Fandom and Race

[kat_lair]

This is really a public service post. I simply wanted to pass on a couple of links because I know there are people on my F-list who will be interested in the topic and will want to be in the loop.

Recently there has been a lot of discussion about the role race plays in fandom activities, spurred on by an incident explained in witchqueen's post here. If you go to liviapenn's post here you will find a lot of links to other entries on the subject. Personally, I'm going to recommend poisontaster's entry about the power words hold.

***

Everyone has prejudices. Admitting their existence is the hardest thing of all. We live in a society that comes with inbuilt, structural discrimination - racism, sexism, homophobia, you name it, it's there. How can we be anything but products of that society, carrying along stereotypes that we know are wrong, taking them with us everywhere we go?

Including Fandom.

I've only even met a handful of you in RL, my darling F-list, so for most part your age, ethnicity, sexuality, religion etc. are unknown to me. I don't know what colour your skin is or how many birthday candles are on your cake. I don't know whether you like to kiss women or men or both or neither. I don't know if you believe in God and if so in what God. I don't know if you have issues with mental health, or an illness or a condition that makes you feel like an outsider. I don't know your body shape, your cultural background, your mother's name or father's occupation. I don't know whether you like cats and mango ice-cream and the sound of rain when it hits your window late at night.

I don't know if you look so different from me that I'd never come to talk to you if I hadn't met you here in Fandom.

I like to think that I would have. I like to think I'm the kind of person that makes an effort, who acknowledges the stereotypes and tries to consciously move away from them, through words and deeds both, because both have power and both are important.

I like to think all that. But I don't know. People aren't perfect. I'm not perfect, but there is one thing I do know: I'm glad I've met you all anyway, and I'm glad to call you my friends. And maybe one day I will find out about all those things above; the birthday candles, the shade of your skin as they flicker across your face, the kissing and the prayers you say, your struggles and wins and losses, your favourite flavour of ice-cream.

But none of that won't have a chance to change anything, not any more. I'm grateful for the way online/LJ/fandom friendships have made it possible to see past the surface, because in RL we always can't. Even if we really want to.

Still, the main thing is not so much whether we always succeed, but that we keep on trying. That we speak up and stand up for what is right. Words and deeds, people. Words and deeds.

Comments

[trialia]

liviapenn... heh. Reputation preceding.

Hmm. So what of that lot don't you know about me?

[bloodrebel333.livejournal.com]

Oh. I like cats, and I eat mango ice-cream though often it feels as if they've sweetened it up too much, which is a shame. I love the sound of rain when it hits my window late at night, and many a time I've had to jump out of bed and close the window because it was storming and everything on my desk (including the old typewriter, the books and the stereo) was nearly soaked.

Tell me something about you I don't know?

[moth2fic.livejournal.com]

Hi! Sticking my head above the parapet...

I'm worried about all the posts I've seen about this issue.

Having, as you know, worked in the equal ops field for a long time, one issue that concerns me is that the racists, homophobes etc. use exactly the same arguments to justify their own view of the world/language and to some extent their use by those 'on the side of the side of the angels' can give the arguments a kind of legitimacy.

Secondly, our language ( well,mine, and yours by adoption!)has very different meanings depending on where it is spoken/written. 'Miscegenation' in Europe has connotations to do with Hitler and Jews, and no connection with Afro-Americans whatsoever. It might well still be offensive, but to an entirely different set of people.

Thirdly, I am amazed by the suggestions as to what we call the inter-... affairs of fantasy worlds such as Harry Potter. Interracial is not adequate and interspecies isn't quite what we mean, either. Besides, the entire 'mudblood' thread of the series raises important questions about 'race' in a non-threatening way, and can be used to get children to talk about their feelings and beliefs. Therefore, there is a microcosm of 'history' within the novels themselves.

I think the whole affair of 'miscegenation' was badly handled but my concerns still stand!

[oikku.livejournal.com]

what wise words, and especially appropriate and worth to keep in mind since we're about to spend a day with a bunch of complete strangers. also, this post makes me even more thrilled to have the pleasure of meeting you so very soon. ♥