 4:19 PM, name-mce-request at nameorg.org wrote:
>
>> Message: 2
>> Date: Wed, 13 Feb 2008 12:48:08 -0500
>> From: Teja Arboleda <Teja at EntertainingDiversity.com>
>> Subject: (NAME-MCE) God Tube makes it clear that dark skin is bad
>> To: <name-mce at nameorg.org>
>> Message-ID: <C3D89788.AC06%Teja at EntertainingDiversity.com>
>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII"
>>
>> God Tube.com just reminded us that our work is cut out for us. Does
>> America
>> see the obvious? This musical interpretive dance of good VS evil is a
>> reminder of how entrenched white/black and good/evil interpretations
>> are
>> still significant in drama, television, Hollywood, Disney, Broadway
>> and in
>> the minds of the young. Take a look:
>> http://www.godtube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=ee73e63418003b47d7d5
>>
>> --
>> There is no box.
>>
>> Teja Arboleda, M.Ed.
>> Entertaining Diversity, Inc.
>> PO Box 126, Dedham, MA 02027
>> (781) 329-7040
>>
>> Member: National Association for Multicultural Education (NAME)
>> Member: Alliance for a Media Literate America (AMLA)
>> Member: Filmmakers Collaborative
>
> _______________________________________________
> This is a mailing of the National Association for Multicultural Education -
> (NAME) Listserv list - www.nameorg.org. The materials included reflect diverse
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>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 2
> Date: Fri, 15 Feb 2008 15:28:33 +0000
> From: Doug Larkin <douglarkin at hotmail.com>
> Subject: Re: (NAME-MCE) Multicultural Science Curriculum
> To: NAME-MCE - National Association for Multicultural Education Email
> Discussion Group <name-mce at nameorg.org>
> Message-ID: <BAY129-W125C443F05458666627FA8C5260 at phx.gbl>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
>
>
> Nova recently produced a program on Percy Julian. I believe the DVD is now
> available.
>
> See the Nova website below for more details.
>
> http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/julian/
>
> Doug Larkin
>
>
> _________________________________________________________________
> Need to know the score, the latest news, or you need your Hotmail?-get your
> "fix".
> http://www.msnmobilefix.com/Default.aspx
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 3
> Date: Fri, 15 Feb 2008 09:55:05 -0800
> From: Tova Stabin <tova at efn.org>
> Subject: (NAME-MCE) Indian Education -- Demonstration Grants for
> Indian Children
> To: undisclosed-recipients:;
> Message-ID: <2ADEE8CC-00E0-4456-8D16-B7DAC6CE5E23 at efn.org>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII; format=flowed
>
> Indian Education -- Demonstration Grants for Indian Children
>??? (Federal Register: February 6, 2008 [CFDA# 84.299A])
> *******************************************************************
> Purpose of Program: The purpose of the Demonstration Grants for
> Indian Children program is to provide financial assistance to
> projects that develop, test, and demonstrate the effectiveness of
> services and programs to improve the educational opportunities and
> achievement of preschool, elementary, and secondary Indian
> students.
>????? Applications Available: February 6, 2008.
>????? Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: March 7, 2008.
>????? Eligible Applicants: Eligible applicants for this program are
> State educational agencies (SEAs); local educational agencies
> (LEAs), including charter schools that are considered LEAs under
> State law; Indian tribes; Indian organizations; federally supported
> elementary or secondary schools for Indian students; Indian
> institutions (including Indian institutions of higher education);
> or a consortium of any of these entities.
>????? Estimated Available Funds: $1,600,000.
>????? Estimated Range of Awards: $100,000-$300,000.
>????? Estimated Average Size of Awards: $229,000.
>????? Estimated Number of Awards: 7.
>
>????? Additional Information: Applicable regulations, priorities, and
> other information are available in the Federal Register notice.
>
> Additional information is available online at:
> http://www.ed.gov/legislation/FedRegister/announcements/2008-1/020608a.html
>
> tova stabin
> tova at efn.org
>
> "Your silence will not protect you." - Audre Lorde
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 4
> Date: Fri, 15 Feb 2008 14:47:43 -0800
> From: KATE! <shantified at gmail.com>
> Subject: Re: (NAME-MCE) Name-mce Digest, Vol 735, Issue 1
> To: name-mce at nameorg.org
> Message-ID:
> <8e04f30a0802151447p7361d71ay4a4b63d2f83e84f8 at mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
>
> FYI - The 2007 workshops for teachers across the nation look wonderful and I
> was thinking of doing some of them in the area however, its 2007 dates so I
> think they're all over.? There is a schedule coming out for 2008 soon.
