In the night garden light skinned doll

[spokette]

So according to the makers of In the night garden, the characters are toys, not representative of real people here?. I guess that is why most of the characters have light skin then.

One of the reasons I actually liked "In the night garden" is that there is a character who has dark skin and is therefore a positive reinforcement to my mixed race 4yo DTS because, there are very few dark skinned characters on TV and hence why their TV viewing is strictly rationed. Non-blacks will probably not understand why this is important but for those interested, I grew up in 70s Britain and the constant, relentless barrage by the media that black people were either criminals or only good at sports was not only dispiriting and erroneous but also insulting and designed to remind us of our place in society.

This cynical and deliberate ploy to market a lighter skin doll as oppose to the darker skin one was done to appeal to the non-black buying public as usual and demonstrates that the BBC, like many of these institutions are still paying mainly lip service to providing inclusive TV viewing.

Guess who will not be tuning in to this programme again?

Desiderata, I would stop digging yourself further into this hole. It is blindingly obvious you know not of what you speak. I cannot speak for Spokette, but there is no chip on my shoulder.

I don't have to ask them, Mrs Merry. They're very successful.

More successful than me .. and why wouldn't they be?

You absolutely have a chip on your shoulder, kid, and you can get as angry with me as you please, but it's there, right enough.

You still haven't answered my questions.

And now you're being silly. Of course children of all colours bully each other. But are you saying that calling a black person a monkey is not racist? Seriously? Are you saying that?

Chip free over here, too!

OK, Rinder. I don't know what I'm talking about because I'm white.

You see, that's how it sounds.

MrsMerry, I made no comment on your monkey statement.

I will comment now, though. I don't believe you, to be honest.

Desiderata I am aghast at your ignorance.

Desiderata I am aghast at your ignorance.

Desi, you are being very, very silly. You are imagining all sorts of things and then jumping to all sorts of conclusions based on your imagination. And you're evading very straightforward questions.

I'm off, I have better things to do.

Wtf - you don't belive the monkety comment -

Now that I've stopped laughing I have to reply to that hilarious comment, Desi! You are SO desperate to be consistent that now you just sound like an idiot. Stop digging.

Find this so sad. Smacks of the L'Oreal/ Beyonce shaabaz. www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,399364,00.htmlSeems like companies really do think that white/lighter is best. Is so sad that racism can come into play in something aimed at toddlers. I am sure the toddlers don't notice much, but it is not just this one incident - most young girls in adverts are blonde and white and so there are few black/Asian/mixed race role models for young children and they are totally "whitewashed".

Ok, so why aghast, so why appalled?

Elaborate, peeps.

The OP is frankly ridiculous. I am giving it the treatment it deserves. I honestly believe that people who place such import on nothing are racist themselves.

.. and no, Noonki, I don't believe the 'monkey comment.'

It's very easy on the internet to bullshit. I can't think of a kid in this day and age who would say that .. and if they did, then I'd do something about it.

Wouldn't you?

Oh, God, Desi, you are still making me laugh!

It is really sad and awful to think that racism still exists. But it does. I'm not bullshitting. Haven't you heard of the BNP?

You really ought to face the fact that on this topic you don't know what you're talking about. When it came to the issue of the dolls I wasn't too egotistical to bow to others' greater experience (see prev page on this thread). You should do the same and try to salvage some sort of dignity.

Perhaps you should keep an eye on this thread

Desiderata
It is not nothing! Have a good look at all the adverts on childrens TV in the morning and do a tally! I know that white people are in the majority in the UK and I know that mostly advertisers are trying to appeal to the majority. However, there is a real lack of Black children on TV. This is especially true of advertising and therefore the number of child models. And therefore what children believe to be beautiful. There are incidents of this constantly in discussions on "beauty" in general. Look at the recent London fashion week where only 1 Black model was used in a city where almost 50% of the population are not white - is this representation?

Desiderata, you have shown yourself to be completely ignorant on the issue of racism, not to say arrogant too. Perhaps the people you went to school with were successful in spite of the experiences they had while growing up (and as adults).

You see, my (black) DH grew up in Bristol in the 60s & 70s, and along with his brother & sisters was one of the very few black kids at his grammar school. They are all hugely successful in their own fields, DH has no 'chip' on his shoulder and says he was 'lucky'. However, every so often he tells me of the time he was in a park and spat at, called a nig nog, told for fuck off home, etc. There are many experiences like this he can recount (if he chooses to - tbh it doesn't tend to dominate his life). Even now the racism is still there, only it is not so explicit.

So yes, some of your comments have made me angry.

And perhaps that is the point of the OP. We kinda hope that racism has gone away and something seemingly innocent such as the colour of an Upsy Daisy doll arises and attitudes such as yours surface.

Mrs Merry, I have been 43 years on this planet, so please don't advise me which one I belong to.

It seems to me that life throws out a lot of political shite, which affects children .. and thus affects the adults they become.

Now, you may be black in a predominately white country. You may be white in a predominately black country.

Your black ancestors may have been sold as slaves. Equally, your white ancestors may have been sold down the same route. It is not politically correct to mention that more white people have been sold into the slave trade than black people.

There are bad fuckers, and there are good fuckers.

This counttry is less racist than any country I have ever visited. You have to take some responsibiliy for the 'racism' you currently encounter.

Most of us don't even think about it .. the colour of someone's skin or the God they pray to. Who gives a shit? You have to find the grit to get through it without rancour.

Ginger kids get much worse shit. My surname is uren. Would you like that???

My daughter is white but would always chose a dark skinned baby doll over a white one.

Rinder, you're post comes across as a bit twattish.

"This counttry is less racist than any country I have ever visited"

obviously haven't travelled that far then Desi................

.. because you see, Rinder, that all kids get bullied in the play ground.

If you are singling out that dh got bullied because of the colour of his skin, then would you leap to the defence of deaf kids, SN kids, ginger kids?

D'ya know, I am rather relieved that you think me a twat!