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Post by scrapaddict702 on Jul 7, 2020 8:29:35 GMT
In all honestly, I'm completely surprised that they just didn't ignore this entirely because I just never would have thought they'd make a political statement of any kind (got a letter from SU in the mail today about 'everything going on in the world' that was so vague it could have been about literally anything which made the sentiment fall on its face). I fully expected the big companies to completely ignore it and move forward like nothing ever happened. If you want to see an amazing video using some of the only items with diversity from AC, take a look (I'm going to be saving the video and copying the idea because I just love how it turned out): www.youtube.com/watch?v=8KIOwxNV_HkAnd yes, there are comments calling this craft world Affirmative Action (the one I saw was blocked immediately) and I called out someone else who is a white woman who 'doesn't think race matters and has nothing to do with promoting crafts' and kept digging in deeper so I just called her what she was which was that she's 'selfish and ignorant of anything outside of her little world' because she legitimately believed that arguing (as a white person who sees white faces all over the industry) that it shouldn't bother others that there was a lack of diversity...so easy to say when you don't know what it feels like to have an industry you love ignore you. The only businesses I see with much diversity at all are the smaller ones, many of them stamp heavy (like Kelly Purkey) or digital designers.
One comment said there was a woman that investigated and discovered AC hasn't had a Black person on their team since 2013, but I didn't look further to confirm its validity. |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 7, 2020 13:38:57 GMT
It makes my heart happy how HARD they are (finally!) getting called out!!! I've noticed the "Design Teams So White" thing for YEARS! and I've called out some companies on their SM, but they return the next year w/another whiter than white design team. But, finally, they're getting called out LOUD! Glory! And still, there are the tone-deaf Karens: "So if you chose based on talent and the best were chosen, why then will you add more just because of their skin color?" OMFG. They will never learn or read or grow, will they?!? "One of the more common concerns I hear when discussing the value of corporate diversity is the fear that focusing on diversity in the hiring process may be compromising the quality of the person hired to fill a position. This concern is often expressed as âlowering the bar,â but as this expression has been heavily criticized, I now hear a variety of alternative euphemisms, such as âwe donât hire for color, we hire for talentâ or âwe only consider the best candidates.â Regardless of how it is expressed, the general idea is that expanding the pool of candidates to be more diverse requires relaxing the selection criteria so that more candidates can rise above the threshold for consideration. This post will give you the ammunition you need to blast this misconception out of existence and to make better decisions the next time you have the opportunity to influence hiring." www.forbes.com/sites/paologaudiano/2017/10/23/how-to-increase-diversity-without-lowering-the-bar/READ, Karen. LEARN, Karen. Get out of your systemic racist viewpoint, Karen. |
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Post by sleepingbooty on Jul 7, 2020 14:01:05 GMT
"One of the more common concerns I hear when discussing the value of corporate diversity is the fear that focusing on diversity in the hiring process may be compromising the quality of the person hired to fill a position. This concern is often expressed as âlowering the bar,â but as this expression has been heavily criticized, I now hear a variety of alternative euphemisms, such as âwe donât hire for color, we hire for talentâ or âwe only consider the best candidates.â Regardless of how it is expressed, the general idea is that expanding the pool of candidates to be more diverse requires relaxing the selection criteria so that more candidates can rise above the threshold for consideration. This post will give you the ammunition you need to blast this misconception out of existence and to make better decisions the next time you have the opportunity to influence hiring." Indeed, it's not lowering the bar, it's changing the criteria and no longer living in the white (middle class) bubble that prevailed until then. The underlying racism here is that this particular white (middle class) bubble is considered the best by these naysayers and the one minorities should "obviously" aim for. The parallel shift is seen as a downward one which is the true racist fallacy here. Again, I've recommended this book on the board last year, this year and I will again now: White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo. It explains everything, including this biased thinking. Also, there are freakin' consultants specialised in the diversity and inclusion field. Hire them. Pay that fee. It'll be worth it. |
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Post by lasteve1 on Jul 7, 2020 17:12:20 GMT
I started reading some of the comments on that instagram post, but there were just too many (I don't have all day), but it's interesting to see the discussion. AC should have been way more conscious years ago, but especially before selecting this most recent design team, so it's kind of shocking that it got to this... but at least they're doing SOMETHING. What a lot of the tone-deaf comments are totally missing is that selecting a DT is such a subjective process that you need selectors to actively seek out diversity, or they will subconsciously exclude it because they will gravitate towards DT applicants that are like them. I saw someone comparing it to running a marathon... but that's completely objective criteria so as long as everyone is in the running (literally, haha) it should be fair... but for something subjective like a DT you really need extra controls in place to counter implicit bias.
