The Paw Print

A news publication created by Baruch's College Now high school journalism class

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Brandy Melville’s unique and often biased hiring method

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Throughout the city, businesses from ice cream shops to clothing stores delve into hundreds of job applications filled with resumes and references from teenagers hoping to bring in some money for the summer. At Brandy Melville, they ask for your Instagram. 

Clothing store Brandy Melville launched stores in the US in 2009 and quickly became a teen hotspot. They have four locations in New York City filled with teenage girls looking for new clothes and others working at the cash register. The brand continues to gain popularity having an annual profit growth between 20-25%, according to digital marketing expert Jeff Bulla. As loved as the Italian clothing brand is, they have been criticized for scouting primarily young white employees.

Girls often get hired by being asked in the store if they are interested in working at Brandy Melville. If they say yes, the employee proceeds to ask for their name, availability and Instagram handle. 

“I was hired because they asked me in the store but I’ve noticed that they rarely ask girls of color to work when they’re in the store,” said one employee. To her knowledge, all of her colleagues were asked to work at Brandy Melville. “Applying has a much lower rate of success,” said the 16-year-old. 

Many shoppers experience seeing a flock of young, thin, white girls working at Brandy Melville. Their body types are a result of Brandy’s one size fits all clothes. This is an aspect of the store that faces criticism but ultimately, works in their favor. Justina Sharp, a 17-year-old fashion blogger described it to the Huffington Post as an exclusivity thing. Knowing that not everyone can wear the clothes makes more girls inclined to wear them. 

The company defended this choice saying there is something for everyone because they offer stretchy and loose items. In regards to the lack of racial diversity in their models and staff, the brand has not released a statement. 

15-year-old Isabel Greider talked about her sister’s experience working at Brandy Melville, saying, “Girls would get paid different wages (which my sister said was often racist).” 

Although there has yet to be other reports of racial bias in wages, the lack of diversity does not go unnoticed by shoppers, especially non-white ones. 

 “The employees are kind of rude…..I don’t see any black workers. I want to shop at a store where it’s diverse,” said one Google review. 

Greider elaborated on her sisters experience working at Brandy, “They took pictures of all the workers every day.” They were never told why. 16-year-old Gracie Paulson goes through a similar thing while shopping at Brandy Melville. Employees often ask to take a picture of her when she is wearing a vintage t-shirt. She believes it is to ‘steal’ the design. 

The brand had multiple lawsuits involving them stealing clothing designs-including one with Forever 21. The sales associates are also part of the brainstorming team and most likely photograph shoppers clothes for inspiration. 

In Brandy Melville’s New York City locations, the Google reviews are filled with comments complaining about the staff. “I’m so disappointed to give Brandy a 3-star rating (as I love their clothes), but I can’t lie. The staff there aren’t the sharpest tools in the shed and are extremely rude,” said Marie Khoury about the Soho location on Broadway. 

Despite review upon review of customers having trouble with staff, Brandy Melville has made no change in the way they pick their employees. Why? 

Lawyer and founder of The Fashion Law, an independent source of objective fashion law and business analysis, Julie Zerbo dissected the method to Brandy Melville’s madness. 

 The employees play a multipurpose role by not only looking the part but also acting as ambassadors, explained Zerbo. It is not uncommon for brands to use their employees to get input on what clothes they should make. 

It is more cost-effective to hire teen girls than to hire consultants; teenagers are content with minimum wage. Most importantly, the employees succeed in suggesting clothing designs that please the consumers. 

In regards to asking for employees Instagrams, the power of social media continues to grow. Brandy Melville wants girls with a strong following and an Instagram that reflects their brand. 

“It’s hard to say that it’s not kind of brilliant business,” said Zerbo.

A win for New York’s libraries: The promising investment

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On June 14, Mayor Bill de Blasio and New York City council were able to secure 33 million in additional funding in the FY20 executive budget for New York’s three library systems.

Many were shocked when Mayor de Blasio, an avid user of the park slope branch in Brooklyn, wanted to slash the New York City’s library system’s funding. Mayor De Blasio proposed cutting the funds at $10.4 million in operating funds from the city’s three public library systems in his latest budget proposal. The libraries seem to have grown under de Blasio’s watch by 88 million according to Spokesmen Raul Contreras with the Daily News. However, with a cut in New York City’s libraries, they would be unable to provide programming, updated facilities, more staff and security, and longer branch hours. 