> Thanks.
>
> On Fri, Feb 15, 2008 at 9:00 AM, <name-mce-request at nameorg.org> wrote:
>
>> Send Name-mce mailing list submissions to
>>??????? name-mce at nameorg.org
>>
>> To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit
>>??????? http://mail.nameorg.org/mailman/listinfo/name-mce_nameorg.org
>> or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to
>>??????? name-mce-request at nameorg.org
>>
>> You can reach the person managing the list at
>>??????? name-mce-owner at nameorg.org
>>
>> When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific
>> than "Re: Contents of Name-mce digest..."
>>
>>
>> Today's Topics:
>>
>>?? 1.? American Indian Inclusion Manual (NativeVillage500 at aol.com)
>>?? 2.? 2007 TEACHER-TO-TEACHER WORKSHOPS (KispokoT at aol.com)
>>?? 3.? Godtube video (Crawford Steve)
>>
>>
>> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>> Message: 1
>> Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2008 11:58:54 EST
>> From: NativeVillage500 at aol.com
>> Subject: (NAME-MCE) American Indian Inclusion Manual
>> To: name-mce at nameorg.org
>> Message-ID: <d18.2147cc49.34e5cd4e at aol.com>
>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII"
>>
>>
>>? (http://edoptions.com/indianed/)
>> American Indian Inclusion Manual
>> The American Indian Inclusion Manual? was created as a guide for both
>> Indian
>> and non-Indian educators seeking to? include the Native American
>> perspective
>> in subjects across the curriculum.
>>??? *??? (
>> http://edoptions.com/indianed/American_Indian_Inclusion_Manual.pdf)
>> Learn? how to include American Indian concepts and issues across all
>> subjects
>>
>>??? *?? Expand cultural understanding and how to apply these concepts
>> beyond
>> the? standard native studies curriculum
>>??? *?? Great educational strategies for both Native and non-Native
>> educators
>>
>>??? *?? This information can be downloaded at:
>> _http://edoptions.com/indianed/_ (http://edoptions.com/indianed/)
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> **************The year's hottest artists on the red carpet at the Grammy
>> Awards. Go to AOL Music.
>> (http://music.aol.com/grammys?NCID=aolcmp00300000002565)
>>
>>
>> ------------------------------
>>
>> Message: 2
>> Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2008 11:12:06 EST
>> From: KispokoT at aol.com
>> Subject: (NAME-MCE) 2007 TEACHER-TO-TEACHER WORKSHOPS
>> To: name-mce at nameorg.org
>> Message-ID: <be0.2cf138de.34e5c256 at aol.com>
>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8"
>>
>>
>> 2007? TEACHER-TO-TEACHER WORKSHOPS
>>
>>
>> ____________________________________
>>
>>
>> The U.S. Department of Education?s Teacher-to-Teacher Initiative has
>> opened
>> registration for its free summer workshops. The workshops will be held
>> across
>> the country starting May 31 and will target specific grade levels and
>> content
>>? areas.
>> Teacher Workshops offer classroom teachers a free opportunity to
>> participate
>> in high-quality professional development designed to provide the classroom
>> support, technical assistance, and increased collaboration needed to
>> assure
>> academic success for all students. Participants will share instructional
>> strategies with prominent teachers from around the country in each content
>> area? and
>> for each grade level.