In the scrapbooking world with DTs they have been even more "white washed" than other industries... where other industries have had trouble including POC and other minorities, the scrap world seems to only include white, Christian, affluent women who are typically American (ocassionally Canadian) who are either a stay at home mom or retired grandmother.
I want a design team that includes:
(1) people of all races & skin tones
(2) people who are childless--married without children or single
(3) people who are not in a traditional nuclear family--live with extended family, single parents, blended families (I know AE has this which is great to see for me as someone in a blended family, but she was in a nuclear family when she got into the industry and she runs her own brand so not exactly the same thing)
(3) people who are not Christian/Mormon
(4) people who are not American
(5) people who are not wealthy (I get that they are trying to sell a product & its an expensive hobby, but there are lots of other people who scrapbook out there with a much different lifestyle/budget and their lives should be represented as well)
(6) people who work full time/have careers
(7) someone other than a straight woman? I know this hobby tends to be woman dominated, but maybe find a man? Or someone who is a member of the LGBT community? (I recall there was one girl years ago who was on the studio calico DT who was, I cannot remember her name, but I loved her style... but then she just deleted her blog & social media one day and just disappeared from the scrappy community)
Some additional thoughts I have on this:
+ Scrapbooking is not just about showcasing products, it's about showcasing your life and experiences. So possibly more than other industries, we NEED diversity reflected in design teams because we need the ability to see how the products can be used to showcase different lifestyles. Customers want to be able to see a sample page and be able to see their life in it... if it's all toddlers and temples, I cannot relate.
+ When DTs have made an effort to add someone who doesn't fit their "mold" perfectly, they have diversity in one or two areas listed above and then meet the mold otherwise. For example, there is a talented crafter who is on many DTs who is middle eastern/muslim, but she is also a wealthy American SAHM. Of course that's better than no diversity at all, but it makes it look like they were just trying to check a box while still staying in their "comfort zone" rather than branching out to have a truly diverse team.
+ Larger companies (like AC) should be doing market research on WHO is buying their products and they should make more of an effort to make sure that their DT represents who their customers actually are. If they are not getting applicants that parallel their customer demographics they need to figure out why and how to reach those additional people. They also should be looking into who they want to buy their products, not just who already does. This is a larger issue, but when I tell people I scrapbook a common reaction is "I thought only white wealthy SAHMs do that" especially when I scrapbooked in my 20s in college. The hobby just isn't approachable to a lot of people who don't fit that criteria even if they would want to try it. Companies should be trying to fix this perception... if the face of the company (DTs, products, named designers) were more inclusive, my guess is their customer base would expand as well...
+ To truly combat the implicit biases that come along with such a subjective selection process they need to re-evaluate WHO is doing the selecting. If they still only employ affluent white American Christian moms to do the DT selection, there is always going to be some bias. They need to not only re-evaluate who is on their DT but also who is doing the selecting. Expanding their DT to include a few additional POC isn't getting to the root of the problem if they aren't also switching up who is doing the selecting... (of course, for a small company that is just one or two people who own the company this is not really something that can be changed and so they need to combat their biases in other ways. But for a large corp like AC, if they were diverse in their hiring they would never have had this issue).