Unable to deal with the decrease in funding of all three Library systems in New York City (New York, Brooklyn, and Queens) banded together in #InvestInLibraries.The increase in funding would allow the systems to maintain their current upkeep as cost arises, but also continue to provide for New York communities for generations. 

Advocates such as actress Sarah Jessica Parker were able to speak for the public on the investment in libraries, “Libraries mean a great deal to me and my family. I have been visiting my local library and borrowing books for as far back as I can recall. For the past couple of decades, Jefferson Market Library in Greenwich Village has been my local branch, and for my family and our community it is not only a regular neighborhood stop for books, programs, and more, it is a cornerstone, a beacon, and one of the most beloved buildings in our community. I don’t know what we’d do without it. I recently learned that the City is proposing budget cuts that would significantly impact services—fewer hours, fewer librarians, fewer collections, fewer programs, fewer classes.” Even if not as famous as Parker people were able to send in over  120,000 letters and 5,000 sticky notes according to Tony Marx the New York’s public library president.  

The additional funding in New York City’s libraries further proves the importance the libraries are to the New York community. New York’s community relies upon and well as uses the library for all it’s purposes no matter the need or want, the libraries provide it.

A library is more than a place that provides books and computers they provide a community. Whether you are rich or you are poor, the library is a place where you can study, read, go to one of the various enrichment programs they provide, play games, have storytime, the library can bring everyone together regardless of race, class, and or gender. The investment in the libraries is a win for all as the libraries of New York City continue to show importance in New York’s diverse and expansive community. 

 

Will fare finally be fair to the environment and its riders?

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Metrocards are trash. Literally. 

Between refilling and losing cards, a lot of customers can agree that the 27-year old transit fare system should be updated to prioritize New Yorkers’ convenience.

Patrick Foye, the CEO of the MTA, has decided to transition to OMNY by 2023. OMNY – One Metro New York – is a contactless card fare payment system, according to its website, omny.info. 

This new fare payment system claims to be more efficient because of its flexibility. No additional card is required with OMNY making the system more environmentally friendly. New Yorkers can use a contactless credit or debit cards available at most of New York’s major banks–Chase, HSBC, Santander, and Capital One–or they can opt for using Apple Pay, Samsung Pay, or Google Pay, or they can use the MTA OMNY app which will launch later this year.

When New Yorkers in Madison Square Park were asked how they felt about the MTA’s plans to update the fare system, responses were initially mixed.

“I like the Metrocard,” said Anne, who recently moved to the city. 

Andrew Introna, a college freshman and New York native, agreed, claiming he liked the convenience of the unlimited card. 

Anne and Andrew had a change of heart when they found out that the plastic used to make metrocards cannot be recycled. The MTA has tried combatting this by adding a $1 charge to newly purchased Metrocards to encourage riders to refill their existing cards. This had little success as Metrocards continue to scatter the floors of subway stations and transit centers.

Apart from the environmental aspect, Metrocards are also a huge waste of money. In 2011, WNYC reported that lost and unused Metrocards across the city add up to $52 million yearly. This is wasted money coming straight out of commuters’ pockets.  

OMNY claims it will improve the efficiency of the MTA, changing the daily commutes of millions of New Yorkers. 

One New Yorker, Victor, was concerned that people without existing credit and debit cards would not be able to use the city’s metro. To address this, OMNY will release its own card by 2021, which will work like a Metrocard. It is still unknown as to whether this OMNY card will be recyclable. 

AM New York reports the new fare system could also make fare more equitable. The MTA has faced backlash because not all New Yorkers can afford the monthly savings pass, despite the fact that New Yorkers of all socioeconomic backgrounds use transit daily. 

David Jones, an MTA board member, told AM New York, “With the [new] technology, if you in fact swipe through enough times in a month you could automatically be given the 30-day benefit,” which would create a more equitable fare system. 

Some New Yorkers were concerned about OMNY’s potential for security risks.“I prefer using a Metrocard because I’m used to it and I feel like using a credit or debit card can be more of a security risk,” said Julia Finnegan, who uses a Metrocard for her daily commute to school. 

