I have a new princess finger-puppet! I'm always searching for finger-puppets that represent people of color other than Caucasian. I especially want multicultural girl finger-puppets to represent the heroines of the fairytales I tell. Self-esteem starts young, and it can be quite disheartening when the general run of princess dolls have light-skin tones.
My new finger-puppet's name is Almira, which means "princess" in Arabic. Keep a lookout for her future appearances in storytimes.
14 comments:
She's pretty :)
Of all your stories, which would you most like to have finger-puppets for but don't? Tell me the story! Tell me what the characters look like! (You might inspire me to create something from this large bag of felt I recently purchased... and I'm always looking for a way to use my HUGE collection of fabric scraps)
Schelle: Ohh, I'll have to think about this one. I've basically steered clear of finger-puppet stories with people precisely because I didn't have the finger-puppets I wanted. In general, I would like to have puppet groups of three sisters and three brothers, with each puppet looking different yet related to each other somehow. I'll think about specific stories and give you a list.:)
P.S. Not that I'm asking you to make the puppets for me, of course!
I LOVE IT! She's so cute!
Almira is adorable! I think it's fab that you're trying to bring such diversity into your story-telling. I agree that ALL children should be represented in every part of the entertainment world for kids. I remember my mother making faces when my girls would point to the "black Barbie" when they were allowed a special toy from an outing. Mama would never buy that one. Nor would she buy any of the other dolls of the world. You know me, though - if it was time for a new Barbie, as long as she (or he, when it was Ken time) was affordable, her color was never an issue. If more adults would see the world in color, rather than black and white...
Friday: It's good to hear from you! You too, Lady K, though you've been more on the scene as of late.
When I was in middle-school, I really thought my (American) generation was going to be the one to "get it." I still think we've got a chance, but I think that it's Generation Y and beyond that's going to get it together as far as appreciation of diversity is concerned.
P.S. Schelle: I don't have a story yet, but I really would like to see a blue-footed booby finger-puppet. What do you think?
LOL I want to hear the story for the blue footed booby. My question is why do princesses always have to wear pink?
Love this! She's so pretty.
Cloudscome: It's not that princesses have to wear pink as that lots of little girls are drawn to pink. Before my daughter was born, I told everyone, "No pink!" Well, she ended up looking good in pink, so I relented. While orange and yellow were early favorite colors, pink is her favorite color now. And I really didn't have much to do with it, either exhorting pink or saying, "No child of mine will wear pink." I've come around to pink as the "hands off" color for me-- my tape-measure, stapler and other items that can easily walk away are in pink.
HipWriterMama: Thanks! Now, I actually need to get on the ball and figure out what stories I'm going to tell with her. I have been thinking about changing "Jack and the Robbers" to "[Girl's name] and the Robbers" and other stories where the sex of the main character really doesn't matter, but has traditionally been default male. "Jack and the Robbers" is a story that needs a human puppet to go along with the animal puppets. For those not familiar with this story, it's the English version of "Bremen Town Musicians."
It is sometimes in the details of life and our behaviour that we demonstrate our true values. I applaud you for thinking about the fine detail of your finger puppets and so yes non-white children will now feel - albeit in a very small way - that they also "belong".
It's really sad that most people out there just DON'T "get it." I know exactly what you meant. I really wish I lived up there so we could go have some coffee and chat. And you STILL owe me an email... ;-)
YP: I have to strive to avoid "tokenism." There's no getting around the fact that I'm a white woman in a field that is predominantly white women (librarianship, not storytelling), and I don't want it to seem as if I'm trying to show everyone how enlightened I am. Still, the details count as much as the big picture. Thank you for recognizing that.
Lady K: I know! I know! Here I go...
The lack of diverse dollies in the world is a real thorn in my side. I am white myself, but here in Corpus, almost everyone is Hispanic and the fact that Dora and friends are the only Hispanic-looking choices really galls me. I went on a rampage when I was looking for Hispanic baby dolls for my niece, but Lakeshore Learning is still the only really good vendor I have found.
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