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Post by Deleted on Jul 7, 2020 18:08:04 GMT
Did anyone manage to grab a screen capture? It would have been interesting to see it in black white and white  |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 7, 2020 20:15:50 GMT
I started reading some of the comments on that instagram post, but there were just too many (I don't have all day), but it's interesting to see the discussion. AC should have been way more conscious years ago, but especially before selecting this most recent design team, so it's kind of shocking that it got to this... but at least they're doing SOMETHING. What a lot of the tone-deaf comments are totally missing is that selecting a DT is such a subjective process that you need selectors to actively seek out diversity, or they will subconsciously exclude it because they will gravitate towards DT applicants that are like them. I saw someone comparing it to running a marathon... but that's completely objective criteria so as long as everyone is in the running (literally, haha) it should be fair... but for something subjective like a DT you really need extra controls in place to counter implicit bias. In the scrapbooking world with DTs they have been even more "white washed" than other industries... where other industries have had trouble including POC and other minorities, the scrap world seems to only include white, Christian, affluent women who are typically American (ocassionally Canadian) who are either a stay at home mom or retired grandmother. I want a design team that includes:(1) people of all races & skin tones (2) people who are childless--married without children or single (3) people who are not in a traditional nuclear family--live with extended family, single parents, blended families (I know AE has this which is great to see for me as someone in a blended family, but she was in a nuclear family when she got into the industry and she runs her own brand so not exactly the same thing) (3) people who are not Christian/Mormon (4) people who are not American (5) people who are not wealthy (I get that they are trying to sell a product & its an expensive hobby, but there are lots of other people who scrapbook out there with a much different lifestyle/budget and their lives should be represented as well) (6) people who work full time/have careers (7) someone other than a straight woman? I know this hobby tends to be woman dominated, but maybe find a man? Or someone who is a member of the LGBT community? (I recall there was one girl years ago who was on the studio calico DT who was, I cannot remember her name, but I loved her style... but then she just deleted her blog & social media one day and just disappeared from the scrappy community) Some additional thoughts I have on this:+ Scrapbooking is not just about showcasing products, it's about showcasing your life and experiences. So possibly more than other industries, we NEED diversity reflected in design teams because we need the ability to see how the products can be used to showcase different lifestyles. Customers want to be able to see a sample page and be able to see their life in it... if it's all toddlers and temples, I cannot relate. + When DTs have made an effort to add someone who doesn't fit their "mold" perfectly, they have diversity in one or two areas listed above and then meet the mold otherwise. For example, there is a talented crafter who is on many DTs who is middle eastern/muslim, but she is also a wealthy American SAHM. Of course that's better than no diversity at all, but it makes it look like they were just trying to check a box while still staying in their "comfort zone" rather than branching out to have a truly diverse team. + Larger companies (like AC) should be doing market research on WHO is buying their products and they should make more of an effort to make sure that their DT represents who their customers actually are. If they are not getting applicants that parallel their customer demographics they need to figure out why and how to reach those additional people. They also should be looking into who they want to buy their products, not just who already does. This is a larger issue, but when I tell people I scrapbook a common reaction is "I thought only white wealthy SAHMs do that" especially when I scrapbooked in my 20s in college. The hobby just isn't approachable to a lot of people who don't fit that criteria even if they would want to try it. Companies should be trying to fix this perception... if the face of the company (DTs, products, named designers) were more inclusive, my guess is their customer base would expand as well... + To truly combat the implicit biases that come along with such a subjective selection process they need to re-evaluate WHO is doing the selecting. If they still only employ affluent white American Christian moms to do the DT selection, there is always going to be some bias. They need to not only re-evaluate who is on their DT but also who is doing the selecting. Expanding their DT to include a few additional POC isn't getting to the root of the problem if they aren't also switching up who is doing the selecting... (of course, for a small company that is just one or two people who own the company this is not really something that can be changed and so they need to combat their biases in other ways. But for a large corp like AC, if they were diverse in their hiring they would never have had this issue). Can I also add #8: crafter who has a child with special needs. Be it Autism, LD, DS, rare genetic condition, different mobility, ect. I have a hard time relating to pinterest IG perfect mommies and kids. đ€·ââïž My life is messy and busy and chaotic and different. |
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Post by hop2 on Jul 7, 2020 21:07:01 GMT
Itâs not just AC, the whole industry is skewed.
