Where would our country be today without Sesame Street. Since 1969, the cast of characters -and often celebrities – have been expanding children’s minds and teaching them acceptance and inclusion from a young age. The Street just got two new neighbors, Wes and Elijah are black or brown, and they are there to further diversify the cast – they will be working to teach racial literacy. In their first episode they explained to Elmo about the skin’s magical pigment. Melanin occurs in the hair, skin, and iris of the eye in people and animals. The pigment is there to protect us from the sun’s harmful UV rays. Light skinned people have lower melanin levels and often tend to be more sensitive to the sun – these kids need extra sunscreen. I do not think they have yet explained to Elmo why he is red or to Oscar why he is green. The point is well made that the efforts of Sesame Street and other right minded educators could well result in the next generation being a lot more accepting than its predecessors. One can only hope!
I found it interesting that in a study commissioned by Sesame Workshop, racism was “top of mind for nearly half the children surveyed.” A majority of the parents surveyed said they were comfortable with their children learning about race through media. The parent’s also revealed that only 23% were able to find helpful resources. Kay Wilson Stallings, an Executive at Sesame Workshop, reminds us, “Sesame Workshop has always stood for diversity, inclusion, equity and kindness. As a trusted source for families, we have a responsibility to speak out for racial justice and empower families to have conversations about race and identity with their children at a young age.” I am willing to wager that Idaho’s embarrassing Indoctrination Task Force is not a fan of these notions of discussions with Wes or Elijah.
All of this made me think of Crystal Gayle’s memorable rendition of “Don’t it Make My Brown Eyes Blue.” In song it turns out you can change eye color simply by being sad over a personal loss. Humans can also change eye color with contact lenses, a more dangerous and complicated procedure, or through laser surgery. The laser destroys the pigment, or color cells in your iris. When the pigment goes away brown eyes truly look blue. Blue eyes have no pigment so you can only change one direction. This surgery is not recommended as the ongoing effects are uncertain. It is difficult for me to understand why eye or skin color can make a substantive impact on how we treat each other. Sesame Street teaches kindness and understanding through education.
Mr. Rogers concluded each show with this thought, “you’ve made this day a special day, by just being you. There’s no person in the whole world like you, and I like you the way you are.”
Enjoy the celebration of the Independence of our democracy. Mike