Article #3: Action Figures

I think that the latest action figures to be brought out, modelled on the armed forces are a very good idea. Though some suggest that it is advocating war, I think that it is simply responding to the seasoned practice of play fighting. Most young boys have an interest in the military, transport and various things associated with this already. Rather than creating an imaginary hero, these figures are based on real people. I think that this creates a context and structure to the idea of violence, demonstrating what is acceptable in our society and possibly leading to a desire to seek out further information.

Although in an ideal world we would live hand in hand without war or ‘baddies’, for the moment we do need an active defence force, and, as children are taught the historical importance of our world wars, this is a positive demonstration of that.

The major negative to this, lies with the lack of female and ethnic representation: although these are promised to follow, for now they are all white and male. Although this is perhaps an accurate majority in the forces, the message is not great in terms of equal opportunity. It could be a reflection of consumer demand, which is a great shame. More choice would greatly improve this: we mustn’t forget that the consumers here are children and although children may have a natural inclination toward the familiar, it is not children who make the judgements that we, as adults, do.

The picture of the strong, white male officer could further isolate those who live in closed communities: often prejudice grows out of ignorance and the more children are exposed to all fractions of society, the more at ease they will be in later years. Considering that the most recent fighting our armed forces have been involved in has been in the Middle East, and this war has created much inter-community tension, we need to do as much as possible to dispel the idea that it’s ‘them’- the foreign baddies against ‘us’.

When it comes to women, I think it is important that the girls who may find the figures appealing are not put off to see all men: would this suggest to them that it is only a boy thing? It would also be good to see girls look up to a female figure in a successful, strong role. One that doesn’t rely on her appearance and who doesn’t wear make-up, or have any other ‘Barbie’ attributes.

Perhaps some would dismiss this as over the top political correctness. I, however, think that it is important. If we want the next generation to grow up in an age where we do not have to check ourselves constantly or worry about causing offence, then these are the measures we need to take. We need to eliminate ethnicity and sex as standout factors and lead by example.