**Posted @ estewartartist THURSDAY, JUNE 04, 2009**
do me a favor, watch this commercial:
i've seen this commercial a lot lately, and somewhere in there i started to really think about the commercial and what i was seeing. the subtle things. the little things. maybe it's because i teach sociology. maybe it's something else. i don't know. maybe i'm seeing things that aren't there, or blowing things out of proportion. what i see in this commercial is a common theme in a lot of movies.
let me throw this out there: we see an african american woman waiting at the bus stop, dissatisfied. next, we see a caucasian male show up with the mc cafe and it's all good for him. cut scene, now we have the african american woman on the bus, all disjointed. who's satisfied? it's a white woman with a mc cafe. scene three, we again have the african american woman toiling away in her cubicle. thankfully, the caucasians arrive, bringing her a mc cafe, saving her day.
it's not overt racism. i don't think the makers of the commercial intended it. but, in some ways it's the same message that gets put out into the media. it's an especially common plot in movies: the lives of minorities are messed up and the whites bring the answer to the problem.
it's very subtle in the commercial. and maybe that makes it worse.
or maybe it really isn't there and i'm reading too much into a commercial. https://sites.google.com/site/mayuradocs/PinIt.png
10 comments:
Interesting. In all honesty, the only subtle racism I actually see is the fact that she was the only minority in the commercial, with the exception of the frazzled looking brother at the bus stop. At least he had on a suit. I believe, while the "heroes" of the commercial are white, that this is only due to the entire commercial and the demographic it seems to be reaching, which is a white audience. A woman of color's inclusion, perhaps, was to help "balance" things out as they say. Never mind the fact that they didn't necessarily choose an African American woman with very Asiatic features. I had to look twice to see she was of color. On the same token (no pun intended), is it me or do we typically see women of color represented in that way to begin with in media? Very fair complected women with the standard "curly fro" to "show" just how ethnic she really is...Or perhaps the obvious difference in the way Mcafe has been marketed to people of color as opposed to white (c) Dwele commercial.
Either way, I see what you are saying but I believe the essence of the racism in that commercial was based on the simple inclusion of one "ethnic" person in a majority white society. The fact that they saved the day seems to be a natural result of that.
Good dialogue and observation!
thanks for the repost of my blog. i'm intrigued to see how your readers view & respond.
i find myself saying over and over again that intent is inconsequential--it does not matter since it doesn't equal how something will be received by a wider audience. and don't think for one second you're looking too much into something. it's there, and anyone who tells you you're looking too much into it, or "looking for things that aren't there" (i hear that one a lot) are just trying to silence you.
i think that we see so many examples of this trope elsewhere that it's problematic. i'm thinking of the many lifetime movies (and others) featuring white women "rescuing" non-white kids in "bad" neighborhoods, as if they're the only ones qualified to teach these kids. so yeah, that this features a black / white dichotomy where everything seems better on the white side, and then the white woman brings the good to the black woman--i think there's racist coding going on...
Why do black women (and some men)always have natural hair/afros in commercials and print ads? I've always felt like it's this underlying stigma about "nappy headed black women" being portrayed in commercial media.
If it was a frazzled white woman and three black woman, how would your reaction be different? I think we have almost been trained to be made uncomfortable by seemingly strange ratios of minority:white populations on TV, and we should be aware if whether the ratio is putting us off, or the actual message.
i would agrees that there are racial undertones in this spot - white is right + light skin talent. My biggest concern is that we as minorities are forces to engage in this internal battle with of "maybe i'm reading into it too much" versus "calling it as I see it."
I did notice all of those subtle themes too. I think they are enacted so subliminally that the pegs for prejudice thought just kind of fall in line. If racism were a wall this wouldn't quite make a whole brick, but it all matters relatively. FG, says it best, "It's intent is inconsequential... [but how] it will be received by a wider audience."
CS, interesting point!
Ambs, I don't know what you mean by "Nappy headed black women" I don't think her hair is the issue here, but dually noted. I'm going to keep a watch out for hair.
Gideon, I think it is the subtle message that's off putting here. The role of the Black woman is at question. Not the ratio.
n, makes a good point, but at least by your scenario the "ever helpful negro" would have enjoyed a few blissful sipping moments. FOR THE RECORD: I do believe McD's is all for "Racial Harmony and Stuff" The amount of Black publications and networks they support as advertisers is nothing short of HUGE. And they don't do it to be nice, they do it because it is smart business!
i had the exact same reaction as you, but my minor was social science, so there you go.
Y'all are way to deep, but there's some truth to it. A black person was cast as a lead so the spot would have mass appeal. The spot isn't targeted to blacks, but we are a part of the general market. You know the sneaky thing is that marketers think that by casting a person of color in a general market commercial, you can start to elimiate work for the minority agencies (& eventually the need for the agencies).
Regarding her appearance, when you cast in LA, that's what you get. The majority of actors that show up are "light-skinned with big hair."
what's the name of that black actress?
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