On Fri, 26 Nov 1999, Rick Adams wrote:
>
> Jazz is a form of music that _originated_ in the black community--and is
> still closely identified with its roots. Every person you named above is
> black and well known to most educated African-Americans. If a black
> participant on a quiz show didn't know the answers to _those_ questions,
> you can hardly conclude that it is because "some of the items are geared
> towards non-minorities."
>
However,there is a tradition in the black community to have nicknames
taken from one's name.So obviously, Lady Day would be the Afrocentric
choice coined after Billie Holiday,not Ella Fitzgerald.
> If I ask "Who was John the Baptist" can I safely assume that the question
> is geared toward non-Christians? The principle is the same.
>
> I agree that many areas of our society are not "fair" to minorities--but
> this one was a bit of a stretch--a minority has just as much opportunity
> to learn trivia (which is what these shows are about) as does a member of
> the majority. It isn't a question of opportunity, it's one of
> interest--and if for some bizarre reason (which I don't concede) a
> substantial number of minorities _are_ less knowledgeable in this area it
> is a matter of preference, not discrimination.
Your preference comment does not fly.Do not run this by a behaviorist.
What we have here is the neglect of Affirmative Reality,which I define
as the inclusion of knowledge bases of both the Eurocentric and
non-Eurocentric schemas.
Btw,some of those games measure the latency of responses.
After all,people who do not respond may still know the answer.
In the millionaire games one is given ample time to think of the answer.
And that's why the moderator asks if this is the final answer.
Michael Sylvester
Daytona Beach,Florida