Mastercard, which is one of the first companies to release a contactless card, is addressing these concerns by assuring users that the only thing transmitted on a contactless payment is a one-time code from the card to the reader that identifies the transaction. This makes fraud possible, but highly unlikely.

Systems like these have been implemented in cities all over the world. London updated its Oyster fare system in 2019 to ease the commute. Mastercard found that in London the cost to collect fares was reduced by 6% and that it took an average of 500 milliseconds to walk through the turnstile and onto the train platform. 

OMNY is still in its trial phase, but hopefully the MTA will work to smooth out some of the inconveniences the system has been causing in its early launch. Just last week, I tried the system on a Staten Island bound express bus. I tapped my card and found a seat. All was well until I opened my bank account to find that I had been charged $6.75 – the cost of fare – and an additional charge of $2.75 from the MTA. I was confused as to what this second charge was, so I called my bank.They refunded the money and are currently running an investigation to figure out what happened. This seemingly hassle free system ended up wasting more time and energy then it claimed to save. 

I have used OMNY everyday since last week’s incident and have not run into any more issues. 

OMNY is currently available on Staten Island buses and stops on the 4, 5, and 6 lines between Grand Central-42 St and Atlantic Ave -Barclays Center. By late 2020, OMNY will be available across the entire city, adding the Long Island Railroad and Metro North early in 2021. 

Sexism and Physical Attraction in Gen Z

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For those unaware, Gen Z is the most recent generation of human offspring. There have been continuous reports of sexual assault and sexual harassment over the years targeting this generation.

49 people between the ages of 14 and 18 were surveyed on their experiences, and how physical attraction as well as background plays a role in this.

36 out of 41 females surveyed have been catcalled by the opposite sex whereas 3 out of 7 males surveyed have been catcalled by the opposite sex. 0 out of those 36 females think it is a good feeling whereas 2 out of 3 of those males think it’s a good feeling. Despite how many people disagree, sexism targets more females than males. When females are catcalled they think it’s normal because of the way they’re physically built but they hate it nonetheless. 11 of the 36 surveyed females that have been catcalled described their feeling as uncomfortable. 2 of the 36 said they feel like “a piece of meat.” 2 of the 36 described catcalling as disrespectful. 1 female describes her feelings about catcalling as “Like I’m only worth as much as my body looks.” Another female says it “Makes me feel Downgraded like all they care about is what’s on the outside instead of what’s on the inside.” Another female surveyed said she felt like “a walking vagina.”

Those surveyed were asked about their type; their type as in the type of build they find attractive. 26 of the 41 females surveyed identify as heterosexual. Multiple said they look for a male who is African, Caribbean, Hispanic, or Black. 21 of those 26 females look for a long-term relationship when they are single. 13 of the 26 females say their past relationships have overall ended poorly. 10 of the 26 females often don’t interact with those they find attractive out of fear and shyness.

17 of the 41 females surveyed identify as part of the LGBTQ+ community. 13 of the 17 females have no racial preference while the others typically prefer someone Hispanic or Black. 13 of the 17 females surveyed seek long-term relationships when single. 11 of the 17 females say their relationships have overall ended poorly. One even said, “They broke up with me because I wouldn’t get in the bed with them.” 6 of the 17 often avoid interaction with attractive specimens due to shyness and awkwardness.

4 of the 7 males surveyed identify as heterosexual. 1 out of the 4 prefers certain races such as Hispanic, Caribbean, African, or Black whereas others have no preference. All 4 males look for long-term relationships when single. 2 of the 4 males say their past relationships have ended on a bad note. 3 of the 4 males would approach an attractive female while the other would allow the female to spark conversation.

3 of the 7 males identify as part of the LGBTQ+ community. 2 of the 3 males prefer someone either Caucasian or Black whereas the other has no preference. When single, all 3 males seek long-term relationships. 2 of the 3 males say their past relationships have ended due to a mutual decision. All 3 males would gladly engage with attractive specimens.

Out of the 49 people surveyed, 31 allow their parents to influence the types of people they find attractive. 26 of the 49 have allowed their peers to influence their views on attractiveness. 17 allow their siblings to influence them. 21 are influenced by relatives. Social media influences 29 of the 49. 24 consider the news an influence.

