Stab you in the brain

[ellestra]

The rain stopped and it got colder and not only my symptoms made a comeback but I also got a horrible sinus pain around my right eye. It felt like being stabbed through the skull with icepick (paracetamol/acetaminophen and few hours of sleep helped). However I'm aware that some of you might've a pretty nice day today and enjoyed the weather. So here's something that stabs you in the brain in a way only other humans can.

The Hunger Games had an incredible opening weekend. Based on a book written by a woman and with female lead character I was hoping to celebrate the prospect of having a proof that girls can be main characters (in action sf dystopias even) and not scare boys away (like by being mentioned in the title). However, some decided to share their thoughts about the movie and made me just want to hit my head repeatedly (or maybe their head). There is nothing like calling a little girl "black bitch" and saying you only cared when you thought she was white. The public response forced these posters to delete or hide these but there are also plenty of people who defend the posters assumptions about character races completely ignoring what is wrong with them. It's not assumption that they were all white that's a problem. It's making these characters less worthy of love, attention and empathy when you learn they aren't. We see consequences of thinking like that playing out in RL^TM right now.

I haven't read the books (or seen the film, yet) and I don't have any particular attachment to characters and their looks. I remember thinking it funny that they switched the hair colour for the male leads (but that's easier then changing height). If I did I would associate olive skin description with white people because that's how it's used in Poland (but I still noticed that they picked the whitest kids around - Thor's brother and Jennifer Laurence pale blond looks to paint over and, even though it was probably little less work (no contacts) then turning Jessica Alba to Sue Storm, you still know they are very white). However, there is certain point when you should stop lying to yourself and admit that if you just edit all explicit mentions of a character being other race from your brain then white then you have a problem. If you only care about their life or death when they are specific race (not to mention call them and the actors names) there is something wrong with you not them. You basically admit you can only like/care about white people. Look at what you write and see it staring at you.

Comments

[novin-ha.livejournal.com]

It annoys me so much when people willfully ignore anything that suggests the character is not like them. I've been in a feminist drama class where I was the only person who noticed a character was gay. He was never named as such, but him losing his apartment after landlord caught him with a man there was a plot point.

But this just takes the cake, especially in the context of recent events. (was the recent TGW episode just a coincidence? Must have been cast, shot and wrapped way before the Trayvon murder occured much less was publicized, but the name thing struck me as uncanny).

I feel like banging my head against a wall when coupled with the antisemitism I'm noticing among fellow students.

[ellestra.livejournal.com]

I used to get more angry about people not noticing or misremembering the details (Quick Ben is mentioned to have a very dark brown skin several times and people still are surprised he is black!). Then I tried to give people benefit of the doubt (he is never called black as Tiste Andii are actually black so humans are only ever dark brown and people get dependent on such shortcuts) since I too often don't remember, sometimes significant details because I was skipping through, didn't notice notice or just mixed it up with something else when I don't really care about story or character. But then it reaches the levels you mentioned and involves editing crucial information to avoid discomfort and I start to wonder how can they even claim they read the story. However, I only get uncomfortable when people start to deny it ever happened even when confronted with evidence. It's really sad when they get angry and defensive about it and blame character for not being just like them.

And that's just fiction. The moment it crosses to real life the whole thing becomes tragic. And the way the same denial becomes blaming the victim makes me want to puke.

Antisemitism in Poland has always made me want to give up on people. From the fact that there are almost no Jews left in Poland after holocaust and forced emigration to the neonazis who parrot the propaganda of people who wanted to murder and enslave us all... It's just makes me want to shake people till they come to their senses.