katlyn

Racism; the white elephant of society. [sort of a play on words huh]. Over the years, this topic has progressively become more talked about and addressed, but never the less still stands as a division between different cultures and groups today. Talking about the subject and addressing the issue in class helps to identify where our generation stands on the topic. The discussion in class proved difficult for me however. Of course I have talked about racial issues in class before, but picking out where they actually stand in relation to my life was some what harder. When our group was talking about TV shows that identified with common stereotypes, as well as those that challenged them you really begin to see how rooted this idea is in our society. Shows like the Simpson and South Park address many political a racial issues in the world today. Such shows are also some of the most watched by youth. I know South Park is one of my 13 year old brother’s favorite shows, I enjoy the show myself. However, if such young age groups don’t understand that the racial commentary and stereotypical innuendo is really just mocking the way our society works they might begin to model their behavior after the actions of racist characters like Eric Cartman. Now, I’m not saying I think South Park should be limited to a specific audience because I think the show has a good message. The point I’m trying to make is that these racial ideas are so widely accepted that our youth sees these portrayals and begins to accept such ideas, possibly taking them on as their own. Could such shows possibly be adding more fuel to the fire by presenting racial ideas to our future generations?