Some companies make an effort, like Altenew at least has a large part of the globe covered ( Kymona is awesome btw )
I follow some people on IG Because I like their styles so Tazhiana Gordon & Victoria Marie have been around for some time and have been on DT, which I only know from following them, not following the companies. Tazhiana is on Aliâs right now. Victoria is with Catherine Pooler & several others. My IG is more diverse than these design teams and I didnât have to try hard, I just followed people whose work I liked.
It should not be just a handful of people though there are so many talented artists out there, and they must have an online presence because Iâve found them.
But then you look around and some companies are still tone deaf - Scrapbook & cards today Design team doesnât seem very diverse, pinkfresh not really, Elizabeth craft designs isnât either. I could go on but why bother itâs all pretty bad.
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Post by Embri on Jul 7, 2020 21:12:27 GMT
I mean if no Persons of color applied, ok. Not okay - better to ask, "Why was everyone else made to feel unwelcome enough they didn't even bother to apply?" Because plenty of talented non-white-female-presenting crafters exist. The same problem has been a problem since forever in gaming clubs / tabletop games / trading card games. Women & minorities exist, and while not as numerous as their white-male counterparts do buy and enjoy all those hobbies. They don't attend events because of the way they get treated or made to feel unwelcome by the regulars. |
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Post by joblackford on Jul 7, 2020 21:58:11 GMT
I mean if no Persons of color applied, ok. Not okay - better to ask, "Why was everyone else made to feel unwelcome enough they didn't even bother to apply?" Because plenty of talented non-white-female-presenting crafters exist. The same problem has been a problem since forever in gaming clubs / tabletop games / trading card games. Women & minorities exist, and while not as numerous as their white-male counterparts do buy and enjoy all those hobbies. They don't attend events because of the way they get treated or made to feel unwelcome by the regulars. And judging by the large number of suggestions and responses on the apology post, it looks like there are many Black crafters who wouldâve applied if theyâd known that they were welcome/invited or if theyâd even known there was a DT call (which, correct me if Iâm wrong, but I donât remember seeing or hearing anything from AC opening their DT for public application - I got the sense that it was an invite-only situation). |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 7, 2020 22:14:30 GMT
Not okay - better to ask, "Why was everyone else made to feel unwelcome enough they didn't even bother to apply?" Because plenty of talented non-white-female-presenting crafters exist. The same problem has been a problem since forever in gaming clubs / tabletop games / trading card games. Women & minorities exist, and while not as numerous as their white-male counterparts do buy and enjoy all those hobbies. They don't attend events because of the way they get treated or made to feel unwelcome by the regulars. And judging by the large number of suggestions and responses on the apology post, it looks like there are many Black crafters who wouldâve applied if theyâd known that they were welcome/invited or if theyâd even known there was a DT call (which, correct me if Iâm wrong, but I donât remember seeing or hearing anything from AC opening their DT for public application - I got the sense that it was an invite-only situation). I have heard from a few scrappers in the business that ACs DT call was in the know if you know what I mean. |
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Post by joblackford on Jul 7, 2020 22:17:09 GMT
Did anyone manage to grab a screen capture? It would have been interesting to see it in black white and white The only place I saw it was a flash at the beginning of clevergirlcraftings IGTV and itâs the thumbnail of her post. It barely shows for a split second so I couldnât click fast enough to capture it but you can see half of it here from her IG grid.  |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 7, 2020 22:20:44 GMT
Did anyone manage to grab a screen capture? It would have been interesting to see it in black white and white Victoria Marie did. She has a great IG story about it all |
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Post by joblackford on Jul 7, 2020 22:28:39 GMT
