Last week in Calgary, a woman was shopping for dolls for her children at Toys R Us and made a startling discovery – the “dark skinned” doll was priced lower than it’s “lighter skinned” counterpart (those are the words from the CTV new report).
Image from: http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/toys-r-us-says-doll-pricing-discrepancy-due-to-an-operational-error-1.2997459
So, that’s a problem.
The woman was horrified and called the manager who told her that they were aware of the issue, and had already taken it to corporate (where pricing is set).
Also a problem.
The price has since been noted as an operational error and corrected – both dolls are priced at $22.99 (the lower price).
I’m going to go with the operational error explanation – but here’s what comes up for me.
Corporate knew about it, and did nothing until someone complained.
How many other people were in that store, looking for dolls, and didn’t say anything? And why is that?
I’m going to argue that it’s because we have a deep bias that dark skin colour lowers value. And not just in toys….
Then, let’s think about this:
If a Black woman had complained, what would this have looked like?
Often when people of colour advocate for themselves around issues of racism, we are seen as:
- taking things too personally
- being too sensitive
- having an agenda
- and let’s not forget the “angry Black woman” stereotype!
So I would bet that if a Black woman had raised the issue, we at the very least wouldn’t have the same news coverage.
And why do I say if?
Because many people probably picked up that doll and said nothing. And some of those people were likely people of colour. Over time, when you are inundated with messages about your worth (or lack thereof) you begin to believe it. So I use if, because raising the issue would mean that they would expect something to be done – and that’s an expectation that (sadly) I’m not sure is always realistic.
Allies are important. They shine lights on issues of injustice and exclusion in a way that often makes it possible for the mainstream to hear and take notice.
But in that noticing, there is a bigger issue for us to come to terms with – we live in a society where some people are not seen as equal.
Not really.
And that needs to change, no matter whose voice is shouting it from the rooftops.
See more.
Copyright 2016 Annemarie Shrouder
Speaker, Facilitator, and Consultant on issues of Diversity & Inclusion
www.annemarieshrouder.com
Sign up for my weekly Inclusion Insights!
Weekly emails to keep diversity and inclusion on your radar.
Leave a Reply