Vine calls BS on stereotypes

I’m a bit of a Vine addict. And Vine has a bit of a reputation as a breeding ground for stereotypes.

A lot of the “Vine celebrities” that have become so popular paved their way through videos depicting the differences between men and women or black and white people.
In the spirit of fall, a new stereotype has risen exclusively targeting white girls.

Basically, what I’ve learned from Vine is that if I have a pair of UGGs, a pumpkin spice latte and a jar of Nutella, I own a white girl’s soul.

I’m slightly concerned because I love all those things, too. So does that mean those are legit traits passed on to me from my white mother or am I experiencing another identity crisis?

Stereotypes are a tricky subject. In general they seem bad. They label a specific group of people based off the characteristics of a few. But I can’t deny that I use them constantly and base opinions off them. And I find some of them hilarious.

That’s where I think Vine is doing society a favor.

Jerry Purpdrank is one of my favorite Viners. His name is based on a stereotype. “Purpdrank” is a play on words that means grape Kool-Aid, the liquid of the gods to African Americans — based on a stereotype, of course.

Jerry is known for taking a racial stereotype normally aimed at black people and casting it in a humorous light. He addresses a broad range of stereotypes from silly ones like an obsession with watermelon and fried chicken, how black people can’t swim and how they drive. In one video he does a remake of “Cups” with badly written lyrics about Kool-Aid.

Sometimes the stereotypes are a little more serious, like the lack of father figures in the black community

There are racial comparisons like how white people react to magic tricks versus how black people react. White parents versus black parents.

Another popular Viner known for using racial stereotypes is Josh Kwondike Bar. His vines focus on the differences between white people and Asians. He freely makes fun of Asian eyesight and how strict Asian parents are about school.

Not everyone finds the short clips as funny as I do. Some comments accuse creators of being blatantly racist and shame them for encouraging the belief in such stereotypes.

Still, Jerry has over a million followers waiting to see the next clever racial comparison he comes up with, and Josh is following close behind.   

I don’t think Viners are encouraging stereotypes. They’re calling them out. Viners have found a funny way to take these preconceived ideas we have of other races and made them look as ridiculous as they really are. They’re not confirming anything. They see a silly idea others believe in and they call BS by dramatizing it.

In just six seconds, Viners are able to reveal and repeal more racism than what civil rights leaders took years to do. And at the same time, we can all get a good laugh out of it.

­— lnbanks@indiana.edu
Follow columnist Lexia Banks on Twitter @LexiaBanks.