Overall, the people of Generation Z aren’t all as shallow as they’re made out to be. Some genuinely care about the person behind the mask. They don’t just care about what’s on the outside. Although many advertise that they seek casual hookups or short-term relationships, most of them don’t. Most of them seek long-term relationships. Regardless of where they live, they all have different perspectives on what is categorized as attractive. Also, no matter the gender or sexuality, there are outside influences when it comes to attraction. Those in Gen Z know that more than anyone else. They try to believe that they are their own person who makes their own decisions and couldn’t care less about what anyone says but deep down, they care more than they think they do. When faced with so many options, one is bound to have a preference.

The Growing Competitive Gaming Industry

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Michael Garcia 08/08/18

 

Years ago, competitive fighting games were only played in basements of someone’s house or in arcades. Now, there are stadiums filled with thousands of fans of competitive video games while thousands more watch from home.

 

One example is the Overwatch League Grand Finals at Barclays Stadium last month which gained about 20,000 people attending and the stream peaking at around 300,000.

 

In contrast, last weekend at EVO 2018 in Las Vegas, the Superbowl for competitive fighting games gathered about 10,000 people and a peak stream of 250,000 viewers.

 

This phenomenon has only happened because of the competitive video game’s dedicated community to keep their respective games alive. With local scenes getting new releases of their games, tournaments are easier to be held by buying consoles and tvs to stay at venues for people to use every week. This then translates to accessibility for newer players, allowing for games to become more popular.

 

Eventually, popularity to play competitively became mainstream for video game fanatics who want to show their skill to rest of the world. This then lead to media giants such as ESPN and Disney to broadcast eSports (Electronic Sports) tournaments. Not only that, but in 2014, Amazon acquired Twitch, the live streaming platform that continues to be the leader in online gaming broadcasts. YouTube has also jumped into the competitive video gaming community with the creation of YouTube Gaming.

 

With the introduction of media giants, the growth of a profitable market has surged as of recent. Companies such as Geico, Microsoft, Red Bull, Intel, Coca-Cola, and more have invested in sponsoring players and teams to capitalize on the growing industry. They fly out people to all over the world to compete, along with adding money into prize pools that are already huge for whoever wins it all.

Every sport in history has been built with media companies together and these type of corporations to accelerate their growth. The same thing goes with these global and local partnerships with media and tech companies in eSports.

It’s understandable why traditional media companies would want to capitalize on this trend before it becomes the mainstream. Approximately 300 million people worldwide tune in to eSport tournaments today, and that number is growing rapidly. By 2020, that number will be closer to 500 million, according to Business Insider. Eventually, eSports is expected to accelerate to a $3.5 billion industry by 2021, according to a report from Juniper Research.

Most of this success is owed to game developers who recognize how effective competitive gaming is to profit their brand. They release patches to balance characters so the game is more fair, along with helping fund for tournaments with the money made from selling the game. It increases player engagement, lengthens the longevity of titles, expands franchise awareness, and accumulates growth of monetization for their game as a whole.

 

The next couple of years will be crucial to ow fast competitive gaming grows into a multi billion dollar business. The key factors of leagues franchising from competition are the utilization of content right sales, merchandise, team/player profitability, and the impact the game has on an amount of people.

 

As the growth and success of eSports leagues continue to rise, the production of tournaments requires thorough planning and precise detailing. Understanding conceptualizing as well as developing a business relationships with bigger corporations are only just the standard requirements for the eSports industry to grow.

 

Understanding the culture of video gaming can also have a heavy influence on the success of tournaments. With thousands of attendees and millions of viewers, bigger tournaments have thousands of dollars in prize money on the line. Investors and hosts of such events treat players as they do with traditional sports players, and use similar broadcasting tools, such as livestream broadcasting and commentating.

 

What started as friends gathering in each other’s homes or arcades has become an upcoming collection of pro gaming tournaments and leagues with legitimate teams and prizes for people to aspire to obtain.

 

So what will the future of eSports look like? How far can it go? Could it reach the mainstream like traditional sports? Whatever the future holds, eSports is on the brink of becoming a billion-dollar industry and continues to grow exponentially and it will stay like that as long as companies keep investing.

 

Do High Prison Phone Call Costs Make Phone Companies the Judge, Jury, and Executioner?

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By Jeremy Williams

 

Do High Prison Phone Call Costs Make Phone Companies the Judge, Jury, and Executioner?

