Stories are important. Stories propel humanity further. Heroes and villains, right and wrong, reality and absurdity. As a species we communicate lessons through the method of storytelling. In the modern world those who tell stories, and create media have the power of changing perception.
In 2018 we have the luxury of smart phones which can create media and stories instantly. Smart phones are so incredible and so intertwined with society that it’s hard to remember life before them. There are incredible, outrageous, amazing things happening around us every day. We are so inundated with incredible things we take most of them for granted. I don’t stop and think how amazing my phone is every day. Under the same vein I never realized how important representation is to self-esteem.
The fact that black people are not always positively portrayed within media is a well-known fact. If you are any minority you can understand the effects of negative representation. Constantly seeing people who look like you being portrayed as stereotypes or jokes can be damaging. After constant reminders with t.v. shows and movies where people with your skin color are bad the message becomes clear.
Being biracial and growing up in the 90s I never saw anyone who looked like me. I didn’t even have negative representation, I had no representation. There were little to no characters who resembled me.
Things are much different now and people of all color around the world have access to tools to create media. We can all tell our stories and more importantly it’s necessary for us to do so as a species. While consuming media it is also necessary to acknowledge the effect of said media.
Be diligent in selecting what media you wish to consume, the stories you carry with you, are a part of you…they are you. The stories you have committed to memory shape you.
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