I your average weird geeky British Nigerian. Lover of video games, fantasy stuff, deserts, cute things, fine boy no pimples, fashion, steampunk and many other ish to name a few.
Quote reblogged from Racebending.com with 829 notes
I will give you two or three non-white actors in smaller supporting roles. Why not lead roles? Because I’m trying to make a living here. I have spent a lot of time and money throughout history convincing everyone that white is normal. I have even convinced non-white people that white is better, prettier, smarter, stronger, and that only white people can truly be the heroes. Everyone has bought into it, and now you want me to just abandon all my hard work?
-Aasif Mandvi parodies the mentality of studio executives who whitewash, in a satire article for Salon.com (via racebending)
THIS
Source: salon.com
Post reblogged from Angry Trekkie with 32 notes
Race in Fantasy: A Primer
cross-posted from my blog, Scribbles & Sonnets
I’m writing a fantasy series. To be specific, I’m writing a multi-ethnic, supernatural, steampunk high fantasy series. If you’re not sure what I mean, I’ll give you some reference points. Think the television show “Heroes” meets “The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen” meets “A People’s History of the United States” and throw in some colonialism, imperialism, racism, and other -isms. I’ve always loved the fantasy genre every since I was a kid and here are some things I’ve noticed about the genre (books, film, television and video games) in regards to race:1. Dark / Brown people are bad.
Dark people are almost always the villains in high fantasy series. I say dark because notions of race are different in imaginary worlds but that doesn’t mean that racism in our world doesn’t carry over through the author’s depiction of dark people. J. R. R. Tolkien specifically stated in The Lord of the Rings trilogy that all of the men who joined Sauron were dark-skinned, and that the pirates were supposed to look “yellow” or Asian. Sound racist? That’s because it is.
In David Eddings’ Belgariad and Mallorean series, the story is told from the perspective of the Alorns (also known as white people) who fight a war with the Angaraks, a race of people with “yellow skin” and “slanted eyes.” They’re often referred to as “yellow dogs.”
In Terry Brooks’ Shannara series, which spans hundreds of years and generations upon generations of humans, dwarves, elves, trolls, etc. the dark elves are the ones who are evil. Read: dark-skinned elves.
Game of Thrones, the new HBO series based on George R. R. Martin’s series A Song of Fire and Ice has to this point (one season and four episodes of the second season in) only included three kinds of brown people: the first is a tribe of horse-lords call the Dothraki who the white protagonists view as savage, backward, and ignorant. Then there’s a cursory appearance of a black pirate, who is in the scene for approximately five minutes. In the last episode, there was a black person who is in charge of a city called Qarth (supposed to be modeled off of Egypt) and he has approximately two lines.
or…
2. Dark / Brown people don’t exist
There are plenty of other authors that wash their hands of race entirely, with token brown characters here and there or no brown people altogether. Harry Potter comes to mind, with only two or three named characters of color in seven books. A fantasy phenomenon, easily the most popular series of all time, and there are no people of color who figure prominently in it? Something about that just seems wrong.
Roger Zelazny’s Amber Chronicles has absolutely no people of color in it at all - and this series centers around the ability of the main characters to alter reality as they see fit. So you’re telling me that a group of people who can alter the very fabric of space and are all white?
Isobelle Carmody’s Obernewtyn Chronicles are completely devoid of any brown people. Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games only makes mention of two who are named, and they both serve as tools to help the protagonist. They don’t have inner lives or desires or anything remotely like character development because they only exist to further the plot.
3. Brown people exist to be exotified and ogled by the white protagonist.
Jaqueline Carey’s Kushiel series is guilty of this particular trend: she sets up a pseudo-Renaissance world where the protagonist is a facsimile of a white European (seems French to me) and along her travels and journey she meets strange looking yellow-skinned and brown-skinned people. She marvels at how barbaric and savage their customs are. She feels pity for them when something bad happens and feels maternalistic towards them because they aren’t civilized enough to understand what’s going on around them.
Twilight is another series very guilty of this: Jacob is Native American and a werewolf and it’s not a coincidence. All of werewolves in Twilight are Native American, further reinforcing the stereotype that Native Americans are savage, wild, and uncivilized.
and the very rare…
4. Some people are brown and that’s okay because race doesn’t exist!
My beloved Star Trek is guilty of this one, as is Star Wars, The Matrix, and many other science fiction films. Just because we’re in the future doesn’t mean we’re post-racial. As much as I love The Next Generation, there is not a single mention of race in regards to Geordi LeForge (Levar Burton) or Guinan (Whoopi Goldberg). Since Worf (Michael Dorn) is a Klingon, I guess I could see how race wouldn’t be the same for Klingons, and I can even see the argument that because there are races other than human racism within the human species no longer exists… but that’s pretty farfetched to me.
Heroes does this as well, and not only does it refuse to acknowledge race, but it kills off the majority of its characters of color in the first season and then replaces them with blonde white women!
I would put The Hunger Games in this category as well because of the way race is never discussed other than as a descriptor of appearance. Collins had the opportunity to comment on systems of oppression and offer some insight on race as a hierarchical structure but she shied away from it.
Source: angrytrekkie
Post reblogged from Deal With It! with 267 notes
So Your Artwork Has Been Called Out for Whitewashing: A How To Reaction Guide
So you’re just living your merry life, posting your great fanart online for friends and fans alike to revel in, and then BAM! It happens.