scrapaddict702 the graphics that I saw yesterday went back to 2013-14 and I donât think there was a single Black crafter on any of the teams. The stories have disappeared now but I think thatâs as far back as they went and although there were some people with âforeignâ names that was all the diversity I could see. This google search (hopefully) shows the team pictures from this year (although the posts have been removed) and posts from previous years too ETA Tagging @zingermack
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Post by hop2 on Jul 7, 2020 22:44:02 GMT
And judging by the large number of suggestions and responses on the apology post, it looks like there are many Black crafters who wouldâve applied if theyâd known that they were welcome/invited or if theyâd even known there was a DT call (which, correct me if Iâm wrong, but I donât remember seeing or hearing anything from AC opening their DT for public application - I got the sense that it was an invite-only situation). I have heard from a few scrappers in the business that ACs DT call was in the know if you know what I mean. Which IS the problem! |
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Post by hop2 on Jul 7, 2020 22:48:27 GMT
scrapaddict702 the graphics that I saw yesterday went back to 2013-14 and I donât think there was a single Black crafter on any of the teams. The stories have disappeared now but I think thatâs as far back as they went and although there were some people with âforeignâ names that was all the diversity I could see. This google search (hopefully) shows the team pictures from this year (although the posts have been removed) and posts from previous years too ETA Tagging @zingermack Of course, letâs sweep it under the rug and put our fingers in our ears and say la la la la la la la until everyone goes away. Heaven forbid they do real work to actually solve the issue. |
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Post by joblackford on Jul 7, 2020 22:54:08 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jul 7, 2020 23:47:39 GMT
Thank you, joblackford. Utterly astounding how deep their bubble is. Actually, it's not a bubble. A bubble is easy to pierce. It's a freaking bomb shelter 50' under ground made with 6' concrete walls, floor & ceiling, no light, no windows. |
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Post by lostwithout2peas on Jul 8, 2020 0:02:36 GMT
Thank you, joblackford. Utterly astounding how deep their bubble is. Actually, it's not a bubble. A bubble is easy to pierce. It's a freaking bomb shelter 50' under ground made with 6' concrete walls, floor & ceiling, no light, no windows. Well, they are sitting in the mecca of whitewashed Mormonville Utah, so it reminds me so much of BH's tone deafness. I don't know if the owners are Mormon, but being a stones throw from Salt Lake City, I'm sure a majority of their employees are. I think they where thinking they where gonna slip under the radar like they have for so many years. Maybe not so much "thinking", just going about their merry way like they usually do, status quo with the non-diversity. Being that they are the biggest name in scrapbooking, they never thought they would be attacked. Especially not by big names, a large amount of followers and the consensus is deafening: wake up!! Now they are backpedaling, but like BH, do they really know or want to learn in this new world we are trying to forge for the betterment of our fellow black sisters and brothers? We shall have to wait and see how they handle this debacle moving forward! |
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Post by lisacharlotte on Jul 8, 2020 0:50:51 GMT
I get most of this dirt first on the Planners Gone Wild FB group. Havenât missed a controversy yet, and they are quick.
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Post by lasteve1 on Jul 8, 2020 0:57:21 GMT
Can I also add #8: crafter who has a child with special needs. Be it Autism, LD, DS, rare genetic condition, different mobility, ect. I have a hard time relating to pinterest IG perfect mommies and kids. đ€·ââïž My life is messy and busy and chaotic and different. Yes! I was thinking about this after I posted and considered coming back to edit--crafters that are moms of children with special needs or have special needs themselves! Also, just in case you didn't know and wanted the inspiration, Ali Edwards' son has autism and she's had layouts/projects about it that she has shared. |
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Post by Embri on Jul 8, 2020 10:31:44 GMT
80% of those ladies (who are all lovely, not hating on them!) look like they could be from one guy's dating card. They're very similar in facial build, hair, age, style, etc. Even the poses! Again, nothing wrong with the way they look, but you'd be hard pressed to have chosen a less diverse group of crafters.
