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StephanieCastillo
RhodaLukens
UWRT1101
3/16/2014
GenreAnalysis
Racismanddiscriminationwasthegeneraltopicofmychoice,andsurprisinglythereare
manygenresthatdepictthatandportrayapowerfulmessagetothatparticularsubject,weather
goodorbad.AsIwassearchingtheInternetIwasabletofindatremendousamountof
advertisementsthatillustratedracismanddiscrimination,manyofthemwerefoundtobe
controversial.Theoneadvertisementthatimmediatelycaughtmyeyewasbyacompanynamed
Licra,(whichstandsfortheInternationalleagueagainstracismandantiSemitism).Thisisan
organizationwhowasfoundedinFranceaddressesandprovidesalertnesstoallkindsof
discriminationaroundtheworldtheyalsopublishanewspaperinwhichtheyexpresstheircore
valuesandbeliefsonthesubjectofracism.TheparticularpieceIchosefromthisorganization
wasanadcalled,YourSkinShouldntDictateYourFuture).Depictingthemessagethatone
shouldntbebrandedbythecoloroftheirskin,aswellaslimitedtotheamountofjob
opportunitiesbecauseofthecolorononeskin.Theotherformofgenrechosenwasan
advertisementaswellcreatedbyEMMA(ethnicMulticulturalMediaAwards)titledBlood
Bags.Theyaswellareanorganizationthatraisesawarenessofdiscriminationthroughmedia
campaigns,socialnetworking,andtheEMMAawards.TheAdistryingtoconveythatthe
undeniabletruthofthematteristhatwereallthesameunderneath.Bothoftheseadvertisements
areattemptingtosendoutverypowerfulmessagesonantidiscriminationandantiracismby
prayingonpeoplesemotions.CarefullyillustratingtheAdvertisementstosendoutaspecific

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messageofAntiDiscrimination.TheyStratigectlyandcarefullyconstructedittoariseawareness
byspecificallychoosingchildrenastheirexamplesofdiscrimination.
Theyourskinshouldntdepictyourfutureadvertisementconsistofinfantbabiesina
hospitaldeliveryroom,likenormal,allthebabiesarelayingsidebysidenexttoeachother.
Therearethreebabiesintotal,twoCaucasianbabiesandonebabywhoseemedtohaveamore
darkershadeofskincolor,anditsclearlyfromanotherrace,mysuggestionwouldbefrom
Hispanicorigin.ThetwoCaucasianbabiesareontherightandleftoutercribsandthebabywith
thedarkerskincolorshadeitsinthemiddle.Hereswherethecontroversyandtheactual
messagecomesintoplay,thenewborninthemiddleisdressedinamaidcostumes,alongwitha
fishnetbonnetoverherheadandaduster.Ithasadiverseaudiencebeingthatthespecific
ethnicityofthenewbornchildisunknown.Thepurposeoftheadvertisementwastopointoutthe
stereotypicalwayofthinkingsocietyhastoday.Onamoreprecisepointofviewtheaudience
wasmeanttobefortwogroups,Caucasiansaswellasthesubgroupsmadeupofminorities,
peopleofadarkershadeofskin.IpresumespecificallytargetedtowardsCaucasiansthatbelong
toamoreprivilegewealthycommunity.Thesubgroupsoftheminoritybelongtoamorelower
incomecommunity,peoplewhomareborninthislifestyleanddonthavealltheperksand
opportunitiestobecomesuccessfulrightofftheback.Thebeautyofthisadvertisementisthatas
soonasyoulookit,itsalmostguaranteethattherewillbeareaction.Weatheritspositiveor
negativeiscompletelyuptothepersonbutareactionisdefinitelyexpected.Onethingthey
madeobviouswasthesubjectoftheadvertisementassoonasyoutakeaglancethefirstthought
thatishighlightedisthatitssomethingtodowithrace.Letsbehonest,typicallytosociety,when
itcomestoissuesofraceitsalmostalwaysbydefaulttheCaucasianraceversusanyotherrace.