>> _Click here? for more information._
>> (https://www.t2tweb.us/Workshops/About.asp)
>> _Click here to register_ (https://www.t2tweb.us/Workshops/Registration.asp
>> )
>> Upcoming Workshops
>> _Houston,? Texas_ (
>> https://www.t2tweb.us/Workshops/EventInfo.asp?EventID=45)
>> NASA
>> May 31?June 1,? 2007
>> Math and Science
>> _Alburquerque,
>> New Mexico_ (https://www.t2tweb.us/Workshops/EventInfo.asp?EventID=33)
>> Target
>> June? 5?6, 2007
>> Reading, History, Fine Arts, and Foreign Language
>> _El Paso,? Texas_ (
>> https://www.t2tweb.us/Workshops/EventInfo.asp?EventID=47)
>> Chamizal National? Memorial
>> June 7?8, 2007
>> Reading and History
>> _Estes? Park, Colorado_
>> (https://www.t2tweb.us/Workshops/EventInfo.asp?EventID=56)
>> Rocky Mountain
>> National Park
>> June 19?20, 2007
>> Reading, Science, and? History
>> _Phoenix,? Arizona_
>> (https://www.t2tweb.us/Workshops/EventInfo.asp?EventID=34)
>> Charter? Schools
>> June 21?22, 2007
>> Reading, Math, and Science
>> _Santa? Clara, California_
>> (https://www.t2tweb.us/Workshops/EventInfo.asp?EventID=49)
>> EMC
>> June? 25?26, 2007
>> Math and Science
>> _Redmond,? Washington_
>> (https://www.t2tweb.us/Workshops/EventInfo.asp?EventID=50)
>> Microsoft
>> July? 9?10, 2007
>> Math and Science
>> _Mountain? View, California_
>> (https://www.t2tweb.us/Workshops/EventInfo.asp?EventID=36)
>> Symantec
>> July 9?10, 2007
>> Math and Science
>> _Austin,? Texas _ (
>> https://www.t2tweb.us/Workshops/EventInfo.asp?EventID=58)
>> AMD and Spansion
>> July 12?13, 2007
>> Math and Science
>> _Schaumburg,? Illinois_
>> (https://www.t2tweb.us/Workshops/EventInfo.asp?EventID=55)
>> Motorola
>> July? 12?13, 2007
>> Math and Science
>> _Louisville,? Kentucky_
>> (https://www.t2tweb.us/Workshops/EventInfo.asp?EventID=37)
>> Target
>> July 19?20,? 2007
>> Reading, Foreign
>> Language, Fine Arts,
>> and Early? Childhood
>> _Miami,? Florida_ (
>> https://www.t2tweb.us/Workshops/EventInfo.asp?EventID=40)
>> Charter? Schools
>> July 23?24, 2007
>> Reading, Math,
>> and? Science
>> _Waltham,? Massachusetts_
>> (https://www.t2tweb.us/Workshops/EventInfo.asp?EventID=46)
>> Microsoft
>> July 25?26, 2007
>> Math and? Science
>> _San Diego,? California_
>> (https://www.t2tweb.us/Workshops/EventInfo.asp?EventID=68)
>> San Diego State University? and Title VI Foreign Language
>> July 26?27, 2007
>> Foreign? Languages
>> _Warren,? Michigan_
>> (https://www.t2tweb.us/Workshops/EventInfo.asp?EventID=52)
>> GM/MATHCOUNTS
>> June 31? August 1, 2007
>> Math and? Science
>> _Palatine,? Illinois_
>> (https://www.t2tweb.us/Workshops/EventInfo.asp?EventID=57)
>> Siemens
>> August? 6?7, 2007
>> Math and Science
>> _Lowell,? Massachusetts_
>> (https://www.t2tweb.us/Workshops/EventInfo.asp?EventID=54)
>> Lowell National
>> Historic Park
>> August 6?7, 2007
>> History, Science, Fine? Arts
>> _Anchorage,? Alaska_
>> (https://www.t2tweb.us/Workshops/EventInfo.asp?EventID=39)
>> Alaska National Parks
>> August 9?10, 2007
>> Reading, Math, Science,
>> and? History
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> **************The year's hottest artists on the red carpet at the Grammy
>> Awards. Go to AOL Music.
