The Black Man in Tuxedo Does Not Work Here and Other Unconscious Biases

You’re at a black tie event.  You’re looking for the restroom.  Who do you ask? “Me,” joked our new friend who spontaneously joined us at our table at a recent black-tie-event, jovially laughing at the third time in the last 10 minutes he’d been asked for directions.  “It’s hard to be a black man in…

Details

Is Everyone Branding Now? New Ad Campaign Aims to Combat Mormon Stereotypes

Sharing tidbits of information we had gleaned from the day at dinner the other night, I announced that Japan had the highest population of people over age 65, to which my 9-year-old son Dillon countered that Utah was the state with the highest population of children, to which I made a snide remark about polygamists,…

Details

Shoulder Pads, Affirmative Action and Cliched Views of Race

Quick.  Gut answer.  If you see an African American and a Caucasian person debating Affirmative Action, which side of the fence  would you imagine each is on? As students prepare to return to college for the fall, an article on NPR last week explored “Affirmative Action:  How Far Have We Come?” reflecting on the case…

Details

Unconsious Bias Between Blacks and Whites: Friend or Foe?

I just spent 1/2 an hour watching Rhett and Link’s local commercials at ilovelocalcommercials.com,  which are absolutely wonderful snippets of middle America and small town businesses that have been nominated (by anyone…nominate your favorite business) to have a free local commercial made for them by Rhett and Link, sponsored by MicroBilt. Some local commercials beg…

Details

Shrek’s Donkey is Black?

Dillon came home from a great field trip last week with Northlight Theatre Camp to see Shrek the Musical, presented by Broadway in Chicago at the Cadillac Theatre in Chicago. “How was the play, I asked?” mostly thinking it was a cute and innocuous attempt by Broadway to engage younger audiences (although I heard gasps…

Details

The Race Test: I am White

White Tim White talks a lot about White Privilege, White Peggy McIntosh is well-known for “Unpacking the White Knapsack” about what it means to be white, and most recently, White Mikhail Lyubansky, professor of Psychology at the University of Illinois, takes a stab at the notion in his article on psychologytoday.com, “Going Where Glenn Beck…

Details