The buzz this morning in several places has to do with the new Survivor. I admit that I watch it because someone else puts it on, but I am not that interested. I have only watched about 3 seasons and never really every single episode. The rumor is that as Survivor begins the 20 contestants are divided into races. Four groups, White, Hispanic, Black and Asian.
Even though this might offend people, will it turn fans off? For me it brought up a bigger question. Is this something that I should let my child watch?
Today’s TV is full of filth and even though we have a lot of control with the DVR, Survivor has always seemed like one of the cleanest shows overall. It is exciting to see the competition, but can the message of do everything you can to win even cheat and lie something I want my child being a part of?
Last season was great. A lot of people tried the honesty route, and even though they still played the game they did not necessarily compromised their morals for the game, at least not completely. That was cool to watch and I believe good lessons can be learned there.
Now this whole premise of a race survivor comes up. My child being in a mixed race environment has a lot of things to learn and be aware of. Can the separation of races really teach him that the ultimate goal is equality and unity? When Carlos Mencia in his comedy show did the Race Stereotype Olympics I thought it was hilarious… why am I so worried about survivor?
Races in a small geographical location are very different from one another. A Hispanic person from Chicago is a lot different from someone from Texas, and that is not even taking into account the original nationality of the Hispanic person. I believe the same goes for a lot of Asian people. Someone for Korea is a world away from someone originally from China or Vietnam. A Black person from Tennesse is also a lot diffeerent than someone from Chicago… you get my point. Can drawing race lines even on a national show do anything positive?
I am hoping that is the case. I am hoping that we see some positive things come out of Survivor and that it ultimately breaks some stereotypes instead of perpetuating them.
Race, Survivor, Relations, Black, White, Asian, Hispanic, Stereotype, Mencia, Parenting, Discrimination.