It looks like deliberate white-washing to me, and I'm 'broil like a lobster in the sun' white myself. If I can notice it, then it ain't subtle! |
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Post by sleepingbooty on Jul 8, 2020 16:20:15 GMT
80% of those ladies (who are all lovely, not hating on them!) look like they could be from one guy's dating card. They're very similar in facial build, hair, age, style, etc. Even the poses! Again, nothing wrong with the way they look, but you'd be hard pressed to have chosen a less diverse group of crafters. Now, now, ~*~two~*~ of them wear glasses! Diversity + inclusion: â  |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 10, 2020 9:15:20 GMT
AC not have diversity! OMG! Are you serious? Wow! Who knew! Completely rolling my eyes here. Of course they don't have diversity. They hire complete yes girls. Get rid of anybody who gives an opinion. I am going to say it I think they actually did get rid of Becky Higgin's because she had an opinion. We all know how opinionated Becky is. I have been suspecting for years that's why they slowly got rid of her brand. Then Shimelle gives an opinion, according to scrapbook gossip, and now no more Shimelle. See a pattern here? A major scrapbook star has a husband who had a major IG account that slut shamed women. His whole account was slut shaming. AC keeps releasing lines from her. AC has always promoted a certain type of clientele- white women with money. Even on Becky's thread over here white women are commenting how far Becky has fallen because her cards are at Dollar Tree. That's a good example of income/race inclusion. Side note I watch a lot of DT hauls and a lot of black ladies are buying Becky, Heidi's & Lizzy's items at Dollar Tree. They are thrilled to get them. I know all the drama with AC and Becky. I was thrilled to get some of her PL cards and a lot of Heidi's marquis line at Dollar Tree. I have asked, begged, cajoled for years that AC provide more diverse lines from a variety of races and income ranges. I have been told several times plural, that even though it would be nice to have more diverse ranges is it really a feasible profit maker since most black people do not scrapbook? When I brought up that was racist I was called out about it. Unbelievable how tone white deaf privileged this industry will always be. I know Kristina was mentioned here in this thread. I had to laugh because I bet Kristina is enjoying the Karma. A lot of those women who were so cruel to her we are now attacking. This thread makes me so angry. I am so damn mad that in 2020 it is still rich privileged white women whose damn pages I have to stare at and be "inspired" to buy AC's whatever latest they are trying to sell. Note to AC- IT DOES NOT INSPIRE ME! IT ENRAGES ME! IT FEELS LIKE A MANIPULATION TACTIC! I can only be a good scrapbooker that deserves AC's privileged merchandise if I just need to accept I need to be "fake" white, religious, complicit and bend to a man's will. I agree with Embri "Why was everyone else made to feel unwelcome enough they didn't even bother to apply?" I see a lot of token goodwill now because this is a new story and social media trending thing to many white people, even over here. Once the new controversy comes out all of that token goodwill is going to disappear again. White women will rule the crop tables and the DT's once again. The door will be firmly closed to those of race and low income. Side note- Embri that makes me sad about your gaming groups. My group is hugely minority and most of us are low income to. It's been like that since we were twelve and most of us are edging to the age of 50 now. I haven't seen that kind of racism in my gaming groups. I am not saying that doesn't exist because I know you are right. I have heard it discussed before It makes me so angry that gamer's are acting like scrapbookers. Both of us could go on a tangent about how chauvinistic and rapey our gaming industry is to females though. I just wanted to let you know that some gaming groups race/class/sexuality has never been an issue. It is been about friendship and who has the coolest dice collection. The only time I heard anything racist in my gaming group was when a jerk said "Hey you are Gypsy I bet you get Alan Lee!" Oh girl I am telling you by the time I got done with him I am surprised he had any balls left. My personal favorite "You are really beautiful. I bet you would be even more beautiful if your eyes weren't slanted!" OMFG! Both got banned from our group and banned from other groups. |
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Post by Skellinton on Jul 10, 2020 14:15:56 GMT
