America: Emily Stack

Hello friends from the Netherlands!

My name is Emily Stack, I'm from Boston, Massachusetts, and I'm in my first year in University. I went to an all-girls high school right next to Fenway Park, where the Boston Red Sox play. This is what happened after we won the World Series in 2013. But now I live in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the dorms of the University of Michigan.

Fenway Park 

I am involved on campus in a sorority, Pi Beta Phi, and I am in an organization called the Sports Business Association. For the SBA I go to a lot of lectures by well-known sports business professionals, and learn about how the sports business world is operated. A few more facts: I have a twin brother who goes to college back in Massachusetts, and my favorite sports team is the Boston Bruins (a hockey team).

Here's my brother and I at our senior prom (no we didn't go together):

And here's a classic UMich game-day picture:

In our Dutch class, we recently learned about Zwarte Piet, a tradition that is being scrutinized. Personally, I find it incredibly racist, due to the use of black face. Black face has an offensive history in America, and I'm sure in other countries as well. It used to be a way for actors to portray black characters, and those characters were typically caricatures of African-Americans. The characters were usually goofy, carefree, and unintelligent; I understand that Zwarte Piet is portrayed in a similar way. By putting on blackface in order to be seen as goofy, ect., you're suggesting that the blackness of the character is integral to the character's personality. This suggests something about the color of a person's skin and is demeaning. Even though the Dutch tradition may not be intentionally racist today, it is impossible to separate it from its racist beginnings and history.
This is an article about how people in America need to stop wearing blackface for Halloween costumes.

What are some stereotypes about Americans that you have?