 

The 6th amendment to the Constitution guarantees the right to a lawyer and a fair trial. However, many people who are sent to jail can’t afford to keep in contact with their legal counsel. This creates a system where the right to a fair trial is dependent on your finances. The protections promised under the Constitution are not be applicable to those who are not wealthy.

 

If  a family cannot afford to pay for a phone call from jail, they most likely cannot afford to bail an incarcerated family member out. As a result many are forced to sit in jail until their trial. However, when the trial comes, the defendant and the  lawyer aren’t properly prepared because they couldn’t afford to have necessary communication and planning. The chances of someone losing their trail are dramatically increased and now they are serving time for a crime they did not commit.

 

Public defenders are often criticized for having too many cases and not enough resources, but when you consider that the client can’t afford to talk to their lawyer, the idea of a fair trial becomes an unattainable dream.

 

Many inmates can’t turn to their families to advocate for them, because their family members can’t afford an increased phone bill or an extra expense.

A phone call from an inmate can run up to $17 for 15 minutes. That averages out to $1.13 a minute, and that’s if the inmate is being held close to their attorney and family. That isn’t the case for many families because most inmates are transferred out of their home area.

 

Does this mean all communication is stopped with your loved one because of they have been arrested?

Most people don’t have a choice in answering this question, because their financial situation has already predetermined this for them. This is especially the case if the breadwinner in the household is arrested and the financial burden is shifted to young adults or other family members who might not be capable of providing for an entire family. This forces working class families to choose between talking to a family member or keeping the lights on.

 

Last year, the Supreme Court repealed a regulation passed in 2015 that allowed the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) which regulates most methods of communication including phone calls, to cap the costs of phone calls from prison. Mignon Clyburn, the former commissioner for the FCC described the rising costs of these phone calls as a civil rights issue that is preventing 2.7 million children in America from communicating with an incarcerated parent. The costs of phone calls create an inequality between the wealthy and the poor. People arrested from both groups have a very different prison experience and the families that are affected, experience it differently as well.

The prison population stands at around 2.2 million people. The prison system is supposed to rehabilitate those 2.2 million people. Instead the government is using prisoners as pawns to profit off millions of hard working families who want to have contact with their loved ones.

Firsthand Accounts of Sexual Harassment

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By: Katelyn Wright

“For me, the abuse that I suffered—both initially and when I first tried to report him and confront him—destroyed my life,” says Jen Willems on Facebook. Willems is an advocate for the #MeToo movement.

Women from all over the world have experienced mistreatment from men. Catcalling, harassment, sexual abuse, rape, and disrespect.

Jolie Joyce, 16, from Astoria shares her experience with catcalling. She was walking home and a man made kissing sounds at her. She told him to leave her alone and he got defensive. The man said, “Cover up if you don’t want attention.”

Madisyn Guerrero, 14, from Jackson Heights says she is disrespected by men constantly. Once, she dropped her boyfriend home at 97th Street near Junction Blvd and was waiting for her dad to pick her up from a store. A man started saying vulgar things and grabbed his private parts in front of her. She was disgusted and flipped him off.

Another time, Guerrero was waiting to get ice cream from Mr Softee and she wasn’t wearing a bra. A strange man started staring down at her and began to nod his head at her. She said, “You’re disgusting” and left the line.

Dianna Gainza, 36, witnessed her white friend (who is the same age) being sexually harassed. They were at a club in Atlanta. The club was mostly filled with African American and Latino men. Her friend, Jess, had her butt smacked and grabbed by an African American man. She confronted him and he said, “So what? What are you going to do about it? Keep moving along if you don’t want problems.”

Jess felt defeated and helpless. She cried the entire night and refused to go to the club ever again. However, Gainza and her other friends—who are Hispanic and African American—did not receive any disrespect from men at the club. Therefore, in this scenario, did race play into this harassment?

Monica Guerrero, 26, says that she was walking home one day when a guy on a bike came her way. He grabbed her butt and she pushed him off the bike. She began cursing him out in Spanish and he ran off with his bike.

Any woman, despite their race, age, and looks can be mistreated by men. It is very common and the #MeToo movement is bringing awareness for these women who are continuously objectified and sexualize. It has been occurring for too long and there are steps being taken to bring hope to those who feel mistreated and alone.

