Watch a Great Film and Vote for Kiri Davis! Only Two Days Left!

I was going to write this whiny post about how unhappy I am with blogging, but I decided to do something different and proactive instead!!

In these past 10 years here in the U.S. I have learned to be very sensitive to issues of race and ethnicity (not that I didn't think and worry about them back in Brazil, it's just that here these issues are addressed in a more straightforward manner, but this is a subject for another post). In fact, there is this wonderful blog/ group forum that I read periodically (since some of the columnists are some bloggers in my blogroll) and that I want to join as well, it's The Anti-Racist Parent blog - for parents committed to raising children with an anti-racist outlook. I've wanted to write about this for a while now, but now I have a good reason since I'm going to ask you to watch and vote for a great film whose subject is race and ethnicity -- particularly the problems that young girls face regarding their self-esteem and their image. Oh, and by the way, while I'm here recommending sites, my academic blogging friend Yvette, just wrote a GREAT post about the new "redesigned" Uncle Ben's rice campaign and the way that the images of African Americans have been used to sell food and other items. Her links are a must read too.

OK, so here's the real announcement: the magazine for young females, Cosmo Girl is doing a film contest for films made by young girls. Kiri Davis created this very thought provoking and moving at times (I cried at the end of the test with the children and the dolls) film titled
A Girl Like Me. This is what she had to say about it:

"The issues my friends and I face inspired me to create this documentary. Through my interviews, it became extremely apparent how European beauty standards still maintain a dominant role in our society. Society imposes standards that affect us all no matter what your sex or race is. I hope the film helps girls everywhere understand that you can’t allow other people to define who you are. You have to define and celebrate yourself. You have to love the skin you're in!"

Go watch the film and vote for Kiri here! Voting ends this Friday, April 13, and you can vote once each day from each different computer you use, so spread the word!!! She was in third place until last night, but now she's in second. She deserves to win these 10,000 dollars -- it will help her go to college. You will have to install the latest version of Flash, if you don't already have it, and watch a commercial, but I think it's worth doing to help her.