They are all very lighted skinned.. can dark skin coexist with sweet positivity? Their is no African reflection in any of them.. And, I knew that before you posted the images. It's the reason I asked you about the word "Tolerance".. black folks are not the group that need to be taught tolerance.. we are the most culturally tolerant people.. and, of course, that has to do with our relative social/political position within Western societies.. What folks mistake for "intolerance" within black communities is actually a reactionary brand of intolerance that emanates from the social/political/physical/psychological oppression of western society.
All of that said.. I think your idea is a good one.. and the artwork is nice.. my only concern is how the African image is not represented. We don't look like that.. not even in caricature form.. it really looks like more of the same Barbie-type image warfare the teaches black young girls to be unsatisfied with their own image... and you having once been a young black girl, it kind of makes sense that you would equate sweetness and positivity with light-skin and long hair.. blonde girl in the middle.. etc.. and complete exclude even your own complexion/image..
Hello everyone,
I am new to the forum. My name is Tamara, I black woman from the Caribbean originally.
Nice to meet all of you
A little about myself, I am a young artist, living in the U.S, and a (hopefully soon) entrepreneur.
I'd like to use my talent to spread love, tolerance and other positive messages to small
children, through the creation of a series of cartoons.
I was wondering what your thoughts as fellow black persons are on the state of positive images for black children these days.
When I look at our cartoons on television, I don't tend to see many black main characters, I have seen Dora the Explorer as of late which is great, but still no black characters that appeal to our young toddlers. I
I would like to fill this void somehow, because it is very important children this young see someone like themselves being positive.
What I would like to know from all of you is how important persons in general feel this is for kids, even if you are not a parent, your input would be much appreciated.
I am actually looking around for similar forums to gather this input because I would like to analyze the diversity of opinions if any, so do not be alarmed if this post is on others, it's not my intention to spam.
Thank you