Superintendent Couldn’t Care Less About Damages In Resident Homes

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By Jesica Ramirez August 9 at 10:05 AM

ELMHURST, NY— Jansinta Morelos came across a small water leakage in the pipe in her bathroom Friday morning and was worried her bathroom would flood into the neighbors’ downstairs. “It was scary because the hole could get bigger causing a bigger problem,” she said adding this isn’t the first time she came across such an issue.

“It isn’t the first time a water leakage happened,” she said. Morelos stood looking in discontent at what she saw.

Tenants on 45th Avenue reportedly find themselves faced with an issue in their own apartments that make them agitated. Dealing with their superintendent, who lives floors beneath residents, is difficult because he disregards the urgent need to fix damages. Residents say it’s complicated to do simple things such as turning on water in the sink.

“We had to complain about something almost every other day,” said a man living in the building who wished to remain anonymous. The resident commented he visits the superintendent’s office often and said, “Several times I had to personally go to the office for something bothering me. It has become a problem.”

The superintendent has told residents he would come to their apartment soon and fix damages though “he doesn’t stay true to his words,” the man said, “It’s been two weeks since I told him about a cracked wall in my living room and I see him often chilling.”

The building is constructed with wide lengthy hallways and a spacious center room extending to another side where more tenants live. People can walk through the center room to reach to the other part of the building. Both sides have a staircase and an elevator that residents use on a daily basis. However, the elevator on one side of the building has a consistent record of having technical problems while the elevator on the other side works fine.

“The amount of times this elevator keeps getting stuck is unbelievable!” said Amelia Flores, another resident of the building who uses the elevator daily.

The elevator has a button to push in case of emergency with a speaker to communicate with responders. Flores says, “I got stuck in the elevator once before for a short time before first responders came to fix the the elevator.”

The elevator rescue operators have become familiar in the building. Flores stated the elevator rescue operations operators weren’t surprised to receive a call from the building since they’ve been to it before.

“It was funny but sad,” Flores said, “when they put me on hold I heard them say, it’s the building on 45th Avenue again.”

Operators have not been seen in the building for a few months but that doesn’t mean the elevator has been working perfectly. The superintendent has been fixing the elevator!

Fixing an elevator is expensive because on average, a service call to fix an elevator is $120 and the cost for repairs is $75 per hour.

Residents are happy the superintendent fixes the elevator. Despite having the staircase as an alternative, they worry children can get hurt.

“It’s important for the people living here because most of them are elderly, parents of children, or simply need it for their folding tote,” the superintendent said adding “the staircase would give the residents a hard time bringing down their folding tote.”

Residents, though, question why the superintendent takes longer to come fix issues in their apartment.

“It doesn’t make sense,” said resident Emilio. He added last year he had a small hole on the ceiling and dust fell down onto the sink. Emilio reported it to the superintendent.

“A week went by and I even went twice to his office in case he forgot and didn’t get it fixed until almost a week later,” said Emilio.

The last two years were the busiest time for the superintendent because he received a lot of complaints from residents. “It’s hard to be in each of their apartment to fix the problem when people need me elsewhere,” the superintendent said. “Depending on what the problem is it can take a few days.”

Residents understand that the superintendent can be stressed out but they want everyone in the building to be free of harm.

“We’re all happy living here. The issues don’t always happen,” said an Indian man who recently moved in.

How Public Facilities Could Help Fathers

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Characters Baby Changing Area Changing Table Symbols

“I just want to change my daughter’s diapers.”

This is what a father said after he found out there was no place in the male restroom to change his daughters diapers.

Recently, Mr. Gu took his family to the mall to shop. While his wife was changing clothes, Mr. Gu found out that his daughter needed a diaper change only to find out that the male restroom did not have a changing table for the baby. Mr. Gu asked a staff member where he could change his baby’s diapers. They told him that there is a room for mothers and infants on 1st floor. Mr. Gu went to the 1st floor and was unable to go into that room. “I just want to change my daughter’s diapers,” said Mr. Gu, “why is there not a changing table in male restroom? Can’t a father change his child’s diapers?”

In ancient times, women had no power, all they did was take care of families. Now, with developing technology and the spread of knowledge, the idea that women are the only ones who have to take care of the kids is weaker than ever before in America. Many fathers are willing to share the work of taking care of the next generation.

