Double Standard?

Ok, so I have a few questions to ask because I’m not sure how I should feel about this situation. I personally have no ill will towards my fellow man or woman for that matter but for the last few years this issue has bothered me. I think it’s a double standard but I’m not quite sure. So, I will attempt to explain what I see and how it makes me feel and then ask the question.

Over the last few years there has been the same commercial that comes on TV around the time of any major holiday. It’s more prevalent during the Christmas and New Year’s time and I am sure many of you have seen it. It’s that same drunk driving commercial. You know the one, the serious voice saying “over the limit under arrest” with the people driving in a car filled with liquid that looks like beer or a martini. Yeah, that one. Now how on, I’m not condoning drunk driving so relax and I have no problem with the message that the commercial is sending. But, do you notice something about the commercial? Like the people they are all pulling over? Maybe now you see it. In this day and age of trying to squash out stereotypes the government goes and puts one on TV and has been running it for several years. Still don’t get it? Let me break it down for you. Every one of the people being arrested is not only white, but also in the same age bracket (38-45) and then on top of that they are each put with their stereotype of drink. So we have the white, beat up Ford driving, scruffy looking, baseball hat wearing guy driving around in a beer filled vehicle. Then we see the over weight, white, sport car driving, shirt and tie guy in his vehicle filled with a martini type of liquid complete with olives. Ok, so you get my point I don’t need to go over the rest but they are just as bad.

I really feel like this is both a racist commercial towards men like me and an attempt to make me a target. It’s to the point where every time I see the commercial I get a bit angry. It’s like profiling the white male race between the ages of 38 to 45. I also can’t believe no one has spoken up about it and that we all just stand around and accept it as fact. I know if the shoe was on the other foot and these commercials featured all women we would be hearing about it. How about these other commercial scenarios? I don’t think they would be acceptable either.

What if there was a commercial put on TV about the drug “crack” and only black people were getting arrested or being chased down the street. You’d see the camera pan over to a police car with a young black male getting slammed on the hood. Then you would hear that serious sounding voice over, “use or sell crack- under arrest.” Then you could have the scene with a bunch of black males dressed up like gangsters standing against a wall in an inner city setting selling crack, then out of nowhere the police pounce on them. The same serious voice would say something like the police are “cracking down” on crack. What if it was a commercial for street racing that featured only Latinos and low rider cars with loud mufflers, tricked out tires and spoilers that are about a mile high off the back of the car? I’d be willing to bet that organizations would be ringing the phones off the hook saying that those commercials are racist or they portray their specific group in a poor light (which would be true). So now maybe you see what I am talking about. I’m not sure if I have communicated the ideas across correctly and I am by no means trying to be racist nor an I making fun of any race or group of people. So on to my questions:

Am I over reacting to this commercial being a stereotype for white males?

Is this a case of a double standard? That being if the shoe was on the other foot it would be a problem for people.

Here is a link to the commercial on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dHytr5GocwY