Racial Stereotypes

As the media continues portraying certain racial groups in certain ways, we continue to see these stereotypes as normal without giving it a second though. For example, many people tend to relate African Americans to gangs and drugs, and Muslims to terrorism. These perceptions are ridiculous, but as the media continues to feed them to us over and over again, we begin to believe them.

Racial stereotypes occur in all forms of advertising, music, and even children's television. Many advertisements use white models or give subtle hints involving racism. Rap artists give the impression that all African Americans are savages, do illegal things, and hate the police. Children's television shows show the evil witches and bad guys as dark and ugly, and as the princesses and main characters as clean-cut and white. The Native Americans are portrayed as illiterate and scary. What messages are we sending to children about diversity and equality when making these shows and videos?

The media needs to stop associating each race with its typical stereotype and start changing roles as well as giving us more diversity. Maybe then we can stop fearing and judging one another by how we look based on how the media portrays us.


                                                  Questionable skin care ads

  

   

   Stereotyped Natives Americans in Peter Pan  

                                                         

                                                    More Common Stereotypes

                                   
                                   



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American Dream

The American dream is the idea that anyone can come to North America with nothing and become wealthy and    happy. It is also the idea that a person will be wealthier and happier than their parents were. Citizens of developing countries are coming to North America with absolutely nothing in hopes that they can get a good job, settle down comfortably and support their families. But what they are not prepared for are immigration complications, shortages of jobs, and the downplay of their job qualifications.

Many immigrants may come from their home country with an education and medical degree, but will end up working as a janitor or at a fast food restaurant. This is because the qualifications do not apply in Canada, or they need to be reassessed for large amounts of money. They are forced to take any job they can get in order to survive in North America.

The American Dream is very deceiving this way, and it gives false hope to those coming from nothing in North America. It is quite possible that one can follow their dreams and succeed even though they had no money in the beginning, but this is not always the case. The media today has changed the image of the American Dream into a certain and easy way to reach the top, and hides the fact that when they come to North America they can't start their life from where they left off.  It also overlooks hard work and dedication, the most important part of the American Dream, and leads us to believe that you can go from poor to wealthy in no time at all.
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Exploitation of Girls in Beauty Pageants

Many parents in North America are dressing their children in fancy dresses, covering them with hairspray and fake eyelashes, and sending them onstage to be scrutinized by a panel of judges. This leads to the girls growing up and being vain, having low self-esteem, and being overly obsessed with being beautiful. These parents forcing their kids into these pageants need to wake up and let their children enjoy their childhood while they can. If not, the girls will grow up and will likely continue to do what they do best – doll themselves up with all their fake beauty  and use that to get by in life. They will attempt to use that “beauty” to become a model or an actor, but if that doesn't work out for them, they will likely turn to prostitution.

These children are a part of our future. And how can we create a healthy environment for them if they begin to associate beauty with success and ugliness with failure. What we should be focussing on is their intelligence and personality, which can actually give them a future, not just a shiny trophy for being ignorant yet having nice hair. If parents continue to fixate on using their children to fulfill their own dreams of being Miss America, not only is this ruining the child’s innocence, but also the future of society.

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