“I usually wake up at night to look after my son, because my wife had taken care of him all day, I think it is fair enough for me to just watch him at night.” said Mr. Lin, a father of a three month baby.

However, most fathers feel that it is inconvenient to carry a baby in a public place just by themselves. “I had never tried to take my boy outside by myself. Because I feel like it is not gonna be easy…there is specific room for mothers to watch the baby, but no room for fathers, and when the baby need to change the diapers, it really gives me a big trouble…” said Mr. Lee.

On the other hand, many people think that men can’t take care of children well because “men are careless”. However, Mr. Lin said, “it is not about who can do it well, it is about how we take on the responsibilities. Taking care of a family isn’t one person’s responsibility, it requires the effort from both father and mother.”

 

The Invisibility of Black Autism

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Autism is known by most as the “White Person’s Disease”.

Autism: a mental condition, present from early childhood, characterized by difficulty in communicating and forming relationships with other people and in using language and abstract concepts.

I recently discovered this twitter thread:

 

It made me think of 3 very important questions:

Are black children and minorities less likely to even get diagnosed with autism? Therefore less likely to get treatment earlier on when it’s most vital.

Are minorities in general given less sympathy when it comes to learning disabilities like autism and other similar conditions?

Is autism in fact a “White Person’s Disease’?

 

My first response was to go to Google and see if this twitter thread was just an isolated experience for one black mom. The other immediate lightbulb that went off was “How many people of each race have autism? Maybe majority diagnosed are white and that’s why autism isn’t heavily focused on in the black community?”

I went to Google and typed “people with autism broken down by race” and thousands of results came within seconds. Articles with headlines like “Blacks are less likely to get diagnosed with autism” or “Autism Race Problem” or “Autism, Like Race, Complicates Almost Everything” were screaming at me. There’s a whole community of people who see and believe that there’s a real problem with blacks and autism, a divide that needs to be dealt with.

Of course, I don’t believe in a utopian society where race never has an affect on anything, but something as simple as a mental condition shouldn’t have any link to a certain group of people.

From its discovery autism has been linked to white people. It’s now became this unfortunate stigma that the black boy having a tantrum “needs a whooping” yet the white boy “must be on the spectrum and needs treatment.”

“In some of the first clinical descriptions of autism, psychologist Leo Kanner wrote that many of the families who sought his opinion were white and middle- to upper-class… Kanner failed to consider was that the parents who had the resources to seek out a specialist about their child’s developmental problems were likely those with resources to begin with. In 1940s America, those parents were almost exclusively white, and ever since, autism has been treated largely as a white disease,” says Carrie Arnold, a Pacific Islander magazine staff member.

1 in 68 people have autism. Autism has been found, by CDC, to not be linked to the race, culture or socioeconomic status of a person, but simply to the symptoms. Yet according to the Pacific Standard, “when you look at children and adults actually diagnosed with autism, white children are 30 percent more likely to receive an autism diagnosis than blacks, and 50 percent more likely than Hispanics, according to 2014 data from the CDC. Minority children are also diagnosed significantly later than white children.” According to the CDC, while many children are diagnosed with autism at around 4 years old, researchers have determined that African-American children may be diagnosed as many as 18 to 24 months later.

Research and statistics indicate that blacks and minorities in general aren’t being treated the same as whites, even in an area that should be as racially unbiased as the medical field. But the real question is why?

Some parents aren’t as lucky as Camille Proctor, who found a support group filled with other parents whose children have been diagnosed with autism. Unfortunately for Proctor, she was the only black parent in the room. She couldn’t identify with the other parents the way she wanted to and she couldn’t get responses to certain questions. The white parents didn’t know how to answer when she asked for advice on how to deal with her son encountering the police, no one else saw it as an issue, she explains in an interview with the Pacific Standard.

With the recent movements against police brutality, I’d say, and Proctor would say, that it is a big issue. Things like this never come into play when the average person thinks about autism. In this interview with NPR.org, Proctor explains her concerns regarding blacks with autism and the police. Most people have a lack of understanding about what being autistic really entails, which could easily lead to an officer assuming that a black person with autism raising their voice at them is angry or one who is hesitant to answer a question is being resistant.

Autism, like many other diseases should be viewed as having NOTHING to do with a specific race. Every person deserves access to treatment and support groups and all the things they need to deal and cope with their autism.