From Hollywood to Teacher Diversity

Let’s take a quick tour of Hollywood. Ready? Strap on those sunglasses! Block out the glitz and glam. Pay no heed to the paparazzi and the celebrities. Now train your eyes on a more pressing issue. Racial discrimination in Hollywood is real and ugly, transpiring in the form of racist miscastings.

When actress Emma Stone assumed the role of Allison Ng, an Asian and Pacific Islander living in Hawaii, this put many people, including myself, into a rage. Though this role was clearly meant for a person of Asian descent, Hollywood chose to cast a person NOT of Asian origin. Is this a testament to the egregious acting skills of Asian Americans? I hope not.

My feelings about this matter are best voiced through a leader in the Asian community. Guy Aoki from the Media Action Network for Asian-Americans explains his frustrations in an interview with the Huffington Post,

“It’s so typical for Asian or Pacific Islanders to be rendered invisible in stories that we’re supposed to be in, in places that we live…We’re 60% of the population [in Hawaii]. We’d like them to reflect reality.”

Stone’s casting only magnifies another problem for Asian Americans. For Asians, this casting move perpetuates the fact that acting is not a viable career. Asians rejected from a role meant for Asians? How are they ever going to survive and make a living as an actress or actor? If audiences are not able to accept different races in movie and books, this world needs to start changing quickly.

This question parallels an issue in many school districts around the country. This is the question and lack of an answer for teacher diversity. Students should be able to thrive in any school and in any environment. The connection fostered between a student and a teacher is of utmost importance. If a student has the motivation to wake up, come to class, and engage actively because of a teacher, then it’s all worth it. But if students don’t see themselves represented as educators, perhaps education is not “fit” for them. This is the ugly reality of teacher diversity and something that should be addressed.

Yet, the simple fact is, how can we motivate students to become teachers when the education system is not fighting for them, but against them? The harsh reality is that teachers are underpaid, under appreciated, and overworked. When I ponder over whether teaching is a possible career for myself, I take great care in considering these statistics. Thus, I believe that fixing the problem of teacher diversity starts with treating the current teachers better.