This post started off as a light and meaningful story about a conversation I had with my son a couple of days ago about nail polish. We were watching a commercial for a color called nude and as I watched not thinking anything except that's a nice color, he said out loud racist. Racist? He looked at me and asked, why is that color considered nude, when that's not nude for everyone? Something that I've accepted as fact all my life was now being questioned and contested by my almost 16 year old.
We have several examples of one nude being the universal skin color: pantyhose, Band-Aids, and for the longest time make-up foundation was only available in a few shades. So now we've added nail polish to the list. For me, it's not about the lack of shades or the insensitivity to naming these shades. At the moment I heard racist, I realized the education my son is receiving - at home and in school - is working. He's being taught to see the other point of view, realize there's more than one side to a story, be empathic and challenge the norm. It was one of those parent moments we wait for and hope for.
So that's the abbreviated post I was originally going with until I read the horrendous news story coming out of Jackson, Mississippi about the brutal beating and murder of James Craig Anderson. It's impossible for me to understand how a group of teenagers can have as much hate as it takes to beat and run over a 49-year-old black man solely because of the color of his skin.
Who are these kids? Who are their parents? What are they learning in school? How do we live in a country where a teenager in NY sees how unfair the name of a nail polish is and in the same country have a teenager who can utter the words let's go f*#k with some n#*%ers and proceed to kill a man without remorse?
If he gets what he deserves, he'll be in jail for a double life sentence. If he had gotten what he deserved, it would have been an education.
Of course your son caught that. I had major fights at work on a makeover show I worked on when the on camera talent would point to an article of clothing or nail polish or shoes and say: "And you'll look divine in this flesh colored top" And I would tell the editor, we need to cut that out - it's not flesh colored, WTF is wrong with these ding dongs? And it would happen over and over, no matter how many times I would give notes. Flesh or Nude would be used repeatedly in descriptions. I'm like, REALLY? REALLY.
ReplyDeleteSecondly, this is why breeding needs to be monitored. I'm serious. I'm fed up. Between people havng 19 children (and counting! Wheee!) to shopping for babies, I am just done.
Oh, no take away our rights? What right do people have to pro-create - the state withholds driver's licenses, medical license's, yet anyone with a functioning womb (or a checkbook) can go ahead and pro-create.
And let me tell you something having driven through 20 or some states within a 6 month period, you will understand why I say what I do. I think it should be MANDATORY for every citizen to drive across this country to see what is really happening - because I will tell you what is NOT happening: EDUCATION. I have spoken to 5 year olds to 85 year olds - In Arkansas, (god Help them too) TN, TX, AZ, WV, NC and let me tell you something - to find someone who could complete a sentence - a full sentence - was akin to winning the lottery.
I said it before and I will say it again, having been through MS, it is by far one of the poorest states we have and the oppression and lack of education permeates everything. Everything and everyone. All I kept saying is: This is where all of these grass roots movements need to be - not in the hills of Hollywood swilling margaritas patting each other on the back or out in the Hamptons at some nonsense charity event where you know 92% of the money is earmarked for "administrative" needs.
MS is in desperate need. DESPERATE. This is one of the forgotten states.
When I stopped in MS I looked up what the main industries were - irony of all ironies, there's a Rolls Royce Manufacturing plant there. Go figure. But of course there is. It probably costs RR chump change to produce their vulgar displays of "wealth" on wheels.
And here - take a gander at the list of employers in MS at an upcoming job fair: And because this is a MS State site, I can't give you the direct link - go here: http://www.jobfairs.ms.gov/about.html Go to the left side, click on upcoming job fairs, look at the upcomng event slated for 9/20. Go ahead, look. I dare you.
This is who the parents are who chose to have children. Go, go spend a few days in MS. You will see with your own eyes what I speak of. This is a dead end state which maybe once upon a time had hopes and dreams but is now shrouded in depression, repression and oppression.