AC not have diversity! OMG! Are you serious? Wow! Who knew! Completely rolling my eyes here. Of course they don't have diversity. They hire complete yes girls. Get rid of anybody who gives an opinion. I am going to say it I think they actually did get rid of Becky Higgin's because she had an opinion. We all know how opinionated Becky is. I have been suspecting for years that's why they slowly got rid of her brand. Then Shimelle gives an opinion, according to scrapbook gossip, and now no more Shimelle. See a pattern here? A major scrapbook star has a husband who had a major IG account that slut shamed women. His whole account was slut shaming. AC keeps releasing lines from her AC has always promoted a certain type of clientele- white women with money. Even on Becky's thread over here white women are commenting how far Becky has fallen because her cards are at Dollar Tree. That's a good example of income/race inclusion. Side note I watch a lot of DT hauls and a lot of black ladies are buying Becky, Heidi's & Lizzy's items at Dollar Tree. They are thrilled to get them. I know all the drama with AC and Becky. I was thrilled to get some of her PL cards and a lot of Heidi's marquis line at Dollar Tree. I have asked, begged, cajoled for years that AC provide more diverse lines from a variety of races and income ranges. I have been told several times plural, that even though it would be nice to have more diverse ranges is it really a feasible profit maker since most black people do not scrapbook? When I brought up that was racist I was called out about it. Unbelievable how tone white deaf privileged this industry will always be. I know Kristina was mentioned here in this thread. I had to laugh because I bet Kristina is enjoying the Karma. A lot of those women who were so cruel to her we are now attacking. This thread makes me so angry. I am so damn mad that in 2020 it is still rich privileged white women whose damn pages I have to stare at and be "inspired" to buy AC's whatever latest they are trying to sell. Note to AC- IT DOES NOT INSPIRE ME! IT ENRAGES ME! IT FEELS LIKE A MANIPULATION TACTIC! I can only be a good scrapbooker that deserves AC's privileged merchandise if I just need to accept I need to be "fake" white, religious, complicit and bend to a man's will. I agree with Embri "Why was everyone else made to feel unwelcome enough they didn't even bother to apply?" I see a lot of token goodwill now because this is a new story and social media trending thing to many white people, even over here. Once the new controversy comes out all of that token goodwill is going to disappear again. White women will rule the crop tables and the DT's once again. The door will be firmly closed to those of race and low income. Side note- Embri that makes me sad about your gaming groups. My group is hugely minority and most of us are low income to. It's been like that since we were twelve and most of us are edging to the age of 50 now. I haven't seen that kind of racism in my gaming groups. I am not saying that doesn't exist because I know you are right. I have heard it discussed before It makes me so angry that gamer's are acting like scrapbookers. Both of us could go on a tangent about how chauvinistic and rapey our gaming industry is to females though. I just wanted to let you know that some gaming groups race/class/sexuality has never been an issue. It is been about friendship and who has the coolest dice collection. The only time I heard anything racist in my gaming group was when a jerk said "Hey you are Gypsy I bet you get Alan Lee!" Oh girl I am telling you by the time I got done with him I am surprised he had any balls left. My personal favorite "You are really beautiful. I bet you would be even more beautiful if your eyes weren't slanted!" OMFG! Both got banned from our group and banned from other groups. I am the one who posted about BH being at Dollar Tree. I sure as hell donât think it was racist or income discrimination. I shop at the Dollar Tree all the damn time, I donât look down at anyone who shops there. I was joking about how far she has fallen because she is such an elitist with her $400 house numbers (or whatever ridiculous pricey item it was she bought for her McMansion after her other went into foreclosure) and she would never shop there herself. I joked about her going there to autograph them because of her previous behavior. Was it a dumb/not funny joke, obviously, but I donât think it was racism or income snobbery. |
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Post by hop2 on Jul 10, 2020 16:05:23 GMT
