aucu

Racism ageism and sexism at the CBC



http://news.national...c-no-caucasian/

A casting call to hire a new CBC host that specifically said white people need not apply has been withdrawn, with the casting agent offering apologies for the mistake.
The original ad for the host of a children’s show, posted on the casting agency’s website under a CBC logo and on Craigslist, said: “Please only submit [an audition tape] if you match the following criteria:
Male between the ages of 23-35 years;
Any race except Caucasian.”

A new version of the ad removes the race reference, but maintains the sex and age restrictions and that applicants “must be able to carry a tune,” “ability to dance or move well is a bonus,” and should be “not afraid to show a silly side,” among others.

The revised casting call was issued and the Craigslist ad deleted Monday after critics on Twitter started questioning the restriction.
The exclusion shocked many, including Alex Guibord, a communications consultant in Toronto.
“It is wrong in any ad to exclude people — women need not apply, specific races need not apply, gays can’t apply,” he said in an interview.
Adding that he is of mixed race and gay, he thinks exclusionary policies are out of line: “You’re trying to be more inclusive, visually, by being exclusionary.”
The independent agency contracted by the CBC to post the ad said it was a mistake.
“We apologize. We made a mistake and we’re apologizing profusely,” said Larissa Mair of Larissa Mair Casting and Associates Inc.
“I’m mortified,” she said.
“We were asked to seek a cast of diversity. We mistakenly took that to mean that the production was not seeking Caucasian actors. This was a mistake that was made entirely by the casting company.
“Of course, it’s open to all ethnicities,” she said.
Chuck Thompson, head of media relations for CBC English Services, said the language in the ad was regrettable but the public broadcaster was indeed looking for diversity.
“At CBC, inclusion and diversity is a priority. This means reflecting Canada and its regions as well as the country’s multicultural and multiracial nature,” says a letter the CBC provides casting agencies, forwarded by Mr. Thompson.
“As a part of our commitment to this priority, we are now reaching out to our partners in production to ensure that a concerted and documented effort be made … to cast actors who reflect Canada’s diversity,” the letter says.
“Our focus in this latest initiative is simply to ensure that our search to find the best talent is broad and inclusive.”
Said Mr. Thompson: “Regrettably, in this particular case, it’s clear that our language was not used but it will be corrected.”

The show being cast was Patty and Mamma Yamma. In past Kids’ CBC shows, Mamma Yamma is a yam puppet who runs a fruit and vegetable stand in Toronto’s Kensington Market.
The casting call also offers tips for applicants.
“Make it your own and show off your personality. We’re not looking for someone to play a character, but to be himself,” it says. “The lighting and sound are key — we want to be able to clearly see and hear you, so shoot your audition somewhere quiet and well lit.”
Applicants must also submit a photo and résumé.
The audition script to be performed features a host talking directly to young viewers.
“Oh hi! I’m so glad you’re here!” the script reads. “It’s ‘Healthy Me’ week, and I was just about to do some exercises to help me get strong and healthy. Hey … why don’t you do them with me?”
The host then runs on the spot while ad libbing to the audience.

Seems ridiculous that people are hoping that the bomber is of one race or another, I think that makes them just as or more racist than the reaction that they fear.

http://thestar.blogs...-is-white-.html
04/18/2013

Here's hoping the Boston Marathon bomber is white


The hunt continues for the Boston Marathon bomber, or bombers. As the complicated investigation continues, Americans anxiously await news of his ethnic identity. If the suspects are Muslims it is sure to exacerbate social tensions. And if the bomber is white? Some are hoping the attacker or attackers are just that -- for the sake of social cohesion and America’s well being.
David Sirota argues in Salon that the suspects' racial identity will “dictate what kind of governmental, political and societal response we see in the coming weeks.”
He writes: “That means regardless of your particular party affiliation, if you care about everything from stopping war to reducing the defense budget to protecting civil liberties to passing immigration reform, you should hope the bomber was a white domestic terrorist. Why? Because only in that case will privilege work to prevent the Boston attack from potentially undermining progress on those other issues.”
Anti-racist campaigner Tim Wise writes that if the suspects are white it will have no bearing on how white people in general are treated, pointing to 50 examples including Oklahoma bomber Tim McVeigh and Olympic Park bomber Eric Rudolph.
"White privilege is knowing that if the Boston bomber turns out to be white, we will not be asked to denounce him or her, so as to prove our own loyalties to the common national good. It is knowing that the next time a cop sees one of us standing on the sidewalk cheering on runners in a marathon, that cop will say exactly nothing to us as a result.
“White privilege is knowing that if this bomber turns out to be white, the United States government will not bomb whatever corn field or mountain town or stale suburb from which said bomber came, just to ensure that others like him or her don’t get any ideas."
Amy Davidson observesin the New Yorker that the Saudi bystander who was injured in Monday’s carnage was immediately and unfairly viewed with suspicion because he was a Muslim.
“The bombing could, for all we know, be the work of a Saudi man—or an American or an Icelandic or a person from any nation you can think of. It still won’t mean that this Saudi man can be treated the way he was, or that people who love him might have had to find out that a bomb had hit him when his name popped up on the Web as a suspect in custody. It is at these moments that we need to be most careful, not least.”
The Toronto Star's Rick Westhead is reporting from Boston. Read his latest reports here and here
Hamida Ghafour is a foreign affairs reporter at the Star. She has lived and worked in the Middle East and Asia for more than 10 years and is the author of a book on Afghanistan. Follow her on Twitter @HamidaGhafour

http://www.boomplaye...5299_0D93851BEE

PS has six VIP levels but the lobby shows 7 stars, what is the star above Supernova Elite?