On The Roundabout

Near where we used to live in Cambridge there was a traffic circle that we used constantly. I admire the traffic circle as a form of traffic control and frankly wish they were more widely implemented but that is not the point of this letter. Whenever I used it I spent an inordinate amount of time thinking about it from a psychological standpoint. The people who were driving around the circle or exiting it had the right of way, while those who were entering the circle had to "yield," i.e., wait for the traffic to clear in order to drive around the circle and continue in whatever direction.

I always noticed how my demeanor would shift immediately upon entering the circle. As I waited for an opening, I would harshly judge my fellow drivers as though they were deliberately speeding up in order not to let me in. But once I was merrily steering our Jetta around the circle, did I let in other drivers? Nah.

This brings me to the real point of this letter, which is actor-observer bias.

I realize this is extremely random especially coming from a suburban mom who makes comics but please just roll with me for a minute. Once I heard this term I couldn't stop thinking about it and all the ways it affects my perceptions of others. I heard it first in relation to the use of computer animation in courtrooms—if you already know the outcome of a crime, that will color your interpretation of the sequence of events that preceded it. You will assume the perpetrator's personality led them to deliberately make certain choices (like being a meanie who doesn't let other drivers in!) rather than consider any external factors that may have led to the crime.

Please bear with me a moment longer, as I tell you the most recent instance I caught myself in an act of "actor-observer bias," which probably happens to me on average 60 to 100 times a day. This morning I was reading an op-ed about the woman in Michigan who is standing trial for involuntary manslaughter, allegedly for ignoring signals that her son was capable of being a "school shooter."

Never mind the infuriating double standards that besiege women and mothers. This article caught me off guard because I realized that I wanted this mother to be found guilty. I wanted to believe all the worst things about her, and about her parenting skills or lack thereof. I believed that if more parents were held accountable for school shootings then there would be fewer shootings. The article left me with a feeling of unease and sadness. Unease at my own willingness to see the justice system find a scapegoat, and sadness that this person has to undergo the torment of a criminal trial and possibly face time in prison in addition to everything else she's going through.

I wish I could end this with a witty reference to the traffic circle but that doesn't seem appropriate...and I'm not completely sure the metaphor works?

Anyway, thanks for letting me get that off my chest. Here are three things that got me through the past weeks:

1. For the past two Fridays I led comic workshops in Michaela's art class. It was such a pleasure working with third graders—they are so sharp! I asked them to come up with a superhero who had to overcome the challenge of getting served their least favorite food at lunchtime. (Tomatoes were universally reviled.) The results were all so great. Look at that Ketchup Man!!!!!!!! Oh my gawd. I really can't believe how good they all were.

2. I also went to the opening of Walls Turned Sideways, a new gallery/community space for the Prison + Neighborhood Arts/Education Project (aka PNAP). The exhibition featured the work of Arkee Cheney, who spent 31 years in prison and drew comics for "Stateville Speaks," a newsletter published by and for incarcerated people.

3. Lastly I was intrigued by this article in JSTOR Daily about the potential for switchgrass to be a source of ethanol, which is largely made from corn. I often wonder what the midwest would look like if prairies dominated the landscape instead of farms. Grasses used to cover eighty percent of Iowa, and now cover less than one percent. This article gives me hope that prairie grass might make a comeback.

I hope you have a great week with very few negative traffic experiences!

Claire

PS, if you tried to reply directly to my letter last week and got a bounce back email, my apologies. That should be fixed now, so please do drop me a line! Or forward this to someone who might enjoy it. If you were forwarded this email, and would like it to come directly to your inbox, all you have to do is subscribe below.