An issue that was brought to my attention
recently was one of false accusations based on racial stereotypes.
In light of a recent case reported in the
New Zealand Herald, where Christina Victor was unjustly ‘accused of shoplifting
and told she ‘looked dodgy’,’ I was disturbed to read further of other falsely
accused shoplifters who came forward after hearing about 19-year-old Victor’s
experience. This story prompted me to think of the racial stereotypes, overt
and inferential racism, and the outcome of psychological damage that these
powerful ideologies inflict not only upon the individual, but on society as a
whole.
Victor was approached by two security
guards, and led through Westfield Mall to Glassons, where she was interrogated
by staff and blamed for stealing a pair of shoes. Victor was ridiculed, pointed
at, and laughed at, despite being innocent. In her words: “My hands were
shaking and I felt like crying. They were staring at me like a piece of meat.”
In this video, it is apparent that Victor is still suffering from the
psychological effects of the public ridicule and the judgments and perceptions
of other people that she had to put up with.
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| Victor was noticeably upset in the interview with the New Zealand Herald |
Hall’s theory of inferential racism holds
true here and the situation that Victor experienced can be understood in terms
of a discourse that naturalises racial stereotypes and exerts power relations
to maintain social order. Victor’s case alone is not necessarily an example of
racial stereotyping, but many others have stepped forward who, like Victor,
have been wrongly accused of shoplifting based on racial premises. Ms Daggar,
who is described as having ‘darker skin,’ compared her experiences of being
targeted as a shoplifter, to her blonde haired, blue-eyed sister, who had never
experienced anything of the sort. Racial grouping, or stereotyping is a
‘commonsense’ and naturalized way of reducing and classifying a group of people
to a certain few, negative characteristics based on their skin colour.
Psychologically, stereotyping is a way of understanding the world around us,
and is often used as a tool to ‘know’ who to trust, and who not to. The
ideological effects, however, of stereotypes can lead to judgements and action,
and are dangerous, widespread and largely invisible. In the case of Victor’s
experience the shop attendant backs up this largely prevalent inferential
racism with an unconscious judgement about Victor’s character; “I don’t know
her but she looked dodgy.”
From a historical, institutional and
sociological perspective, however, it is important to analyse how the accused
are framed, who is framing them, and who is controlling the representation in
the media. The binary oppositions at play in the construction of ‘the other,’
versus the white eye are historically evident. The shop attendant deemed Victor
as a thief: disloyal, dodgy, lawless and unreliable. The socio-cultural
construction of the other can be traced back to historical stereotypes, and is
constantly being reworked, redefined and repeated throughout the media,
particularly aligning certain ethnic groups with characteristics such as
violence. The shop attendant’s judgment of Victor’s character may not have been
conscious, rather instilled by a set of discourses and ideologies that shape
her worldview. This points to how important ideologies are for providing the
framework, or lens in which we understand our experience of ourselves and
others. The grounds in which decision-making, acting upon or in this case, accusing,
may appear neutral, but are actually constructed by discourses and ideologies.
Another important aspect when analyzing
race relations is the ‘colour-blindness,’ and attitudes of ‘reverse racism’
that those in power often subscribe to. This is a reflection of how racial
discriminations are constructed through ideologies to appear normalized, but
are in actual fact an interaction between representation and power, used to
maintain social order. The shop attendants, according to Victor “didn’t apologise,” and the Glassons
chief operator, Stuart Duncan, dismissed any cultural insensitivity and
humility Victor incurred, assuring the New Zealand Herald that staff followed
normal procedure. It is important to think about his position and why he has the
authority to neutralise the cultural assumptions and ideological attitudes that
have come up in this discussion.
I think it is important to think about
these articles with an analytical viewpoint, so we can challenge the discourses
and break the chain of ideologies and stereotypes that so many have come to
believe as truth. I’d love to hear any other opinions on this topic!
The West and the Rest: Discourse and
Power pp.165-173
Author/editor: Maaka, Roger.; Anderson,
Chris
The Whites of their Eyes: racist
ideologies and the media pp.89—83
Author/editor: Dines, Gail.; Humez, Jean
McMahon
NZ Herald News
The fact that this girl who does not match the idea of a perfect shopper and is stereotyped as the image of the perfect shoplifter is a reminder that we still have those type of people who perpetuate the idea shoplifters are based on the color of your skin... Black person, alarm bells are ringing, call security. Poor girl, having to dignify herself with answers to probing questions and the response of laughter. Where is the humanity... If that ever happens to me, im going public and kicking a hornets net via social media and mainstream media.
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