Intro Post

The other day I was sitting at Market One, by myself, doing a bit of people watching and eavesdropping. Conversations were boring and mundane, but after a few minutes, I heard this little gem from two boys sitting a few tables down. One of them said to the other, "White girls need their coffee like black girls need their welfare." My mouth almost dropped.

I was incredibly shocked. Now, I know they were just joking around, but it got me to thinking. This really reflects the way the media portrays African American women. There's a reason this joke is considered funny and it's because of the stereotype of women of color being poor. Countless TV shows, movies, books, perpetuate the idea of working class, poor black women. Usually, it is a single mom, but sometimes it can be a couple. Very rarely is a married black couple poor on TV (Fresh Prince, The Bill Cosby Show, et al).

Not only does the media keep fueling this stereotype, it also reinforces that it's okay to make this joke. Because it is thought to be true, it's okay to joke about it. All white girls drink Starbucks frequently, while all black girls are on welfare. Those are two equal comparisons, sure. I wondered what media those boys were watching that reinforced these stereotypes. Was it the news? Maybe it was something they saw at the movies. I'm not sure where they got this idea from. Yeah, sure, some black women are on welfare, but so are many white woman, and many white men. The fact that this joke targets black women shows how the media has influenced the thoughts of these men.

 I know I can't do anything to change this stereotype now, especially with how frequently women of color are shown on the news and other programs fitting this stereotype. No one ever thinks about the successful black women that the news and media doesn't air.

However, I can try to figure out where these stereotypes are coming from. That's what this blog is about. I am going to try to analyze why people, including myself, have these stereotypical thoughts. I want to find out what influences these thoughts.