Is the Internet Color Blind?
By: Courtney D. Marshall
Courtney D. Marshall, PH.D, does an excellent job of raising awareness about how our society uses the Internet in more of a positive way than a negative one. She begins by discussing Pedro Zamora, a member of The Real World: San Francisco, fight with HIV/AIDS and how it affected the MTV nation. Bill Clinton suggested that even though Zamora passed away at the young age of twenty-two, he gave us an insight to people living with the devastating virus. Zamora’s story had Marshall questioning the media’s affect on the world, especially the American public in terms of identity. “Does having an abundance of information about race, gender and sexuality change the decisions we make about their importance” (Marshall 20)? As the paper continues, Marshall answers yes to the previous question. She says, “When we’re online, we don’t see color, gender, sexuality, or other identities” (Marshall 20). She believes the Internet has the ability to make us feel connected to the people within cyberspace regardless of their social identity—and I agree. I cannot remember a time when I’ve read something online and thought twice about what their race, gender or sexuality is. The Internet is a powerful medium and Marshall hopes that it will enhance and strengthen communities all over for the better.
