Sarah Glassman, a graduate student at Michigan State University spotted this sign in a campus dining hall restroom. It’s a neat example of how a sign can avoid centering whiteness and instead be inclusive of people with different skin tones.
Thanks Sarah!
Lisa Wade, PhD is an Associate Professor at Tulane University. She is the author of American Hookup, a book about college sexual culture; a textbook about gender; and a forthcoming introductory text: Terrible Magnificent Sociology. You can follow her on Twitter and Instagram.
Comments 36
Mantis Toboggan, MD — March 20, 2011
That poster is out of order: your hands start off like #2 and #4, and when you're done cleaning them, they should look like #3 and #5.
Somebody should be fired for that oversight.
HP — March 20, 2011
Sockpuppet alert! At least 3 of these comments are by the same person.
Simone Lovelace — March 20, 2011
Why is the sweetest, most innocuous post on this whole blog being trolled? WHYYYYY??? D:
CMS — March 20, 2011
Do people really think about the color of the skin on the drawings when they're getting instructions on how to wash their hands? That just seems to be over thinking the whole thing. I don't really think there's going to be any type of greater connection to the instructions if someone sees their hand color.
I think what is sad is we need signs to show people how to wash their hands!
Elsa — March 20, 2011
Do people really think about the color of the skin on the drawings when they’re getting instructions on how to wash their hands?
I suspect that it's easiest not to think about representations of skin color in instructional materials when your own approximate skin color is one commonly used as the default. That's why Peggy Macintosh's now-iconic metaphor of the Invisible Knapsack of racial privilege uses skin-tone bandages as an example that many, many caucasians easily overlook.
When one sees one's own characteristics repeatedly used as the exemplar, it's easy to forget that doesn't mean that those characteristics are socially neutral.
kris — March 20, 2011
Well said, Elsa.
Chorda — March 20, 2011
My, the trolls are out in force.
One thing I like about the choice of art on this sign is that aside from simply being ethnically-inclusive, it's also subtlety reinforcing the idea that these concerns about health are for everyone.
If only one skin tone was represented, it wouldn't simply be a matter of invisibility for those not represented. Show only one skin tone and the implication could be "we are only concerned about the health of white students" or "Latinos need to be shown how to wash their hands", depending. Aim a statement at only one ethnic group (regardless of what that statement is) and racism immediately creeps into it.
This sign gets it right, but it can also be used as an illustration of the many ways other signs might get it wrong.
Anonymous — March 20, 2011
And the particular offense depends on the various perceptions bring to it! I am not sure that racism is not a trap that can be evaded by good design and conscious decision making alone, although this is a pretty good effort. After all, there are many readings that one can make for any image or text, and offending interpretations are fairly easy to find if you are looking for them (which is not to say that they are not present (see bandaids comment).
Personally I find the shifting colors a little distracting; I'd prefer say, grey, or green.
Scapino — March 21, 2011
Hooray for a positive post! I always enjoy the posts that show how to do something right.
tom — March 22, 2011
I just wish we could get people to actually wash their hands.
ar — March 26, 2011
I just wish we could also tell people to stop using paper towels. In public restrooms, shake your hands dry in the sink. Your body heat will dry your hands off completely in about 30 seconds.
Culturele patronen hullen zich in vanzelfsprekendheid | De Zesde Clan — March 28, 2013
[...] Wat veel van deze culturele patronen uiteindelijk tonen is dat ‘man’ de neutrale algemene basis vormt. ‘Vrouw’ wijkt af. Je hebt poppetjes op verkeerstekens, en je hebt bordjes die vrouwen vertellen dat ze in deze trein hun kind op schoot moeten houden. Je hebt deodorant, en deodorant voor vrouwen. Die boodschap versterkt ongelijkheden in de samenleving. Gelukkig kan het ook anders! [...]