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TheywereverystrategicwhenplacingtwoCaucasianbabiesoneachoppositeendalongwith
theonespecificmixedbabyinthemiddledressedinaadultmaidscostume,someonecan
automaticallythinkinequality,unfairness.Whyarethetwobabiesdressedcomfortable,while
thepoormixedchildinthemiddleisinclothingthatisclearlymakingherfeelirritablesinceshe
hasafrownonherface.Itwouldnttakelongatallforsomeonetoanalyzethisadvertisement
andmaketheirownmeaningastowhattheythinkorfeel.Theinitialmessageofthe
advertisementwastoinawakenawarenessondiscriminationintheworkforce,alsoarising
awarenessofdiscriminationinsocietyitself.Forexample,itcansymbolizehowsomedecent
payingjobs,maysometimesdictatewhotheyhirebasedontheirskincolororpeople
appearances.Thisadvertisementspeaksvolumesshowingtherealityofmillions.Sadlybuttrue,
mostbabiesfromthesecondtheirborn,infact,willlivealifeofpovertyandfitintothe
statisticalstereotypesofminorities.Onapositivestandpoint,somepeoplemayviewthisasmore
ofapositivemessagethisadvertisementcanalsobeinterpretedasadailyinspirationalreminder.
Bylookingatthispictureone,whobelongstolowincomefamiliesandminoritycommunities,
maythinkthatalthoughfrombirththeywerebornwithnotmanyprivilegestheydonthavetofit
intothestereotypeofbeinglowincomeworkerstheirwholelives.Yes,theadshowsthemixed
newborndressedinamaidcostumenexttotwoseeminglyprivilegeCaucasianbabies,butitalso
reinforcesandremindsthosetodisregardstereotypesandtohavenolimittooneshopesand
dreamsonbecomingsuccessful.
Itismoresoeffectivethattheyusenewbornsbecausetypicallynewbornsaredelicateand
typicallypeoplecategorizebabieswithinnocence.Toseesuchapowerfulmessagebeing
mimickedthroughbabiesitsanattentiongrabberandplaysahugeroleinpeoplesemotions.

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Peoplegetemotionalandprotectivewhenitcomestobabiessoseeingahelplessbabywithno
knowledgeofthehorrificfuturethatsaheadofherbreaksyourheartandgivesyoutheurgeto
wanttodoanythingtochangethat.Someonemaythinkthatitispreposteroustochoosechildren
asasymbolofracismwithoutthemhavinganyrecollectionofwhattheirreallyportrayingtothe
public,butIbelieveitgenius.Thekeytousingchildrenistospecificallyraiseopinionsonthe
subjectathandnomatterwhattheopinionmaybe.Thecreatorsofthisadvertisementpurposely
tookthepictureinthedeliveryroomtoshowtheimmensityandtowhatextentstereotypingcan
go.Tothepointthatassoonasyouaredeliveredfromthewombyouarestatisticallystereotyped
towhatlifeyoumostlikelywouldhaveortowhatyoucanamountto,showinghowunfairofa
statisticitis.Italsoinsinuatesthatevenwhenyouhavenorecollectionoflifeitself,society
believesyouwouldamounttoacertaincriteria.Thisgenrewascompletelyinformal,wordedso
thateveryonecanunderstandthemessagebeingdisplayed.Itwasntwordedwithdifficultwords
orwithanycomplicatedriddlesitwasplainandsimple.Wordedsothatevenanineyearold
childcanreadandpossiblyunderstand.
TheBloodBagadvertisementwasverysimple,itconsistedoffourpintsofblood.,not
specificallycategorizedfromwhomitcamefrom,theyalllookthesame.Thepintofblood
looksexactlythesameasthebloodtransitionspouchesyoureceiveinthehospital.Inthe
advertisementitboldlystatesthephrase,Racist.Yourchildneedsapintofbloodtolive.Pick
thewhiteone.Thenitcontinuesonsaying,black,white,brownoryellow.Whateverthecolor
ofyourskin,wereallthesameunderneath(Saatchi).Thisgenreisclearlytargetedtowardsthe
worldorspecificallyCaucasianswhompossessprejudicebelieftowardsanyotherparticular
race,tobemorespecific,withchildrenaswell.Theaudiencewouldautomaticallyknowthatthis

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isanantidiscriminatoryadvertisementduetothefactthattheyrechallengingyoutochose
whichbloodlineyoufeeliswhite,orworthyenoughtosavethelifeofyourchildifneedbe.The
audiencewouldnthavetotakemuchtimetodepictthepurposeofwhatthisadvertisementis
tryingtodisplay.Themessageinitselfitsselfexplanatory,whenitcomestothingsthatarevery
precioustoyou,inthisparticularcaseyouchild,thereisnolimitastowhatyouwoulddoto
savethatchildslife.Racismsornotifyourchildneedsabloodtransplantoranymedical
assistant/donationthefirstquestionthatwouldnotbeasked,ifthebloodistrulycompatible,is
whatracewasthepersonthatdonatedtheblood?Mostimportantlyremindingusthatunderneath
wereallthesame.Weallpossesqualitiesthatcanlifteachotherupasawhole,asAmericans,
ashumans.Thatifonlywestopfocusingonhowfairthecolorofyourskinisorwhatraceyou
are,wecanallowourselvestostartfocusingandfixingmuchmoreimportantthingsinlife.On
howwhenitcomestoreallifesituations,andtopeoplewhomareclosetoyou,youdowhatever
ittakesinordertoprotectwhatsdearesttoyounomatterthecost.Questioningtheracist
Caucasianaudience,howmuchofadiehardracistsareyou?Andattheendofthedaydoesit
reallymatterwhatcoloryourskiniswhenthingsgetrealandyouhaveanultimatum?
Thisadvertisementwasdesignedspeciallytobeaffectivetotheaudiencebecauseitsgets
extremelypersonal.Horribleoccurintheworldandalthoughwegetupsetorsympathizeit,its
nosecretthatthingshavemoreofaneffectonhumanswhenitsclosertohome.Beingthatthey
askyou,despiteyourbeliefsifyourchildhadtousesomeonespintofbloodtolive,forcesthe
audiencetobroadentheirsetwaysofthinking.Speciallymakingitalmostimpossibleforyouto
beabletochooseaspecificracethatofferedthepintofbloodforyourchild,sothatithumbles
andsoftenstheheartsoftheaudience.Designedtoquestiononesracialbelievesinasarcastic

