Racial stereotyping is the act of categorizing individuals or placing them into imaginary boxes based on their race, ethnicity, nationality, or skin colour. At its core, it involves oversimplifying people by reducing them to a set of assumed traits rather than recognizing their individuality. These stereotypes often ignore personal experiences, cultural diversity, and social context, instead relying on generalized ideas that have been repeated over time. The problem becomes particularly harmful when one person’s behaviour is attributed to an entire racial group rather than being understood as the result of an immediate situation. For example, if a single individual acts aggressively, and that action is interpreted as a reflection of their race rather than their circumstances, stereotyping is at play. This process reinforces prejudice and can lead to systemic discrimination.

Racial stereotypes do not emerge in isolation; they are shaped by history, media, and social structures. Many stereotypes have roots in colonialism and slavery, where narratives were constructed to justify exploitation and inequality. These ideas were later reinforced through literature, advertising, film, and news coverage, often portraying minority groups as either inferior, exotic, or threatening. Today, while some stereotypes may seem subtle, they persist in entertainment, journalism, and even everyday language. Here’s a small selection of reading materials curated to help you find out more this topic:

• Us vs Them: The Sinister Techniques of Othering (The Guardian)
• Confronting Chinese-American Stereotypes (PBS Article)
• The Myth of the Savage Indian (Sapians.org)
• The Media’s Stereotypical Depictions of Race (American Progress article)
• Black Stereotypes and Representation in TV (Mediated Pop blogpost)
• From Servants to Outlaws: 100 Years of Black Representation (CBC article)
• Do Record Labels Endorse Negative Stereotypes of Black Men? (That Grape Juice feature article)
• Repressed Brits, Evil Mexicans, Arab Villains (Guardian Article)

Reading Challenge

This is a longer and more challenging piece of reading, but spending time on this piece, and discussing it with your teacher, will help you master this topic:

• An Image of Africa (Chinua Achebe)

Discussion Points

After you’ve got your head around the material in this section, pair up, pick a question, spend five minutes thinking and noting down your thoughts – then discuss your ideas with a friend and report back to the class:

1. Does the categorisation of people into certain groups (Black, White, Swedish, Asian, female, school students, and so on) always rob people of individuality? Can people gain something from being categorised? Can people be categorised in a positive way – does positive categorisation also result in prejudice?
2. Is it preferable, in certain situations, to be ‘colourblind’ about people’s race and ethnicity? Do the goals of colourblindness and multiculturalism support each other or conflict? How can we celebrate multiculturalism without calling attention to the differences between people?

1. The Process of Othering

“People don’t just figure out on their own that collectively they need to be afraid of another group… Often people who have been living with one another for years are made to feel suddenly that those differences have become threatening.”

john a powell, Us vs Them: the sinister techniques of Othering

Have you ever noticed how Hollywood movies used to cast Middle Eastern characters as villains or terrorists? Or how Asian people are often depicted as ‘mystical’ or perhaps intelligent-but-socially-awkward? Perhaps you’ve noticed how, in news footage, certain suspects are given racial identifiers and others aren’t (when was the last time you heard about a ‘white criminal gang’ from a major western news outlet)? All these are examples of ‘othering’ in the media.

Othering occurs when a group is defined and treated as fundamentally different, alien, or inferior compared to a dominant group. It’s a way of constructing identity by contrasting ‘us’ (the norm or majority) against ‘them’, whoever is in the minority. In the west, this often happens to be black, brown, Middle Eastern or Asian people and, as media representation is often controlled by whoever holds the keys to media institutions, this is where most othering occurs. Othering relies on two major components: contrast creates an ‘us vs them’ divide and simplification reduces the complexity of different people to exaggerated caricatures or simplistic traits. In short, othering reinforces existing power dynamics between in-groups and marginalised people, and can lead to prejudice when othered people are seen as naturally inferior, undeserving or dangerous. Use this PPT to discover the complex methods by which people are ‘othered’ in advertising and the media”

• Constructing Racial Stereotypes (PPT)

Activity: Othering Apu (The Simpsons)