It makes my heart happy how HARD they are (finally!) getting called out!!! I've noticed the "Design Teams So White" thing for YEARS! and I've called out some companies on their SM, but they return the next year w/another whiter than white design team. But, finally, they're getting called out LOUD! Glory! And still, there are the tone-deaf Karens: "So if you chose based on talent and the best were chosen, why then will you add more just because of their skin color?" OMFG. They will never learn or read or grow, will they?!? "One of the more common concerns I hear when discussing the value of corporate diversity is the fear that focusing on diversity in the hiring process may be compromising the quality of the person hired to fill a position. This concern is often expressed as âlowering the bar,â but as this expression has been heavily criticized, I now hear a variety of alternative euphemisms, such as âwe donât hire for color, we hire for talentâ or âwe only consider the best candidates.â Regardless of how it is expressed, the general idea is that expanding the pool of candidates to be more diverse requires relaxing the selection criteria so that more candidates can rise above the threshold for consideration. This post will give you the ammunition you need to blast this misconception out of existence and to make better decisions the next time you have the opportunity to influence hiring." www.forbes.com/sites/paologaudiano/2017/10/23/how-to-increase-diversity-without-lowering-the-bar/READ, Karen. LEARN, Karen. Get out of your systemic racist viewpoint, Karen. Itâs not about âlowering the barâ many people have the qualifications that are looked for. ( if not higher ) itâs about the small little things that they look at other than the qualifications. The things that then in corporate America get labor a good or bad âfit for usâ in which fall things like skin color, hairstyle, dialect etc. of those only dialect has any value as a qualification and Iâd suggest they challenge that too. I honestly donât know why everyone has to speak so homogeneously, like on the news. Jobs are still about who you know as opposed to what you know and itâs time to break free if the good ole boys club mentality and find people who approach things from a different perspective. Any way itâs about seeing ideas from outside your comfort zone and scrapbook companies have an extremely difficult time with that because such a large portion of the industry is owned by people from a specific Stepford bubble. And specifically with scrapbooking, as opposed to other paper crafts, the pictures on your layouts will give them a âclueâ if âyouâ can fit into the Stepford mold they are looking for. Corporate America canât change ( hadnât really itâs just hidden more ) I donât really expect scrapbooking industry to lead the way but great if it happens. I desperately want fresh air blown into the scrapbook industry because the typical scrapbook products no longer fit my life & my story telling. The colors are limited. The phrases are out of touch or old fashioned. The patterns are limited. More diverse DTâs & crafters Will eventually lead to more diverse designers providing products for a wider audience. đ€đ» Both the card making industry and the planner industry are a little bit ahead in seeking out different audiences, younger audiences, more varied cultural audiences. One would think, since they seem to be seen as a shrinking or dying industry that scrapbooking companies would be out seeking ways to appeal to a wider audience but it almost seems as if they doubled down on not changing at all. |
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Post by amidwestkingdom on Jul 10, 2020 19:42:17 GMT
American Crafts announced their new DT. Not a single Black person. (edited to add: or any POC. I didnt see their original photo in time, but apparently all the women were white) They've been called out about it and only now are going to let Black crafters join the team now. WOW. How tone deaf can they be? http://instagr.am/p/CCT9IWpFO30 Oh, guess I won't be making that Crate Paper purchase after all. Whew, I take a break and come back and get drained all over again. Some of those comments were vicious like the "affirmative action," one for crafts. Geesh, the reality of racism in this crafting community is pouring out. Focusing on joy and shopping my stash is the best anecdote right now. I have to use the supplies I invested in for years knowing that I invested in racism smh. |
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pancakes
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,992 
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Post by pancakes on Jul 16, 2020 21:41:06 GMT
Did yâall see that one of the people AC asked to apply (after being called out) is Victoria Marie?
Sheâs applying.
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pancakes
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,992
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Post by pancakes on Jul 24, 2020 18:20:52 GMT
They announced the new DT. A couple of these folks look like they were plucked out of obscurity (which I love). Glad to have some new people to follow. http://instagr.am/p/CDCLxF7HmYV |
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Post by Jessica on Jul 24, 2020 18:48:35 GMT
Was just coming here to post this! đ
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Apr 20, 2024 9:06:46 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jul 24, 2020 19:35:17 GMT
Nice! I have followed Calvin, Fields, and Gordon cor some time so it will be fun to see what they create!
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