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matter,somemayfinditoffensive.Itssimplyaskingtheaudience,sinceyoursosurethe
Caucasianraceisthebestandaredifferentlydesignedassuperiors,thenyouwouldthinkyoud
knowwhichspecificbloodisgoodenoughtosaveyourchildsliferight?Thebeautyofthe
advertisementisthatitremindsusonhowifyoulookpasttheskincolor,orethnicitywereall
thesame,weallaremadeofbonesandbleedthesame.Havingdifferentpintsofbloodfrom
differentculturesallappearingrelativelythesameevokes,andalmostforcesyoutolookat
diversity.Almostforcesyoutolookpastthefactthatracismsisminorandanonfactorcompare
toalltherealissueswefaceeachday,especiallyhealth.Thisadvertisementwasinformal,
speakingtonotonlypeoplewhohavesuccessfuljobs,butaregularjoewhocarryprejudice
beliefsintheirheartstowardsthenonCaucasianpopulation.Theyusewordsthatareeasyto
understandforthatspecificreason,theyneverusehighlyintelligentvocabulary,ormedical
termsondiseases,theykeepitsimplereachingalargemassofpeople.Ialsonoticehowthey
dontnameanyspecificrace,theyonlynameskincolors.Showinghowthisdoesntonly
addressesablackandwhiteissue,butracismtowardsothernonCaucasianethnicities.
Bothgenreswereextremelysuccessfulgettingtheirmessageouttotheiraudiences;they
werestraighttothepointandstatedboldopinions.IfImustsaywhichessaydidabetterjobat
grabbingattentionandraisingawareness,IwouldchoosetheadvertisementcalledYourskin
colorshouldntdictateyourfuture.AssoonasIlookedatitarushofemotionsranthroughmy
body,IalsofeltmymindbeingstimulatedandIgotthemessage.Althoughtherewasonlyafew
sentencesillustrateintotheadvertisement,theyallowedthepicturetodomostofthetalking.
Cautiouslyconstructingthephototowhereitalmosttellsastoryandspeaksforitself.People
todaydontusuallypayattentiontoadvertisementswithtoomanywordsunlesstheyrejust

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sittingsomewhere.Displayingsuchaboldpowerfulportraitallowsfortheaudiencetobe
imprintedinsomewaywhentheylookattheimagewithoutevenhavingtoreadwhatitsays,it
arousesdiscussionandthoughtflow.Iwasextremelyimpactedandmoresoinspiredtobe
different,tobeproudofwhereIcamefrom.Thatalthoughstatisticsdepictsmylifetobea
certainway,Iwillbreakfree.
Italmostamazesmehowgenressurroundusineveryway,fromveryboldgenres,to
evenlittleoneshiddeninthethingsweseeeveryday(TV,internet,etc).Genreplaysahugerole
inshapingthewaywebehaveandreacttocertainthings;theycanbeveryinformativeaswellas
apowerfultoolintheadvertisementindustry.

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WorkCited
Colucci,Alessandra."LICRA:DoNotLettheSkinColortoDecideTheirFuture."BrandCare
Magazine11Nov.2010.Print.
Saatchi&SaatchiLondon.Advertisement.BloodBagsJune2002.Web.

Stephanie,
Ok,firstofall,IlovetheBloodBagsad!Thatispowerfulandmakesyouthink!
YouranalysisofthesetwoadsisonethatIwouldqualifyasbeingontherighttrack,butyou
stopshortwithmostofyourpointsjustbeforeyouconnectfully.Forexample,youmentionthe
emotionalresponsetheadachievesduetoitspersonalnature,butyouneedtodiscussthe
specificsaboutwhichpartispersonalandwhatmakesitthatway.Muchofyourargument
centersonyourtopicasawholeandhoweachadiseffectiveintheiroveralldiscussionofthat
topic.Whataboutthelanguage,especiallygivensofewwordsforeachone?Howaboutthe
layoutforwheretheyplacedthewordsjuxtaposedwiththeimages?Whataboutthecolors?Etc.
etc.etc.
Inaddition,Idstillliketoseesomeimprovementswithyourlevelofsentencestructureand
dictionformuchofthereasonsIveoutlinedinthemargincomments.Yourargumentand
individualpointscanbecommunicatedinamoreclearandconcisemannerthatwouldalsocut
downonsomeofthelengthandstillsaythesamething.
(10pointsbecausenocomparisonchartsubmitted)74/100

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Yourskincolorshouldntdictateyourfuture.

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BloodBags.

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