On creating positive stereotypes
- Titi
- May 2, 2019
- 4 min read
Updated: May 9, 2019
A recent holiday to Lagos with my kids, coincidentally inspired me to write this post. Driving in the car with my best friend, I suddenly remembered a song I hadn’t listened to in a while. The song, based purely on stereotypes advises men on what to gift their girlfriends dependent on what region or tribe in Nigeria they come from, in order to retain their affection. Listen to it here. As disparaging as stereotypes can be, this song in all its humorous prejudices is actually surprisingly accurate. The accuracy only achieved in this case as it is based on historical facts, such as foods eaten by people of different regions or tribes mentioned.
While this song is a bit of harmless fun, especially if you have prior knowledge of the various people of Nigeria, we can’t ignore what happens when less humorous stereotypes are used to make generalisations of certain groups of people. In this post I want to address problems that can arise, affecting our children’s sense of self-worth and identity as a result of stories told about black people in literature which has evolved from today’s socio-political climate.
I am currently reading The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas, and while I really should have finished reading it before commenting on books addressing the political issues, I feel I should point out that this post is not about discouraging our children to read politically-committed texts and picturebooks. This post is intended to encourage you as parent and carers of BAME children, to make a more intentional effort in providing our children with books that portray not only a realistic and at times troubling reflection of the society we live in today, but also to allow the more positive and light-hearted stories have their equal space on our bookshelves.
With this in mind, I would like to draw your attention to a 2009 TEDGlobal talk by novelist Chimamanda Adichie. Titled “The danger of a single story”, Adichie explains the consequences of hearing a single story about another person or country. She explains that in showing people only one thing about themselves, eventually that is what they will become. Therefore if we continuously expose our BAME child to images of themselves based on often disparaging stereotypes, that is how they will see themselves, and ultimately become.
As literature is a product of society, with the current state of the world tinged with violent crimes, it comes as no surprise that politically-committed texts like The Hate U Give and The Other Side of Truth are on the rise. Both books are vital reads for our teens to understand the history behind the current climate and are vessels for in-depth conversations and discussions on topics such as race and racism, injustice, freedom of speech and movement and the importance of family-ties.
There are however books that aim to inform our children in a positive light. These books have the same ability as the political texts, which is to empower our children. Author Rudine Sims Bishop says that “For black children, the absence of positive images in children’s books was a clear signal that they themselves had little worth in the society that these books reflected […] thus black children lose out on some of the major benefits of exposure to children’s literature”.
So let us make a conscious effort to introduce not just books, but poetry, music, films, art and theatre to our children that portray a more diverse and multi-faceted view of our world. Telling positive stories of BAME characters will encourage a much more balanced view of our children’s world and in turn enable them to affirm who they and their communities truly are. And while stereotypes and stereotyping are an unavoidable part of socialisation, let’s finally create positive black stereotypes which we all can be proud of.
Talk to me I would like to hear your views on this topic. Should we encourage our children to read more politically-committed texts or should we encourage them to focus on books that portray them and the society they live in in an accurate and more positive light?
Please post your ‘Must Reads’ in the comments section below. Starting off the list is a book by Joseph Coelho and illustrated by Allison Colpoys. Targeted at a younger audience, If all the world were… focuses on the loss of an elderly family member through the eyes of a child. The story told through beautifully vibrant illustrations and is sure to leave a lump in the readers’ throat – both young and old!
My reason for my including this book, is that it depicts an every-day part of life which isn’t race-specific; affecting everyone from different walks of life, If all the world were… is a great book for discussing bereavement with our children. Furthermore, it depicts a typical BAME family household, in that grandparents often live in the family home, helping raise grandchildren and through which strong bonds are made.
Cited Works
She Go Run Away. Audio performance by Fatai Rolling Dollar. DJVince Gbenga, February 20, 2013. YouTube, youtube.com/watch?v=fdpXpPEk9Aw
The Danger of a Single Story. Performance by Chimamanda Adichie. TedGlobal, July 2009. Ted.com. ted.com/talks/chimamanda_adichie_the_danger_of_a_single_story?language=en#t-270368
Sims, Rudine. “What Has Happened to the 'All-White' World of Children's Books?” The Phi Delta Kappan, vol. 64, no. 9, 1983, pp. 650–653. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/20386841.
Coelho, Joseph. If all the world were… London, Lincoln Children’s books, 2018.
Comments