The Black Doll Affair to Conduct "Hearings" to get the Other Side of the Story on Racial Discord

To commemorate the 60th Anniversary of the Brown v. Board of Education landmark decision on May 17, 1954, living Dolls seek to ensure racial harmony by asking the question: “What’s it like to be hue?™”
 
 
The Black Doll Affair-Join the movement!
The Black Doll Affair-Join the movement!
ATLANTA - Feb. 12, 2014 - PRLog -- The Black Doll Affair® announces a nationwide campaign and celebration of diversity through multicultural dialogue between Americans.

In his “I have a Dream Speech,” Dr. Martin Luther King said “…many of our white brothers…have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny. And…that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom…”

On May 17, 1954, Brown v. Board of Education, a landmark United States Supreme Court decision, declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students as unconstitutional. That historical Supreme Court case had the audacity to hope for a better tomorrow; one that carried a King’s dream "where little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character."

In 2007, Dana “Mama Doll” Hill created The Black Doll Affair {BDA}, a self-esteem movement and philanthropic social club for black women and girls. Black women on board are referred to as the Black Dolls®; supporting members are their multicultural friends called Porcelain Pals™. First conducted between 1939 and 1940 by psychologists Kenneth and Mamie Clark, the results of the “doll test,” where black children chose the black doll as bad and ugly and the white doll as pretty and good were what expressly interested the Supreme Court Justices in Brown v Board of Education. The couple testified as expert witnesses in reference to children’s attitudes about race and self-actualization. The “doll test” was also the catalyst that inspired Hill to create BDA.

BDA’s mission is to change the way black girls are perceived and more importantly, perceive themselves. Six years into BDA’s efforts to change the world, Hill is getting her Dolls & Pals ready for a journey into a new frontier - multicultural conversations to manifest racial harmony. Hill says that, while she is proud of the work her members have done to change the way black girls perceive themselves, she will take the 60th Anniversary of Brown as the ideal opportunity to pick-up the part of BDA’s mission that reads: “To change the way black girls are perceived.” “Brown’s 60th anniversary is a wonderful time for us to begin real conversations that include all shades of hue. It’s simple, until we come together, we’ll remain apart,” said Hill.

As the 60th anniversary nears, Hill said, she is embarking upon this journey because she’s dissatisfied that while, legally, we ended segregation; spiritually, blacks and whites in America are neighbors living worlds apart. “We’re talking at each other about our racial divide, instead of listening to each other. It’s easy to say, ‘I’m not prejudice, some of my best friends are black {white}.’ But how many of us can say that we’ve sat down with those same BFFs and asked, ‘What’s it like to be your skin color?’ Imagine the possibilities that open up with the simple, yet profound question: 'What's it like to be ____ (white, black, etc.)?'”

Hill asked this question to a Caucasian friend. He answered, “It’s great! I can go out and be proud of who I am and have that pride supported by the world.” When he asked her the question, she answered teary eyed, “for me, it’s just the opposite.” Hill said that, almost immediately, her friend began to try to appease her pain by saying, “C’mon, that’s not every time you go out. You have it better than most people…” She stopped him with “Hear me out; listen.” Uninterrupted, she shared her story. In the end, both found the exercise of listening to each other to be profoundly bonding and life-altering.

Cheryl Brown Henderson recently joined BDA and became an Honorary Black Doll. Cheryl is one of the three daughters of the late Rev. Oliver L. Brown who in the fall of 1950 along with 12 other parents, led by attorneys for the NAACP, filed suit on behalf of their children against the local Topeka, Kansas Board of Education. To keep the ideals of Brown relevant for future generations through programs, preservation, advocacy and civic engagement, Cheryl founded the Brown Foundation.

With mentoring support from the Brown Foundation, with law firms and corporate entities as sponsors of the Hearings, local and national leaders as story moderators, in court room style seating, through the end of the year, BDA will ask all shades of Americans: “What’s it like to be hue? ™” With intention of racial harmony, BDA will commemorate the anniversary by going into educational institutions and hosting Hearings. All races of students will stand to "testify" as narrators of their stories. Their stories will be recorded for the Black Doll Affair's documentary "What's it like to be hue?" Steering clear from a debate style forum where storytellers can interrupt, reject or shout responses like: "Yeah right"; "Oh please!" or "Get over it already;" Hill will admonish her "court" to remember that “the privileges and pains of our personal stories deserve the kindness of our empathy.” To commemorate BDA’s Hearings, participants will take home 'brown bags' filled with mementos.

On this 12th day of Black History Month, The Black Doll Affair kicks off “What’s it like to be hue?™” Leading up to the May 17, 2014 anniversary, from kitchens to classrooms, in honor of the 60 year old case, all rise, court is now in session and racial harmony is officially on the horizon!

For Hearing dates, times and locations, to testify, moderate, or sign up your classroom hearings@blackdollaffair.com To testify online join the conversation at Facebook.com/TheBlackDollAffair On Twitter, using the hashtag #whatsitliketobehue Tweet your multicultural conversations and pictures to us @blackdollaffair For more information on The Black Doll Affair go to http://www.meetup.com/theblackdollaffair.

About The Black Doll Affair:  The mission of BDA is to reverse "doll test" results and perceptions of the black doll. Primary members are called Black Dolls and secondary members are Porcelain Pals. Members band together to tackle the black girl's challenges with self worth, shadeism and the world's negative perception of black women. They do this by donating toy black dolls for positive play, role modeling via community service, having conversations of legacy, hosting fun socials rooted in boosting self-esteem and acts of kindness for all of humanity. Founded by Dana Hill in 2007, BDA is in seven US cities. Civil Rights Activist and Georgia Congressman John Lewis helped proclaim December 12 as Black Doll Affair Day in Georgia. President Barack Obama presented The Black Doll Affair with a Presidential Volunteer Service Award. The Black Dolls donate thousands of dolls, dollars and service hours to black girls and their multi-racial neighbors in need. The Black Affair enjoys partnerships in diversity with Macy’s and Mattel. More: www.meetup.com/theblackdollaffair

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Tags:Black Doll Affair, Bridging the Racial Divide, Brown-v-Board of Education, Dana Hill, Cheryl Brown-Henderson
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Location:Atlanta - Georgia - United States
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