AVATAR: THE LAST AIRBENDER

[glockgal]

AVATAR: THE LAST AIRBENDER
I'm back, and still angry!

Over the course of the past few days, I find it amazing just how vociferously people will argue why an all-POC/Asian/diverse cast isn't a good thing. No matter what you say and how many facts you point out, they just will keep saying "PROVE IT TO ME." or "THEY AREN'T ALL ASIAN" (therefore, the

Comments

[aang_aint_white]

People should probably be harassing io9.com about this -- it's right smack in the middle of their area of interest, and I'm surprised they haven't picked up on it already.

NPR (On The Media especially) and The Huffington Post have been suggested as good places to write to as well.

We're probably going to make a post later today with a "screencap essay" for those who aren't as familiar with the show or who seem to have misremembered it in key ways. That should do a lot to help interest media types who might not otherwise realize the scale of how offensive this is. As I said to a friend last night, "This isn't Xiaolin Showdown. There's no ambiguity here."

[aang_aint_white]

Also, looks like some hackers are trolling the EW article's comments

Which is hilarious, actually, as I can't imagine that won't just...make this issue seem more important to the people watching?

This is already shaping up to be a long, long week.

[glockgal]

AHahaha...rick rolled.

Dude, I've never even heard about io9.com, but I LOVES IT. I'm totally gonna contact them! And HuffPo!

That should do a lot to help interest media types who might not otherwise realize the scale of how offensive this is.

YES. That would be AWESOME. I wanna wait till this is posted, because visual connections are more powerful than words. IMO, LOLOLOL. XD

[aang_aint_white]

Yeah, I'm in the same boat! As soon as my cohort wakes up and finishes going through the HUGE FOLDER I sent her (really, it's embarrassing, I think there were 265 images) we'll put it up.

Incidentally, I've been thinking...and if anyone asks who's behind the scenes on this thing, just tell them it's "Lee." (There's a MILLION Lees ;3)

[ashkitty]

I don't know anything about Avatar, I'm afraid; the first time I'd ever heard of it is this movie casting business. But it reminds me a bit of what they did to the Earthsea movie as well--Ursula Leguin, who was the daughter of an anthropologist in Africa (?), purposefully made the main race of people in her books dark-skinned. Blatantly. But it didn't last to the movie adaptation. There's a response to it that she wrote somewhere, because she was Not a Happy Author.

[lunarennui]

i remember that response, because i was majorly hyped about the adaptation--and managed to watch 15 whole minutes before i started shouting (literally) and turned the television off. her response was exactly what i would expect of such a wonderful author--very correct, to the point, and biting as icy hell. i laughed myself sick, and then went to read the books again to try to wash the WTF from my brain.

[glockgal]

YES. I read her response - it's being used as a precedent for a lot of the pro-diversity arguments in this case, and I love it. Her frustration is so....palpable. Gyah, I can't imagine how it must have felt for her, seriously.

[glockgal]

I know, it kills me to hear people use words like 'uppity' and 'shut up'about this. Oh and another gem - 'race doesn't matter'. *HYSTERICAL LAUGHTER*

Thank you, bb!! Oh yes! I will totally be sending the EW website an email as well, whatta great idea!!

[glockgal]

Hitting up BBC is a good idea - they're far enough removed from the shenanigans of US race-politics, but they're Westernized enough to recogniz the issue at hand. Good idea, thanks, bb!!

It's some kind of weird guilt; I've had already a few people crop up to explain in great detail how they sheltered their lives are and how they 'don't see race', etc etc. And I don't know what else to say back except 'well I have to'.

GYAH.

[vejiicakes]

Not to mention, it was the BBC that collaborated with HBO on House of Saddam, so if any network knows a thing or two about successfully casting an entire movie full of actors from a racial group not seen too much in popular media...

Also, if race didn't "matter", we'd still be seeing blackface. Guaranteed. (And if anyone defending the Avatar cast understands that, unfortunately I suspect it's because the discussion on race in this country is still seen as some sort of binary between white and black.)

[142978]

Start contacting college radio stations in major cities - or any cities where there are large universities.

Even if school has let out for the holidays, chances are that there are still radio programs being broadcast, and there are always a hefty number of kids who stick around for most of their break even if they end up at home for Christmas (etc.) itself. Besides which, their audiences reach farther than just the college kids.

I am not sure about the best way to start a list of college stations to contact, but WIDR in Kalamazoo would probably be able to find a place to talk about it.