Racism + Relocation (an unexpected combination)

Allow me to clarify:

Racism refers to a national geographic article in the current January 2008 issue. I couldn't find a link online but it is near the beginning in the GEOGRAPHY section. Below I have copied my letter to the editor and encourage you to do the same if you are as affected by it as I am.


Relocation refers to the move of my blog to wordpress. It is going to be much more comprehensive and I'm polishing it up before releasing it to the masses. For a sneak-peak click here. Plans are in progress for a more personalized website at ecopapercrafts.com (nothing is up currently) with increased user options. Unfortunately this blog has been neglected as I've been focused on wordpress. Your patience is valued!

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Dear Editor:

Please tell me that I'm not the only one disturbed by the illustration paired with The Politics of Adoption. While Ice Warriors (warrior? spare me: this is like saying that golfing or fly-fishing is heroic) gets a full page spread, the urgency and need for international legislation preventing impoverished children being sold to the highest bidder only gets a half-page blurb -- paired with a horrifying portrayal reminiscent of pop-culture characterizations of black people in the early 1900s which served as the platform for the Jim Crow laws. Not to mention the heinous depictions of Jews and Gypsies that fueled the rise of Nazi power. Not only did this rely on antiquated racial stereotypes to generate interest, it unnecessarily detracted from the article being taken seriously. This shows a blatant lack of editorial integrity. I'm appalled that a publication revered for being a leader in setting the journalistic standard would make such an oversight. There's an old apothegm: "A picture is worth a thousand words." What does this say about the editors and vision of National Geographic? You tell me.