The medium I will be analyzing is the TV series Grey’s Anatomy. Through the 17 seasons of this show, the characters are very diverse in gender, race, sexual preferences and religion. The show is not shy went it comes to expressing the issues of inequality in our world today, writer Shanda Rhimes fills the series with racism and inequalities we see in our societies today in a way to create awareness. Interactions between patients and doctors, interracial relationships, women’s roles in power and relation to big movements like the back lives matter. An example of a specific scene (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ibJyZeTzLIY) where a gentleman comes into the ER and Bailey is attempting to treat him. The patient makes it clear that he does not want her treating him and asks for a different doctor. Dr.Weber then shows up to treat this patient, but the gentleman looks at Weber and stills is refusing treatment stating he wants a different doctor. Weber then realizes it was not just about the gender, the patient did not want an African American doctor treating him. This is not the only example of racism through the show, but it is one of the more extreme scenes. Another example of inequality is when the show flashes back to Meredith’s mother and Weber’s experience through residency. In these scenes we see the struggle Meredith’s mom faces as becoming a female doctor in those times and the determination she had to succeed. In contrast, we see Meredith in present time with that same determination and as a very high ranked and powerful women in the hospital. The show defiantly presents these everyday issues of racisms in an informative way through this very popular show to create awareness.
In relation to our course content, this show connects very well to the theories we have learned about and the texts we have reviewed. Many of the readings, like Story of My Body or My Reluctant Fundamentalist, contain stories or experience of racism. Grey’s Anatomy is a show that contains a lot of diversity and many different scenarios of racism, so I feel it can relate to many people and/or topics.