Posted on 06/13/2013 12:36:40 PM PDT by Zakeet
Parents who read their kids stories about happy, human-like animals like Franklin the Turtle or Arthur at bedtime are exposing their kids to racism, materialism, homophobia and patriarchal norms, according to a paper presented at the Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences.
Most animals portrayed in childrens books, songs and on clothing send a bad message, according to academics Nora Timmerman and Julia Ostertag: That animals only exist for human use, that humans are better than animals, that animals dont have their own stories to tell, that its fine to demean them by cooing over their cuteness. Perhaps worst of all, they say, animals are anthropomorphized to reinforce socially dominant norms like nuclear families and gender stereotypes.
[Snip]
Authors are often trying to convey good social values in childrens books with animal characters, whether it be acceptance or generosity or inclusivity. But Ms. Timmerman wishes these authors would acknowledge that animals themselves may have lessons to teach us. For example, bees buzzing around a hive or ants in an ant farm can teach the importance of community and teamwork without having to be anthropomorphized, she said.
Billy the Bee doesnt necessarily project any kind of cultural bias unless we ignore, for example, that worker ants are mostly females and we call them male because we tend to think of workers as male, she said.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.nationalpost.com ...
Heyooooooo!
Schools TEACH children racism.
I worked with a guy who’s wife taught in a local grade school and said wife told this story:
The school had one of those useless eaters the lefties call “diversity educators” come in and lecture the 1-6 kids on “diversity.”
In the grade three class:
Useless Eater: Children? Can anyone tell me how I am diffrent from Mrs. Teacher?
OneOfTheChildren: You’re a boy and she’s a girl?
UE: Good. Any more?
OOTC: You are REAL tall, and she’s kind of short?
UE: Good. Any more?
OOTC: Teacher has long hair and yours is real short...
UE: Any more?
Children just sit there.
UE: Well you missed one. I am black and your teacher is white.
*BAM* School just taught the children racism.
Co-worker told us his wife was speechless with shock. I’ll bet the skank pictured above (also a useless eater?) loves that crap...
Don't worry, Ma'am - I can still say that, can't I? - we have that covered. Ms Mosquito and her bloodsucking hordes are all female as well. Sorry for the incipient heteronormativity.
I got five bucks that she hates white people and the skin she was born in. I got another five bucks that doesn’t live in the black ghetto and believes she’s an Indian.
The author of this piece has a sick, sick mind. And if that is a picture of her, it figures.
Dang! Is that one of the animals that has something to teach us?
Because a beehive or ant colony is exactly the way they believe human soxiety should be structured.
Oh that’s wicked.
I should have said Alan Colmes?
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