A bingo card for arguments about whether or not racism can exist in fantasy and/or science fiction.
(Some commenters may be aware of the story and discussion that triggered this bingo card. I’m not going to link to it because I think the story itself is a red herring from this post. I think the use of an undigested trope was ill-advised, but I also believe it was a good-faith error, and that the author’s response to critics is genuine.
This Bingo card is presented A) in response to the comments on that story, and B) in response to the comments on every other story that spawns variations of these poorly formed arguments. As the Angry Black Woman said about the issue, more or less, whether or not one agrees with a specific charge of racism, using arguments out of the handbook for “How to Suppress Discussions of Racism” is NOT the way to prove your point.)
Feminist/womanist, anti-racist commenters only.
This is a great bingo card! It made me laugh. Thanks for making it.
I agree with you that the comments were more problematic than the story itself, and that the author made an honest mistake.
Thanks, Willow. :)
Great card. I’m wondering if there’s a way to work in the concept of “the characters’ use of racial slurs shows that their society *isn’t* racist!” (Both Ender’s Game and Childhood’s End tried that one.)
“date rape bingo” “rape apologetics bingo” and now this. These bingo posts get right to the point. I love’em.
It’s the most amazing cooincidence, but when I’ve tried complaining about queerphobia, I’ve gotten really similar results! Who woulda thought!
Scifi is fucking terrible for this, but I don’t know if it’s worse than other genre fiction or not. I do think it contributes that writers think they’re magically immune from all criticism. No the REALY alien other in BSG are the cylons and the dearth of POC characters (who somehow manage to make up many of the thuggish marines) just shows, um, that that it’s a society with no concept of race!
Les – as a self-avowed scifi/fantasy geek, who nevertheless dispairs of canon and fanon obsession with AWC (angsty white c–k) {sorry, I’m not being intentionally sexist, but it’s the phrase used in fandom to complain about this very thing}
>Scifi is fucking terrible for this, but I don’t know if it’s worse than other genre fiction or not.
It isn’t and it is. It isn’t in that, yep, any romance novel with more than 1 black main character or couple will likely be in the “African American Fiction” ghetto of Borders. It is in that sci-fi writers/producers/TPTB often makes valient attempts to deal with prejudice/racism/sexism/homophobia by SUBSTITUTING the alien other, and then either pat themselves on the back (“My work here is done,”), or think that in order to PROVE their point (with anvils, usually), they need to eliminate “distractions…” yeah, that would mean the REAL-LIFE targets of prejudice. At the expense of minority characters and actors.
>I do think it contributes that writers think they’re magically immune from all criticism
Which is funny-strange, when what often happens in movies and TV is that the real world minority actor gets red-shirted, Magical Negroe’d, or placed behind a latex mask AS the alien to be met and often friended. And they never see the irony..
Heheh, just yesterday I was reading Wil Wheaton’s review of “Code of Honor” the delightfully racist (and awful) TNG episode. Quite topical.
The sad part is that sometimes the bigotry marrs otherwise really-good sci-fi. Forever War is one of the best science fiction books I’ve ever read… but Joe Haldeman was obviously quite homophobic when he wrote it… you can tell he is quite genuinely very uncomfortable and afraid of homosexuality (which plays a pretty big part in the book), even if he doesn’t hate it.
I think the simple problem is that an awful lot of sci-fi is written by white geeks who (surprise-surprise) tend to be somewhat insular and don’t have much experience with… well… anything. Even if they’re pacifist liberals, their isolation still makes it hard for them to be sensitive. Which means that we get, at best, all-white hetero universes. Which, imho, is fair if one should write what they know.
I mean, if I don’t know any gay people or anything about gay culture, should I feel compelled to include a gay character who I will inevitably either screw up or completely ignore the gay aspect of his character?
Then again, there is always the Earthsea approach. Mention it once or twice, then utterly forget about it. All the civilized peoples of Earthsea are brown. This is not a big deal.
edit: as for Ender’s Game, I always thought that the racism of the characters in the story was fine – Ender lived in an international group where racism was alive and well, and the author told that part convincingly. I just didn’t like the way so many characters lived up to racial stereotypes – most of the kids are caricatures of their nationalities.
To a large extent, I think the guy who was arguing with you should have realized he was owned right about the time he realized he had no books by women authors. OTOH though…I think it is interesting that he sniffed out what he considered a “feminist bias” and what he found was, in fact, a feminist blogger in disguise.
If this isn’t thread jacking, can anyone think of any good sci-fi stories or novels where the race dynamics worked well? I’m looking for something to read…
“To a large extent, I think the guy who was arguing with you should have realized he was owned right about the time he realized he had no books by women authors. OTOH though…I think it is interesting that he sniffed out what he considered a “feminist bias” and what he found was, in fact, a feminist blogger in disguise.”
Very different conversation, actually.
Just what the doctor ordered! Thanks!
The bingo card looks very familiar…like it would work for sexism,homophobia and a few other problems not always properly expunged from fiction. What I want to see next, is some good answers/comebacks for each of the remarks on the card…I tried to think of some and I couldn’t. I smell something wrong when I hear those kind of answers to a valid complaint, but I can’t put into words just what it is that is belittling me.
Also, the card left out the ancestor of them all…at least for folks on this side of the pond…”1st amendment, I can write what I want.” Well, maybe so, but I vote with my debit card.
Oh, here’s a start–if true art really is no slave to politics, why then it should not be tainted with the effusions of racist, sexist, etc. politics. All right, some of you can do better than that one, so have at it!
Dianne,
Octavia Butler will blow your mind. Start with the Kindred trilogy.
I think the bingo card would work for comedy or cartoons, as well. (Johnny Vegas, anyone??!) Like those people who really seem to think that the “danish cartoons” are a “freedom of speech” issue.
Sewere –
Kindred is a one-off. I think you may mean the Xenogenesis trilogy, which I believe is now being called Lilith’s Brood…
But either way – I heartily second the recommendation.
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Let’s talk about the Invisible Big Brown Bear in the Editorial Conference Room…
http://ashokbanker.com/2008/08/01/is-american-science-fiction-fantasy-racist-and-sexist-bigotted-and-culturally-insensitive-too/
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I really like this bingo card — it says what I wish I could express, but never think of in time.
I’d like to repost it along with this misogyny bingo , because I think they’re both important.
Would it be OK for me to do that? Would you prefer that I hotlink to your image or host it myself? I’d link to this blog entry in any case. Please let me know.
It’s probably safer to host it yourself in case something happens to this page. I’m certainly happy to have you repost it.
Best,
Mandolin
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Racism does exist in fantasy/science fiction though its usually between different species of humanoid rather than the different races of human. Its still an allegory to racism in the real world.
Star Trek for example – Cardassians were known as spoon-heads, Shran the Andorian (blue-skinned aliens) referred to Jonathan Archer as ‘pink-skin’ and the Klingons and Romulans loathed each other.
In Sci-Fi/fantasy it seems that even if humans learn to tolerate each other for their racial differences, they’ll find some other species to hate.
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