Put your learning to the test by watching this episode of The Simpsons (Homer and Apu, Season 5, Episode 13) and asking whether Apu is presented in a stereotyped or non-stereotyped way. This question is more charged than you might think: Apu is the manager of the town Kwik-E Mart and he happens to be an immigrant from West Bengal. Voiced by white actor Hank Azaria, he’s the subject of a 2017 documentary by Hari Kondabalu, The Problem with Apu. Kondabulu argues the character is an offensive racial stereotype who needs to be retired. As you can see from this article, Kondabulu’s position is not universally accepted. Some respond that, although representation of South Asian actors and characters has increased and improved on television and in movies in recent years, it’s still relatively minuscule; so Apu is an important figure representing diversity in a mainstream TV show.

2. From Jim Crow to Black Panther: Historical and Modern Black Representation

“…the image of Africa as “the other world,” the antithesis of Europe and therefore of civilization, a place where man’s vaunted intelligence and refinement are finally mocked by triumphant beastiality.”

An Image of Africa, Chinua Achebe

Media portrayals of Black people are rooted in historical narratives that shaped racial attitudes for centuries. From the era of slavery and colonialism, stereotypes were constructed to justify oppression and maintain social hierarchies. These early depictions painted Black individuals as ‘primitive’ or ‘savage,’ laying the foundation for caricatures that entered popular culture. Most prominently, in the 19th century, minstrel shows and blackface performances popularised figures like the Jim Crow character and the loyal Mammy, reinforcing ideas of servitude and inferiority. Hollywood later amplified these tropes in films such as The Birth of a Nation (1915), which portrayed Black men as violent threats, and Gone with the Wind (1939), which romanticised plantation life.

Even as media evolved, stereotypes adapted rather than disappeared. The ‘Magical Negro’ trope in modern cinema positions Black characters as wise helpers whose purpose is to redeem white protagonists. News coverage often over-represents Black individuals in crime stories, while sports commentary emphasises physicality over intellect. Music videos and advertising sometimes perpetuate hyper-sexualized or aggressive images, echoing historical myths. Learning these stereotypes alongside their historical roots helps us see how cultural narratives are constructed and sustained. By examining these patterns, we can challenge harmful representations and promote authentic, diverse portrayals of Black lives.

• Historical and Modern Black Representation (PPT)

Activity: Researching Counter-Narratives

In this activity, aim to investigate a brand that have collaborated with Black creatives to produce inclusive campaigns. Your goal is to determine whether these campaigns go beyond tokenism and demonstrate genuine commitment to representation.

Selecta brand from the list provided below – click on the link which will get you started by taking you to the campaign (and you can find some more articles in the Further Reading list at the bottom of this page if you scroll down). Gather images and key information about the campaign (such as its message, its use of visuals that portray counter-stereotypes – or that perhaps still perpetuate older stereotypes – the creative team behind the campaign, and any measurable social impact you can research). Then, prepare a presentation of your findings, explaining why the campaign is authentic rather than performative, considering factors like representation, cultural relevance, and action beyond marketing.

• Nike Dream Crazy
• Fenty Beauty
• Ben & Jerry’s Justice Remix’d
• Topicals Funner Flare Ups

Learner Portfolio: How to Write About X

How to Write About Africa by Binyavanga Wainaina is a satirical essay first published in Granta in 2005. Written as a mock guide for Western writers, it exposes the clichés and stereotypes that dominate narratives about Africa. Adopting an ironic, instructional tone, Wainaina offers absurd ‘rules’ that highlight how Africa is often portrayed as a monolithic, exotic, and tragic place rather than a diverse continent with complex realities. The essay critiques common tropes such as focusing exclusively on famine, war, and wildlife, while ignoring ordinary life and modernity. It ridicules the use of words like safari, tribal, and darkness, and the tendency to erase African voices in favour of ‘white saviour’ figures. Wainaina also skewers the practice of reducing Africans to helpless victims or noble savages. Before you attempt this Learner Portfolio writing, read this essay together with your classmates, identifying and discussing these ‘rules’ – Wainaina’s satirical techniques – together.

