mkirby
Well-known member
Let me start out by saying that I normally like Tyra Banks and I think she's done some good things for the world. But I was flipping channels earlier and she did something that really pissed me off.
She had these two ex-trainhoppers on, and was talking about them with this kind of awful pity that just made my stomach turn. They were on there because their mom wrote a book about "the journey" she took raising rebellious teens. This woman did all kinds of shit to these kids. She sent them to wilderness camp. Foster homes. Anything but actually listen to and try to understand your daughters, right?
So anyway they ran off to hop freight and eat out of dumpsters and all that good stuff. And Tyra was asking them about "the Travelers" which she seemed to think was some sort of gang (she ignored their attempts to try and explain that Traveler is a self-identifying term some people choose to give to themselves) and talking with this voice filled with disgust about the way they lived ("You slept in a PARK!? WHAT!?")
And the shows producers had these chicks painted up like barbie dolls with clothes from Forever 21 and obvious hair extensions to hide the fact that they recently had mohawks. And Tyra said something like, "Oh look at these girls, you would never guess that they used to live on the street and oh it's so inspiring that they came out the other side" and shit like that.
It made me really sad, because these girls didn't seem that smart and they couldn't really defend our sort of folk that well, and they hardly had any time to talk.
One gets the feeling they wouldn't have run home to Mom either if one of the girls hadn't picked up a dumbass junk habit on the road and ended up in the hospital.
I hate shit like this.
I've read articles and seen stuff on T.V., and stuff about trainhoppers or travelers in general, from the gypsies to the dirty kids, is ALWAYS inaccurate, ALWAYS biased, and ALWAYS condescending and lame.
And nobody really even takes the time to talk about how this lifestyle is a CHOICE for a lot of people and they LIKE IT. And even for those that don't choose it to begin with, some of them get good at it an enjoy themselves.
It's like no one else in the world has any idea as to the difference between mad wino homebums and some dude in a Leftover Crack T-shirt hitchiking.
IGNORANCE!
ARGH.
Sorry about that. Just had to get it out.
She had these two ex-trainhoppers on, and was talking about them with this kind of awful pity that just made my stomach turn. They were on there because their mom wrote a book about "the journey" she took raising rebellious teens. This woman did all kinds of shit to these kids. She sent them to wilderness camp. Foster homes. Anything but actually listen to and try to understand your daughters, right?
So anyway they ran off to hop freight and eat out of dumpsters and all that good stuff. And Tyra was asking them about "the Travelers" which she seemed to think was some sort of gang (she ignored their attempts to try and explain that Traveler is a self-identifying term some people choose to give to themselves) and talking with this voice filled with disgust about the way they lived ("You slept in a PARK!? WHAT!?")
And the shows producers had these chicks painted up like barbie dolls with clothes from Forever 21 and obvious hair extensions to hide the fact that they recently had mohawks. And Tyra said something like, "Oh look at these girls, you would never guess that they used to live on the street and oh it's so inspiring that they came out the other side" and shit like that.
It made me really sad, because these girls didn't seem that smart and they couldn't really defend our sort of folk that well, and they hardly had any time to talk.
One gets the feeling they wouldn't have run home to Mom either if one of the girls hadn't picked up a dumbass junk habit on the road and ended up in the hospital.
I hate shit like this.
I've read articles and seen stuff on T.V., and stuff about trainhoppers or travelers in general, from the gypsies to the dirty kids, is ALWAYS inaccurate, ALWAYS biased, and ALWAYS condescending and lame.
And nobody really even takes the time to talk about how this lifestyle is a CHOICE for a lot of people and they LIKE IT. And even for those that don't choose it to begin with, some of them get good at it an enjoy themselves.
It's like no one else in the world has any idea as to the difference between mad wino homebums and some dude in a Leftover Crack T-shirt hitchiking.
IGNORANCE!
ARGH.
Sorry about that. Just had to get it out.