>> (http://music.aol.com/grammys?NCID=aolcmp00300000002565)
>>
>>
>> ------------------------------
>>
>> Message: 3
>> Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2008 20:46:25 +0200
>> From: Crawford Steve <stevecrawford at mac.com>
>> Subject: (NAME-MCE) Godtube video
>> To: name-mce at nameorg.org
>> Message-ID: <F0378640-478A-4902-AFE4-D27C54CCFDEC at mac.com>
>> Content-Type: text/plain;?????? charset=ISO-8859-1;???? format=flowed;
>>? delsp=yes
>>
>> Greetings, Teja,
>>
>> I read with interest your post about the Godtube.com video. My
>> comments here focus specifically on this video and not on Godtube.com
>> in general because I have no prior experience with this website. I
>> hope that you realize that this video was performed in another
>> cultural context. This church and its members are located in Turku,
>> Finland. You ask if America sees what is "obvious" here. What could
>> possibly be so obvious when viewing such a production cross-
>> culturally? I agree that in the USA race and ethnicity is often
>> portrayed in unfair and stereotypical ways. But these perceptions and
>> related lenses do not transfer cross-culturally by assumption. What
>> peoples do and think in the USA can have little meaning in another
>> culture, or another meaning entirely!
>>
>> I would not want to speculate about the motives or values of the local
>> producers of this skit and I have no idea who wrote the skit or where
>> it originated from. I cannot speak directly to the scriptwriters or
>> the producers. In short I do not know much about this particular
>> phenomenon. For us to preemptively condemn this skit and its actors
>> based on our own "American" points of view would of course be
>> culturally-centric, and there appears to be no opportunity on this
>> forum for a defense by the accused. As a long time resident of Finland
>> I have observed Finns (there are always some exceptions) to be
>> extremely tolerant and uncritical of others, which I compare favorably
>> with my experiences and observations in the USA. We Americans seem
>> rather quick to the punch these days and the idea that something could
>> be so obvious to Americans as a group I find an odd assumption. I
>> would like not to take a reductionist approach in this case, things
>> are never so simple as they might seem, and would suggest that the
>> accused be allowed to speak on their own behalf. Such a dialogue could
>> in fact be quite constructive, and in this manner meaning can be
>> negotiated and not imposed by one upon the other.
>>
>> If you are open to such a dialogue I would be pleased to attempt to
>> help arrange this with the producers of this video from this side of
>> the chasm.
>>
>> Sincerely,
>>
>> Steve Crawford
>> Jyv?skyl?, Finland
>>
>> On Feb 14, 2008, at 4:19 PM, name-mce-request at nameorg.org wrote:
>>
>>> Message: 2
>>> Date: Wed, 13 Feb 2008 12:48:08 -0500
>>> From: Teja Arboleda <Teja at EntertainingDiversity.com>
>>> Subject: (NAME-MCE) God Tube makes it clear that dark skin is bad
>>> To: <name-mce at nameorg.org>
>>> Message-ID: <C3D89788.AC06%Teja at EntertainingDiversity.com>
>>> Content-Type: text/plain;???? charset="US-ASCII"
>>>
>>> God Tube.com just reminded us that our work is cut out for us. Does
>>> America
>>> see the obvious? This musical interpretive dance of good VS evil is a
>>> reminder of how entrenched white/black and good/evil interpretations
>>> are
>>> still significant in drama, television, Hollywood, Disney, Broadway
>>> and in
>>> the minds of the young. Take a look:
>>> http://www.godtube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=ee73e63418003b47d7d5
>>>
>>> --
>>> There is no box.
>>>
>>> Teja Arboleda, M.Ed.
>>> Entertaining Diversity, Inc.
>>> PO Box 126, Dedham, MA 02027
>>> (781) 329-7040
>>>
>>> Member: National Association for Multicultural Education (NAME)
>>> Member: Alliance for a Media Literate America (AMLA)
>>> Member: Filmmakers Collaborative
>>
>>
>>
>> ------------------------------
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> This is a mailing of the National Association for Multicultural Education
>> -
>> (NAME) Listserv. The materials included reflect diverse perspectives of
>> NAME Listserv participants and do not necessarily reflect a position of the
>> National Association for Multicultural Education. If you would like to
>> subscribe (or unsubscribe) to this listserv go to
>> http://mail.nameorg.org/mailman/listinfo/name-mce_nameorg.org. You can
>> read all past postings in the archives at
>> http://mail.nameorg.org/pipermail/name-mce_nameorg.org/
>>
>>
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>>
>>
>> End of Name-mce Digest, Vol 735, Issue 1
>> ****************************************
>>
>
>
--
There is no box.
Teja Arboleda, M.Ed.
Entertaining Diversity, Inc.