Think about the way people from your country, ethnicity, religion, or social group might be stereotyped. (For example, being British, I am often stereotyped as ‘stiff-upper-lipped’, over-polite, good at queueing. I enjoy drinking tea and eating fish and chips. I have a particular fondness for the royal family, go to the pub, watch football at the weekend, and definitely can’t speak a foreign language.) Create a set of satirical ‘rules’ that you would use to write about this group. Share your rules with others in your class. As an extra challenge, use your rules to write a satirical piece of your own, using How to Write About Africa as a style guide.

Body of Work: Come to Selfhood

Internationally recognized, award-winning artist and author Joshua Rashaad McFadden is originally from Rochester, New York. McFadden developed an interest in art as a child. During his undergraduate years at Elizabeth City State University in North Carolina, he began to make photographs as a fine art practice. McFadden was named one of the top emerging talents in the world by LenCulture and received the first place International Photography Award (IPA, 2015) for After Selma. He won the first place IPA award again in 2016 for his series and book Come to Selfhood.

This series presents each of his subjects in photographic portraiture as they envisage who they are and the influences that shape their core. The subjects share an image of a father or ‘father figure’ who most affected their lives. Therefore, each piece combines portraiture, an archival portrait of their influencer at approximately the same age as the subject, and text derived from interviews with the subjects. Joshua has stated: “I wanted to bring the viewer into our story, our collective story. Many times African-American males are bunched into one category of masculinity and actually a category of toxic masculinity, a violent being, which is totally not true.”

This exhibition is an ideal Body of Work that counters racial stereotypes and common misconceptions of Black identity. It had a powerful impact on release and has garnered much critical feedback. (Alternatively, you could work with one of the campaigns you researched during your lessons on Black representation, such as Ben & Jerry’s Justice Remix’d, Fenty Beauty, and so on).

Towards Assessment: Individual Oral

Supported by an extract from one non-literary text and one from a literary work, students will offer a prepared response of 10 minutes, followed by 5 minutes of questions by the teacher, to the following prompt: Examine the ways in which the global issue of your choice is presented through the content and form of two of the texts that you have studied. (40 marks)

An image from Come to Selfhood would make for a very interesting Individual Oral talk. The exhibition works to counter stereotypes of black masculinity, and the particular narrative of black men as irresponsible or absent fathers, offering an alternative representation. This exhibition would pair especially well with Kayo Chingonyi’s poetry collection, Kumukanda, which directly explores the limits of black representation in 1980s British culture. There are a couple more ideas as to how you might use this exhibition below. However, you should always be mindful of your own ideas and class discussions and follow the direction of your own thoughts, discussions and programme of study when devising your assessment tasks:

Towards Assessment: Higher Level Essay

Students submit an essay on one non-literary text or a collection of non-literary texts by one same author, or a literary text or work studied during the course. The essay must be 1,200-1,500 words in length. (20 marks).††

If you enjoyed this section of work, you might consider following up this investigation when it comes to writing the essay that all Higher Level students must write. Here are one or two examples of lines of inquiry suitable for this text – but remember to follow your own interests and the direction of your own class discussion to generate your own line of inquiry. It is not appropriate for students to submit responses to an essay question that has been assigned:

• How does Joshua Rashaad Mcfadden present images of men that offer an alternative representation of masculinity in his work Come to Selfhood?

Paper 1 Text Type Focus: InformationTexts

Further Reading

• White Like Me – documentary by Tim Wise about racism in America.
• Native American Stereotypes – online exhibition at the Jim Crow Museum.
• Is Zwarte Piet Racist? (and other articles from the Economist)
• Dolce and Gabanna ‘Chopsticks’ adverts fallout (news report on youtube)
• 15 Reasons Why – article debunking modern myths about the African continent
• Our Image of Africa is Obsolete (Guardian Article)
• Mammy, Jezebel, and Sapphire: Stereotyping Black Women in the Media (Al Jazeera video explainer)
• I Am Not Your Asian Stereotype – TedTalk given by Xu Canwen
• How Fenty Beauty Changed the State of Play in the Industry (British Vogue article)
• The Impact of Nike’s Dream Crazy Campaign (Widd Network article)
• How Topicals Made Flare Ups Fun (Brand Insider Case Study)