I saw the above picture shared on Facebook. It is a great picture of a family reading together.
At first I loved and shared it. As soon as I hit return, I immediately wondered if that was the right thing to do and unloved it, then deleted my post.
I’m currently reading White Fragility by Dr. Robin DiAngelo. I kept looking at this picture wondering if I by loving and sharing this picture, was I feeding racism.
I asked myself this because I wondered if I would have thought the same thing if this was a white family. Not because the picture shows a black family reading, I would love and share any picture of any family reading together, it was the captions: “This pic will never go viral. Too positive.” Too positive?
It is the words “too positive” that has had me wondering all day, and please know this is not a reflection or judgment of whomever has posted, shared, loved/liked this picture, if adding those words perpetuate the notion black families don’t read or don’t read together. Does the caption make this a novelty as if, “Wow! Look at this black family reading together, you don’t see that happen very often.”
The flip side in my reflection has been am I making too much of the captions. Is it a picture to be celebrated as a family reading together? It doesn’t mean anything deep by doing so, it’s just a picture after all.
But the caption. It confuses me. It makes me wonder. It causes me to think. It has me feeling uncomfortable in not knowing which way to go.
What do you think or feel about this picture, and will your race be a factor in how you think or feel about this picture?
Help me learn.
Personal Reflections of a Middle-Aged Man 