Position Paper 3 - Depictions of Women and Minorities

Hannah Diffee

Professor Reppert

International Mass Media

Nov. 2023

Position Paper 3 - Depictions of Women and Minorities

Minority Groups Around the World - Refugees

Minorities exist in every country of the world, according to the United Nations. In sociology, a minority is a category of people who experience disadvantages that members of a dominant social group do not face (Voices of Youth). Contrary to popular belief, minority groups are not always ethnic minorities. Categorization of minority groups is typically done based on differences in ethnicity, race, religion, language, sexual orientation, and disabilities. People belonging to these minority groups are often subject to discrimination and/or persecution because of their identities. 

In the United States, the largest racial minority populations are Hispanic/Latino, black, and Asian, according to the United States Census Bureau. Because of discrimination, people in these minorities have sparked worldwide social movements and events to push for equality, including Black Lives Matter and Stop Asian Hate. The largest religious minority groups in the U.S. are Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, and those who identify with other non-Christian religions. According to a 2020 study led by the University of Washington, Muslims and atheists are more likely to face religious discrimination than people identifying with Christian faiths. A 2017 Pew Research Study also reveals the discrimination that American Muslims experience. 

Refugees are also a prevalent minority around the world. The United Nations reports that there are over 110 forcibly displaced individuals worldwide "at mid-2023 as a result of persecution, conflict, violence, human rights violations, or events seriously disturbing public order." 36.5 million of these are refugees who have fled their countries due to violence and political instability. This number has increased from 27.1 million in 2021. 50% of refugees are women and girls. The following graph shows the number of displaced individuals from 1975-2022.

As of mid-2023, over half of all refugees monitored by the United Nations come from three countries: Syria, Afghanistan, and Ukraine. The countries that host the highest refugee populations are Iran, Turkey, Germany, Colombia, and Pakistan, with over 2 million each. 

Human Rights in Afghanistan

People living in Afghanistan have faced over 40 years of government instability. The Taliban, or students, in the Pashto language, is an "ultraconservative political and religious faction" that emerged in northern Pakistan following the Afghan War, which lasted from 1978-1992 (Britannica). The Taliban began as a small group of religious students and scholars who promised to fight corruption. In 1996, they took Afghanistan's capital, Kabul, and overthrew the current president's regime. They gained popularity in their early days for stamping out crime and making the areas under their control safe for commerce. However, they introduced harsh punishments for crimes such as public executions and were accused of other human rights violations. 

After the United States withdrew from Afghanistan in 2021, the Taliban continued to violate human rights. They reopened schools only for boys, barring girls from gaining secondary and higher education. According to UN Women, Afghan women hold no government positions and have been stripped of their right to participate in politics. Women are also banned from working in non-government positions and cannot travel long distances without a "male chaperone." 

Refugees in the Media

Minorities often do not receive authentic representation in the media. According to The Conversation, "Images shape our perceptions of the world and have the capacity to become political forces themselves." Refugees are often portrayed as helpless, with images of struggling women and children being the most commonly shown.

Photos of refugees in the media affect how we respond to and feel about them. Images of refugees, specifically Afghans, have flooded the media since 2021. The majority of pictures show refugees as "anonymous, faceless masses." The Conversation team found that people are more sympathetic to pictures of individuals than pictures of large groups. Refugees may be seen as "being a crisis" for host nations when depicted in large groups. 

Increased charity donations show that people are willing to offer more aid to single, identifiable victims. Alan Kurdi, a two-year-old Syrian boy, drowned off the coast of Turkey in 2015. His family was attempting to escape Syria when their inflatable boat capsized, resulting in the death of Alan, his older brother, and his mother. Alan's body washed up on the beach, and an image of his body spread across social media. A photo agency in Turkey decided to publish the image "because they were so fed up with the lack of political response to the crisis on their shores" (The Guardian). Alan's story, along with the deaths of other children attempting to reach safety in the West, sparked widespread outrage and a push for more lax immigration policies.

Changing the Narrative

Many have argued that the ways refugees are depicted in the media cause viewers to dehumanize them. Robin Hammond, a New Zealand-based photographer, asserts that the few refugees the media writes about do not represent the experiences of all refugees. He aims to change the narrative by allowing displaced individuals to share their stories.

"The “refugee experience” is as far from homogeneous as it is possible to be. It is lots of different people, and their dreams" (The Guardian).

Hammond began a project called One Thousand Dreams, a collection of portraits of refugees, by refugees.