When pendulums swing far to the north, they are sure to swing just as far to the south because, according to the laws of physics, every action has an equal and opposite reaction. We learn these concepts in grade school, yet we struggle to hear or see people with different lifestyles or views as us. And instead of commonality, we stereotype and judge that which we do not and refuse to understand. If, without judgement, we could celebrate people from diverse cultures and life experiences, with the judgement of stereotype, we could live harmoniously in the middle ground. These thoughts came to me while listening to Sarah Jones in a TED Talk episode about stereotypes.
At the beginning of the episode, she recounts an incident where she and another woman of color were stopped by police while crossing the street. The officers subjected them to their assumption, asking if they were sex workers and preceded to positioning them against a car. Sarah's immediate reaction was to adopt an English accent, recognizing it might alter the disrespectful stereotype imposed on her. I reflected on this incident and felt sad that Sarah was forced to find a version of herself that would make her acceptable in the cop’s eyes. Why isn’t her authentic self, enough? This story also sheds light on how deep hurtful stereotypes can go. This incident prompted Sarah to explore how we see others and ourselves.
Being a voice actor, Sarah has many characters that live inside of her; and older Jewish aunt, a college student from California that talks like a valley girl, an Indian friend, and many more.
When people argue that it is wrong to imitate an Italian police officer or a Latina domestic worker, Sarah asks “Why not?” If it is done with honesty and with no ill intent, we should be able to look at each other for what we are. The problem, Sarah says, is when you assign a moral judgement to that person. If you do a certain job, and you are a certain ethnicity, then you must be a certain kind of person. This is not why she imitates the different personalities. She is not “taking what’s true and oversimplifying it in a way that seeks to oppress or marginalize a group.” She hopes that what she does is portray people honestly, honoring their basic humanity.
Sarah believes we need less pontificating and more honest conversations, and agrees that this can get messy, but life is messy, and "all this tidiness is not good. It spills out anyway.”
I spent time listening to more TED Talks by Sarah and found her extremely funny and entertaining. She breaks down the barriers between races, sexes, classes, and cultures, but letting us into each other's world through the characters she portrays. She does a beautiful job shining a light on the charming and good qualities in the people she imitates. I especially love her Jewish Aunt character. She is someone I could spend time with and learn from. Sarah is not building stereotypes in her work, but breaking them down, and allowing us into each other’s life. This brings the pendulum out of a hard swing, and into a middle ground that is gentler and kinder.
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