closet-racists like to claim that they’d be totally fine and dandy with traditionally white characters being portrayed by actors of color whilst they’re casually dismissing the prevalence of white-washing in hollywood. hate to break it to you, but that is NOT the typical response that actors of color receive, and if you can’t acknowledge that, then you’re only adding to the problem.
remember that time hunger games fans flipped their shit because rue, who IS actually black in the books, was rightfully cast as black in the film? apparently their rose-colored white-is-default glasses made their eyes gloss over that tidbit of info. (let’s not even get wholeheartedly into the fact that katniss was described as having olive skin and jet black hair but her casting call specifically asked for only white actresses…because non-whites could never be expected to have dark hair and tan skin amirite?!)
remember that time people actually boycotted thor because idris elba was in it? http://www.comicsalliance.com/2010/12/16/racists-thor-idris-ebla-racism/
remember that time donald glover got hoards of letters calling him the n-word because there were rumors about him possibly being the new spiderman? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lgko-xReFSs
or that time the film adaptation of avatar: the last airbender (a show with OBVIOUS asian inspiration) was almost an entirely caucasian cast except for the “bad guy”, who, in the cartoon is actually light-skinned? http://io9.com/5111680/avatar-casting-makes-fans-see-white
or remember that time all those fans said it was wrong to have angel coulby play the role of gwen in merlin because it wasn’t era-appropriate. because, ya know, being era-appropriate in a made-up story about magic is srs bsns.
so that’s why i don’t give a shit if you think i’m “overreacting” about jj abrams having a white actor play khan noonien singh. i’m not that surprised by it, since actors of color are routinely dismissed, but i still reserve the right to be pissed.
Remember that time when executives said that they wouldn’t fund a movie because it didn’t have enough white people in it?
http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5i_e3UYOiNEhW03rcVTpcB2e15IMg
Remember the time when executives said that they wouldn’t allow a show with a majority POC cast because “Black people don’t see themselves in the future?” despite Geordi, Uhura, Sisko, Tuvok, Tyr, Zoe and so many other BLACK sci fi characters existing as past precedent?
http://www.bleedingcool.com/2012/07/12/black-people-dont-see-themselves-in-the-future/
Remember when it took 20 years to get a movie about Black people out because distributors BLATANTLY REFUSED TO PUT IN THE WORK TO PROPERLY ADVERTISE A BLACK MOVIE?
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/10/george-lucas-hollywood-di_n_1197227.html
Remember when writers had Batman choose a French/African representative in a comic book and people FLIPPED THEIR SHIT because how dare he choose a Black Muslim to represent FRANCE!!!!
http://www.racialicious.com/2010/12/27/bats-in-their-belfry-dc-comics-new-muslim-hero-angers-islamophobes/
But we’re overreacting when we say we’re tired of the bullshit that is systemically entrenched in damn near every form of media…..
Oh, ok….
(via thekingmakers)
