Pointing out the lack of representation in society, entertainment, media, politics, and more is simply not enough for most people. Especially when speaking to a group who has been so regularly portrayed throughout history. If you are not challenged to notice, then it seems as though most people never will. Beginning with television, if we list most of the shows that many people know, or many people praise it is clear as day what population we are looking at and who the writing is for. Friends. That 70’s Show. The Office. Full House. The Big Bang Theory. I can go on. If I mentioned the most popular shows ranging from the beginning of all TV series to now, we’d see the same population and the same portrayals of “reality”. Most times the standing excuse is, it was a different time, or it didn’t fit inside of the content of the show. Same with film. Challenge most people to come up with the main actors they might think of and you come up with who? Leonardo DiCaprio. Brad Pitt. Margot Robbie. Julia Roberts. Tom Hanks. Angelina Jolie… Again, the list goes on. The argument goes for politicians, pop culture, and now influencer culture and who has gained popularity.
So, what is the argument? The society we have so proudly created has left out anybody inside of the so generously denominated “minority”. Portrayals of reality are skipping over racial, ethnic, sexual, and gender identities and creating worlds where only able bodied, straight, cis-gendered, White realities can be deemed true. As time goes on, baseline portrayals of diversity are then being praised and expected to stop there because if an inch was given, well, you’d better not ask for that mile. Each industry I’ve listed above has managed to begin to work towards a world where we are true to what is actually realistic. And, although I’d rather not pat people on the back for being inclusive, I think that the push to get this work done is needed and should keep happening.
Many people do not feel comfortable speaking for or representing populations that are not their own. That’s okay. Actually, that’s great. What is expected is not for YOU to be the only person to have a voice. There are so many talented, educated, and completely qualified people who are not getting genuinely deserved jobs. Black. LGBTQ+. Latinx. Disabled. These communities are consistently trying for a world where their realities are just as important, where their acknowledgment is just as present. And yet, this desire for equality is often controversial and cannot be held up in conversations without argument. If this desire to include, but not overshadow, resonates directly with you then what I’m saying is to listen. Listen closely to what you are being told to by these communities and in return use your power and privilege to uphold and not to speak for.
The truth is, the lack of representation is just not…true. The population is so much more diverse than people can bring themselves to admit and these exclusions have been so systemically engrained that equality is seen as a threat. This of course, stems way further than the entertainment industry. Representation is seen in politicians, in educators, in health workers, and so much more. When searching for an ad, a representative, a doctor, a lawyer, again the list goes on, people need to have access to communities who care for them, who see them, and this “majority” needs to be the one to do the work to stop there being limited access to just that.
What is even more frustrating is that it isn’t like any of these careers should be lacking in diversity. There is no reason as to why there should not be the ability to get there besides blatant discrimination, and before we can change it needs to be called by name.
So, why representation? The importance of representation begins in children. Too many children are being exposed to a world that lacks a care for them. That lacks the decency to say here is someone just like you, and here are all the possibilities for you in life. When you think about it, what we’re asking for is not hard. What we want is not some concept that’s so far out of the ballpark that we can’t make it happen. But why it isn’t happening is because of people who profit off of this system and whose realities have never been compromised, jeopardized, or not taught. To show a young person all they can do is essential in creating goals for a child. To have a child actively engaging in a world where their doctor, their teacher, their local representatives, and the actors that they watch in media every. single. day. can relate to them, will create a community where they are seen, heard, justified, and capable.
The communities a young person is exposed to, or in this case not exposed to stems into their teens, young adulthood, and ultimately follows them for the rest of their life. This has created unsafe healthcare systems, unsafe law regulation, unsafe educational institutions, and unsafe workspaces. Representation is not only important for those who are underrepresented, but it is important because without it we are left only with a society bred in micro-aggressions and misconceptions about these communities. We are then left with a society where this “majority” holds the expectation that they are deserved an explanation. That if anyone but them has managed to take up “their” space, or “their” time, it has been genuinely perceived as acceptable to literally as why.
“Why are you in this neighborhood? Where do you live?”
“So, if you can’t see, how do you like…get around?”
“Yes, but, where are you actually from?”
“But I just don’t get it. Why not just pick ‘he’ or ‘she’?”
I cannot speak through experience on many things. Nor will I ever try. But it doesn’t take experience and shouldn’t take experience for people to be taught common sense in most if not all of these situations. Topics like education, law reform, and history are essential factors in this conversation. Impossible to overlook and deserved to be met with far longer explanations and history than this post can provide (and believe me, it’s coming soon). However, starting with inclusion and representation is starting with a world where we can manage to normalize what has never been normalized before. If we allow people to see a world that looks more like the world most of us desire to know and love, it creates more room for less people to be comfortable inside of their bubble. Representation starts in everyday exposure, so that everyday encounters can be safe. This is specifically written for those who have the power to change this. To correct the people they are surrounded by, to correct the industries they will enter and profit in through discrimination.
Beginning at representation, we make room for conversation on reform. Beginning at representation, we will promote the need to learn and provide a path to understanding.
Gloria Alyssa 