PO Box 126, Dedham, MA 02027
(781) 329-7040
Member: National Association for Multicultural Education (NAME)
Member: Alliance for a Media Literate America (AMLA)
Member: Filmmakers Collaborative
_______________________________________________
This is a mailing of the National Association for Multicultural Education -
(NAME) Listserv list - www.nameorg.org. The materials included reflect diverse
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position of the National Association for Multicultural Education. If you would
like to subscribe (or unsubscribe)to this listserv go to http://mail.nameorg.org/mailman/listinfo/name-mce_nameorg.org.
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------------------------------
Message: 2
Date: Mon, 18 Feb 2008 10:34:36 +0200
From: Crawford Steve <stevecrawford at mac.com>
Subject: Re: (NAME-MCE) Name-mce Digest, Vol 737, Issue 1
To: name-mce at nameorg.org
Message-ID: <D7935087-45EE-40FA-8C54-E2FF804B4142 at mac.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII; format=flowed; delsp=yes
Thank you for your reply, Teja.
I think it always matters who produces a cultural product, and who
performs in it, as well as who the intended audience is. I wonder
whether the actors in the production felt they were participating in
and perpetuating stereotypes. But I also agree that the light versus
dark contrast has been symbolically applied throughout global history,
and that this has been a featured aspect of media both consciously and
unconsciously.
I think that today there stands a very good chance that much if not
most of the public would have accepted the reversed roles as you
proposed. Acknowledging the noisy exceptions, we are reaching a point
where race and ethnicity is less an issue than it used to be. This
means that we are also at a point where, operating from a more
balanced viewpoint, we need to be critical of situations where we do
perceive inequity. But this should be a case-by-case process wherein,
as in this case, the producers are brought into the conversation and
the process. The ideas and concerns that you raise are very important,
but I think we should refrain from convicting someone without due
process. For this reason I propose that we bring the producers into
the discussion and see what their thoughts are about it. This is risky
but this is where change takes place. Anything could happen, but I
feel that whatever does happen will advance everyone's perspectives
and world views. I am also curious to know what the producers might
say about it. If the issue is simply about being "unaware," as you put
it, then perhaps we should obligate ourselves to help make them aware.
So if you wish I can from Finland contact the producers and ask if
they would like to address the issue. If you would like to do so, just
let me know. If not, we can let the opportunity pass by this time
around.
Steve Crawford
On Feb 17, 2008, at 7:00 PM, Name-mce-request at nameorg.org wrote:
> Message: 1
> Date: Sat, 16 Feb 2008 17:09:24 -0500
> From: Teja Arboleda <Teja at EntertainingDiversity.com>
> Subject: (NAME-MCE) GodTube response from Teja
> To: <name-mce at nameorg.org>
> Message-ID: <C3DCC944.AD07%Teja at EntertainingDiversity.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII"
>
> I appreciate the reflections on the GodTube video link I posted. It
> almost
> doesn't matter who produced it, and who performed in it. What
> matters to me
> is the perpetuation of images of dark skinned people being the bad
> ones.
> This is a world-wide issue, has been for a long time, and will be for
> generations. I went to a Catholic school in Japan - we represented 64
> nationalities, and whenever we had a Christian based school play,
> Jesus was
> always White and Blond, and Judas always was dark with black hair.
> In this
> particular GodTube video, the dark-skinned man was throwing money at
> the
> White 'victim', and the dark skinned woman sauntered around as
> 'temptation'.
> Even James Earl Jones who I interviewed for PBS years ago said that
> as a
> Black man, it's important to get powerful roles, like any actor
> should, but
> the consistency of Black characters who are bad is overwhelming,
> worldwide.
> Check out Japan and Germany - you'll know what I'm talking about.
> So, let's
> switch it around. Do you think this video would have been as
> acceptable and
> effective to the general public if the 'victim' was the Black woman,
> better
> yet, the Black man, or the Black man throwing the money around
> played our
> main character, the savior? Probably not because the world is taught
> differently. It is OUR job as educators to look at all media
> critically
> because we HAVE to. I'm not saying the producers did any of this
> intentionally, nor am saying they are bad, irresponsible or even
> racist
> people. Just unaware.
------------------------------
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This is a mailing of the National Association for Multicultural Education -
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