You get called out for whitewashing.
You! Yes, you over there! What have you done.
Either in the comments or because it was reposted/reblogged by a blog dedicated to pointing out whitewashing, your work has been singled out. What to do?? But fear not, my friend, here’s a step by step guide to navigate you through this difficult time and come out without looking like a total douchebag! Behold, How To React When Your Art Has Been Accused of Whitewashing.
DO: Read the post carefully and all its commentary, whether its a novel or simply a gif. Someone is saying something to you - a good idea is to listen!
DO: Look at your art again and look at the original material. Is there a difference in the skin tone (spoiler alert - chances are yes, yes there is)? Ask yourself what happened. Why is your work lighter? Why did you choose the palette you did?
DO: Fix it! A mistake was made, either intentionally or not. But in the end you used the wrong skin color - go back and darken appropriately and repost the correct art. Yes, correct. Accept the fact that the character you drew is Black/brown/Asian/NOT WHITE and act accordingly (PS - drawing characters as a POC with lighter skin than in the canon is still whitewashing). Now that that’s done, repost with a quick explanation that you redid the skin tone.
DO: Be vigilant next time you draw and think about the character you’re trying to portray and what they actually look like. And voila, you’re done! You’ve successfully responded to an awkward situation and have come out a better artist and person from it.
Yaaay good job high five!
But! Bonus! We’ll include this handy guide of things to AVOID doing so you don’t make a giant jackass of yourself.
DO NOT: Get butthurt or personally offended or irrationally angry at the people who pointed out your fuckup. It’s not their fault whitewashing occurred on your watch.
DO NOT: Just because the people who called your art whitewashed didn’t write a heartfelt long paragraph about why this is a problem and held your hand and stroked your head whispering, “shhh, it’s okay, you is kind, you is smart, you is important” doesn’t mean that their points are anything less that valid. Being snarky or rude doesn’t invalidate the message. If you want explanations as to why Whitewashing Is Bad (and why Racebending is Not), Google is your friend!
DO NOT: Attempt to justify the whitewashing, especially if you provide bullshit excuses like “the lighting! the lighting!”. As an artist, you ought to know that sunlight or fire does not turn POC white. It’s true! Look it up! Google images is here for you <3.
DO NOT: Insult, harass, or otherwise be an annoyance to the people that pointed out the whitewashing. It’s bad form, and it just makes you look like a total ass.
Doing any of these things makes Yoda face palm. Think of Yoda!
So there we are! That wasn’t so bad, was it? And yet it’s quite difficult for some people. Let’s be real - you did something, whether intentionally or not, that is offensive. It happens to all of us - take it from someone who’s been there. Many people have made that mistake - doesn’t automatically make you a terrible person. It’s not hard to fix. But if you’re going to argue that “omg it’s just fandom who cares”, obviously a lot of people do and it’s symptomatic of a larger problem. Don’t make it worse on yourself by saying stupidity like that. Posting art online makes it fair game to observations of all kinds. One last time: using the right skin tone for a character is not hard. Neither is acting like an adult when someone points out an issue in your art. Now get out there and be the best artist you can be without perpetuating racism! You can do it!
Benedict Cumberbatch believes in you.
Interested in the topic? Damnlayoffthebleach and stopwhitewashing are two blogs that deal with the issue. They’ve got great links too. Check it out bro!
Deedee:
I said I was gonna take a break from the blog todady
But!
OMG! COME HERE!
Dyin at the bolded
Source: crystalzelda
Video reblogged from fuck yeah, women of the rainbow. with 389 notes
“Impossible” from Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella (1997)
Now I know this isn’t the Disney film most people think of when they hear “Cinderella”, but it is a Disney production nonetheless, and that is incredibly important. It premiered on ABC as a made-for-TV film and became the #1 show of the week with over 60 million viewers. It was nominated for several Emmy’s and won for Outstanding Art Direction (for a Variety or Music Program).
But what makes Cinderella truly special is its ethnically-diverse cast. The film stars African-American singer Brandi is its titular role, and Whitney Houston, its producer, as her Fairy Godmother. Paolo Montalban is a Prince born to a black Queen (Whoopi Goldberg) and a white King (Victor Garber). Thanks to its color-blind cast, Cinderella has proved to millions of children and even adults that fairytales can still be magical, no matter what the prince and princess look like.
I forgot about this version of Cinderella. I remember liking it a lot. I may have to scour the internet to find it.
I love the color blind casting here. It reminded me of a school play or something.
Source: racebentdisney
Post with 5 notes
Dear Hollywood, just stop it!
“AKIRA” adaptation courts white actors
Asian American community reaches out to Warner Bros. about AKIRA
When I first heard Akira was being remade into a live action Hollywood film I though WHY?! Then I had a feeling that everyone would be white or just Kaneda and Tetuso. Just like Dragonball, 21, The last Airbender, Earthsea and many more stuff.
I first heard Leonardo Dicaprio, then Zac Efron
Now one of these guys.
Tetsuo and Kaneda are teens by the way, could you imagine these dudes in a biker gang, very Wild Hogs. Seriously is Hollywood just stop it. Stop it now.
