Seven Sisters on pinterest - racist or just weird?

[fakepigtails73]

I really wonder why they have that page up. Do the girls want their parents to adopt a chinese girl because of sex selection and/or to save a heathen child? None of those of kids look like children who are currently in an orphanage. Plus they might want to do some reading if they have dreams of adopting a Chinese baby. It isn't like it was 20 years ago.

I think they want to save a heathen child from hell.

I know, it's really bizarre...

They act like they were 8 yrs old, looking for penpals in Asia...

What a weird life.

[darareaksmey]

(Although, I find them to be way more attuned to pop culture and stuffs than most fundies. They just seem to be intentionally obtuse sometimes.)

Thank you, my point. :clap: :clap: :clap:

[FloraDoraDolly]

I thinik they're a lot less extreme than many of the fundies we see here, and I just can't give them a hall pass.

Miseducated is the word that comes to mind for me. Exposure to the outside world is not enough. In a way, they're similar to illiterate Americans. Half the adult population of Detroit is not functionally literate, yet nearly all of these folks have attended school. Their schools were-- and still are-- of a poor quality, but the students still would have been exposed to books. These illiterate adults live in a city where there are street signs everywhere. They encounter other forms of printed material in their daily lives-- advertisements, labels on groceries, magazines in the waiting room at the doctor's office, etc. Despite these repeated exposures, they still can't read. It just doesn't click with them. If they're ever going to read, they need someone to sit down with them and teach them what they didn't learn in school.

On a social level, we're seeing a similar phenomenon with the fundies. As children and adolescents, they recived an inadequate education. No, they are not illiterate in the same sense as the aforementioned residents of Detroit. But the fundies have missed other crucial aspects of a good education. They know *how* to read, but their reading material was heavily censored. They learned history and geography via a "Christian worldview" curriculum. At the school of the dining room table, multicultural education does not exist, or else it's presented in the form of missionary stories. If you were to point out to the Seven Sisters that their "Chinese" page could be construed as racist, I doubt they would "get it" unless you really took the time to sit down and teach them.

[latraviata]

Naivety and being sheltered doesn't mean that aren't being racist. I really wonder why they have that page up. Do the girls want their parents to adopt a chinese girl because of sex selection and/or to save a heathen child? None of those of kids look like children who are currently in an orphanage. Plus they might want to do some reading if they have dreams of adopting a Chinese baby. It isn't like it was 20 years ago.

I think they want to save a heathen child from hell.

I think they are collecting cute baby pictures because their natural biological development is not at all in balance with their sheltered and extremely 'Weltfremd' existence. I really pity them.

I do not think we should look for something behind this childlike behaviour to collect pictures of cute Chinese babies, no more than a average teenager collecting pictures of movie stars or any other idol.

This is just very sad.

[darkplumaged]

I agree with FloraDoraDolly and latraviata. Just because these girls are not quite as sheltered and out of it as, say, the Maxwells, they are far, far from the mainstream. If you told them that collecting pictures of Asian girls could be construed as objectifying them, I think they'd be surprised and contrite.

My few years of fundie studies have taught me that people who grew up in fundamentalism and stayed in are not like the rest of us. They don't know the same things, don't think the same way. That's not to excuse them. It's just how it is, at least IMO.

[Rhetorica]

On a social level, we're seeing a similar phenomenon with the fundies. As children and adolescents, they recived an inadequate education. No, they are not illiterate in the same sense as the aforementioned residents of Detroit. But the fundies have missed other crucial aspects of a good education. They know *how* to read, but their reading material was heavily censored. They learned history and geography via a "Christian worldview" curriculum. At the school of the dining room table, multicultural education does not exist, or else it's presented in the form of missionary stories. If you were to point out to the Seven Sisters that their "Chinese" page could be construed as racist, I doubt they would "get it" unless you really took the time to sit down and teach them.

This. As someone who was raised Amish Mennonite and homeschooled, I find this explanation very apt for my experience. Now after nearly a decade in academe, I'm appalled when I read the Sunday school papers lying around my parents' home. And then I remember that it was once very normal for me. Sigh.

[terranova]

http://pinterest.com/7farmgirls/africans/

Now they have one for "Africans". Aka, little black Sambo.

[latraviata]

http://pinterest.com/7farmgirls/africans/

Now they have one for "Africans". Aka, little black Sambo.

As I said, like the Asian babies these children are adorable, like any other child for that matter.

[latraviata]

Do all children and adults other than caucasion are in desperate need our protection? Because racism is lurking everywhere? Isn't that a bit patronising? Are they just human beings like we all are, or are they victims per se, because we feel the urge to protect them against what??? Adoring

their babies?

[Anise]

I can understand as a girl coming across a picture of a cute baby or kid and thinking "awww!", but in my opinion, it's weird and possibly objectifying to save the picture to look at later. Also, to categorize them by race?! Maybe some people wouldn't consider that racist, but surely it's perpetuating the social construct of race.

Also, I think it's amusing that they entitled the one of East Asians "Chinese" but called this other one "Africans". Funny how so many Americans treat Africa (or at least just sub-Saharan Africa) as one unit/place.

[terranova]

Do all children and adults other than caucasion are in desperate need our protection? Because racism is lurking everywhere? Isn't that a bit patronising? Are they just human beings like we all are, or are they victims per se, because we feel the urge to protect them against what??? Adoring

their babies?

If that was what they were doing (adoring babies), then why catagorise them by race? Why not just a "cute babies" board? I think it's creepy, ignorant and a bit racist.

