Thank you for starting this thread. I've been listening and trying to learn as much as possible about what others experience and what I as a white woman will never experience. I also appreciate everyone sharing their experiences and helping to teach people like me even though you dont and shouldn't have to.
I have to admit that I have yet to have a talk with my kids (son is 6 and daughter is 3) about race. I was under the impression that not pointing out our differences or raising them "to not see color" as some say was the right approach, but is actually not the way to go based off articles and posts I've read. I'm struggling with the right words to bring it up or the best way to explain it in a way they'll understand. My son has described different cartoon characters or people on tv as having brown skin and I just go about the rest of the conversation and don't stop to correct him. He's simply trying to tell me which character he's talking about and there's no malicious intent behind it, but afterwards I always feel like I missed my moment and that I'm part of the problem. I just want to raise kind, empathetic humans who see/judge people for the content of their character and not by their race, sexual orientation, religion, etc.
Disclaimer: I'm not a parent, so I can't relate in that sense. I'm thinking the conversation will evolve over time. Like
@TummyGirl said, it may need to start by encouraging diversity. When they get older, they will start to understand that not everyone is treated equally in our society, and not everyone is afforded the same opportunities for a lot of reasons. Personally, what I hope to instill in my nephew is the idea that there are people that don't get to experience life the same way we do as white people. We need to recognize that and listen to when people need help, or when we need to speak up.
Hope this doesn't details things, but seeing this post about having a watching party I thought I might ask this question ...
What can I do to be more excited/prepared to watching Hamilton on Disney+?
I have seen clips of the show and they didn't really "wow" me. I have gotten the soundtrack and listening through and I like some of the songs but a lot just don't seem distinct to me and just not into it
I do really like In The Heights so I don't think I am just anti-Lin Manuel Miranda or anything.
I mean, it is art so obviously not everyone has to like it but I know it is such a phenomenon and so many people love it so I want to make sure I go in and prepared and in as receptive a kind as possible
My husband hasn't been wowed by it either. Me on the other hand, I've never heard anything like it. I was lucky enough to see it on tour in February before all the Covid madness took over.
I think the things I love the most are the recurring musical themes - each main character has a musical theme or phrase that carries through the entire show. Some that come to mind are the "Rise up", "Helpless," "History has its eyes on you," "Wait for it," etc. How those things change for each character. It might be something fun to look out for while watching.
Another fun one is I believe LMM has obviously been inspired by hip hop artists over the years, and I think each of the main male characters that have substantial rap numbers are modeled after artists like Biggie, Busta Rhymes, etc. That for me is really fun. There was a whole video on the breakdown, which I loved! I couldn't find it, I think Vox put it out, but this is a good article:
http://www.slate.com/blogs/browbeat..._the_rap_and_r_b_allusions_in_lin_manuel.html
I think what speaks to me most with Hamilton is how the show has evolved from its premiere. I think the meaning of "this is not a moment, it's the movement" has really changed over the last few years, even in the last couple months. I look at it through a different lens in 2020 than I did in 2015.
As you can tell, I'm STOKED to watch it tomorrow!