Hey Gang!
I'm going to do a little bit of a different kind of post today guys. I'm going to have to get real honest with you for a second. I have been a nerd for a very long time, it is something I am incredibly excited about and I'm constantly binge
watching Television and Film, as a black woman, it is very disconcerting to me when I thoroughly enjoy television shows that don't have anyone who look like me. Yes, it may be a bit selfish, but it's more than that. White people are NOT the only people around, despite how much they want it to be true.
I think it is incredibly depressing to be constantly excluded from things you enjoy because you look different from everyone else, and with the fact that racism is alive and well in well...Everything, It really really irks me when people don't take that into consideration when a person of color voices their opinion about something. We're not pulling the race card and we aren't just spouting Political Correctness Bullshit, this is a serious problem, and I am so completely aggravated that people don't take me seriously.
When I ask why Doctor Who has been around for 50 years, and there hasn't been anyone Asian. People roll their eyes and say oh black people weren't around then, oh its not historically accurate to have anyone of color in our t.v. shows. That if a show comes out and it DOES have Characters of color who do a great job representing their race, then the writers are trying to hard.
News FLASH! They aren't trying to hard, they are simply being realistic. If there are stories that feature characters of color that aren't completely one-sided and resemble reality, wouldn't stories that ONLY include
white people be trying to hard? That couldn't possibly be historically accurate right?
Representation is so important! It really is, it is so disenheartening for people to tell us that it is UNFAIR for us to have days and events, such as BlackOut, when if you type beautiful into google, you get nothing but page upon page of White people smiling back at you. The first question anyone has when a character is of color in a new film or television is why are they there? You can deny it all you want, but lets all take a moment to think back about the hooplah people brought up over Fantastic 4's Human Torch wasn't White.
The reason I am even writing about this at all, is that you are beginning to see information and photos for J.K.'s Fantastic Beasts and Where to find them. Which is set in America in the 1920's, with no characters of color anywhere. Just like with the Suffragette Movie, I'm guessing the reason will be People of Color haven't been invented yet, which is ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS. People of Color are everywhere. They were there in London when she wrote the book, They were in the city when they wrote up the script and began to hire actors for the film. We were here long before films with lack of Inclusivity and we will be here long after they flop. We are so tired of hearing that we don't exist for your idea of History. That's NOT historical accuracy, that's your fantasy and THAT ISN'T REALISTIC.
Creators, LET me tell ya a little something. Inclusivity is not your enemy. It literally is NOT your enemy, it is your mother, your father, your best friend, your mailman, and the person that bags your groceries. Inclusivity is all around you, and great literature and art mimic real life. So please, think the next time you decide to create content.
Sigh...
Until Next Time,
Stay Nerdy,
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