[Boogalou]

Oh my. Why don't they just make a page, call it cute kids and be done with? I don't think you can give someone a pass on racism because they don't know any better.

[fluttershies]

Do all children and adults other than caucasion are in desperate need our protection? Because racism is lurking everywhere? Isn't that a bit patronising? Are they just human beings like we all are, or are they victims per se, because we feel the urge to protect them against what??? Adoring

their babies?

It's not about protection. Racism IS very widespread, and fetishizing people of colour like the Seven Sisters are doing is racist. As a result, people are unhappy about it. What's so hard to understand about that?

I don't think the racism was intentional but it's still racism.

[gardenvarietycitizen]

Do all children and adults other than caucasion are in desperate need our protection? Because racism is lurking everywhere? Isn't that a bit patronising? Are they just human beings like we all are, or are they victims per se, because we feel the urge to protect them against what??? Adoring

their babies?

Against exoticising them. They don't need your protection but there's no reason not to call out creepy for being creepy.

And yes, "oh, cute little China dolls" is creepy. Just like all those "oh my little egg rolls" adoption pages were creepy. It's Othering.

[slickcat79]

I find their "<3 Chinese babies" page and their "dogs are so cute" page to be quite similar. They have the same hearts and smiles and comments too.

Also, somewhat OT, but from reading some of the comments I really think they need to go back to the SOTDRT for some more grammar lessons...

[bananacat]

I think they're both naive and racist. Intent is magic. You don't have to wear a white robe or lynch people to be racist. In fact, the vast majority of racist people think they have good intentions. Think about it this way: Patriarchs treat women like infants under the pretense of protecting them. Does that mean they're not sexist because they think they are doing something good when they assume women can't handle a full time job? What about Jim Bob Duggar and all the others who put their wives on a pedestal and act like they should be treated like queens? Is that not sexist just because they are thinking something good of that woman? In the past, black people couldn't be leaders in the Mormon church, and the excuse the white leaders gave is that black people just already had too much to to deal with without the added responsibility of leadership. Does that mean it wasn't racist because they had good intentions? Being racist is bad. Refusing to ever examine your own racism makes it ten times worse, IMO. The seven sisters don't get a pass because of their naivete.

There are also different types of racism, covert and overt. Covert is much harder to combat because so many people will bend over backwards to say it doesn't exist. It's still harmful.

I also don't like this idea that some people are just too gosh darn stupid to ever stop being racist/sexist/whatever. In high school, there was a boy in special ed who sexually harassed my friend. She complained about it and his teacher refused to do anything because she assumed he could never understand that treating people badly is wrong. I don't think that the seven sisters are dumb, but even if they were it wouldn't excuse this.

[darareaksmey]

If that was what they were doing (adoring babies), then why catagorise them by race? Why not just a "cute babies" board? I think it's creepy, ignorant and a bit racist.

[fluttershies]

I think they're both naive and racist. Intent is magic. You don't have to wear a white robe or lynch people to be racist. In fact, the vast majority of racist people think they have good intentions. Think about it this way: Patriarchs treat women like infants under the pretense of protecting them. Does that mean they're not sexist because they think they are doing something good when they assume women can't handle a full time job? What about Jim Bob Duggar and all the others who put their wives on a pedestal and act like they should be treated like queens? Is that not sexist just because they are thinking something good of that woman? In the past, black people couldn't be leaders in the Mormon church, and the excuse the white leaders gave is that black people just already had too much to to deal with without the added responsibility of leadership. Does that mean it wasn't racist because they had good intentions? Being racist is bad. Refusing to ever examine your own racism makes it ten times worse, IMO. The seven sisters don't get a pass because of their naivete.

There are also different types of racism, covert and overt. Covert is much harder to combat because so many people will bend over backwards to say it doesn't exist. It's still harmful.

I also don't like this idea that some people are just too gosh darn stupid to ever stop being racist/sexist/whatever. In high school, there was a boy in special ed who sexually harassed my friend. She complained about it and his teacher refused to do anything because she assumed he could never understand that treating people badly is wrong. I don't think that the seven sisters are dumb, but even if they were it wouldn't excuse this.

QFT

[jesssnerch]

This is a little off topic, but along the same lines. I remember watching Jon & Kate + 8 (don't judge) and on one episode Kate said something like, "I love my China doll babies" and also, "I always wanted Asian children." I'm paraphrasing but this is basically what she said. I was absolutely horrified, especially since those kids and her (ex) husband are of Korean heritage. Anyway, I'm sure the Sisters think that because they are referring to ethnic children with love, they are not racist but they totally are.

[CanadianHippie]

Since the Seven Sisters seem to be reading here, I have to ask: Is this all because you can't own Canadians?

[terranova]

Since the Seven Sisters seem to be reading here, I have to ask: Is this all because you can't own Canadians?

:lol: :lol: :lol:

[meda]

The page seems to have been removed from pinterest, I get a 404 error message.

[terranova]

http://pinterest.com/7farmgirls/i-chinese-children/

http://pinterest.com/7farmgirls/africans/

I can still see them

[ohmeohmy]

It's still there. I was just on Pinterest, browsing the Everything page, and came across a recent pin of an Asian baby pinned by the 7farmgirls. So they must have just pinned it to have it show up there, I guess. I clicked on their main boards and could see the "Chinese baby" board and the "African baby" board, so they're still up. Pinterest might not be working consistently, though. I've been noticing it acting weird lately.

[moreorlessnu]

Interesting how they have at least 2 pages devoted to "So-and-So's dream house". I wonder if this means a communal dream house for all of them, or if they actually do intend to someday move into their own homes.