SHARING TIME!

[glockgal]

It seems like every single post I make about Avatar: The Last Airbender casting ends up in people needing to share their experiences growing up as a social outcast and/or a survivor of abuse and/or victim of visual judgement. I've also seen a lot of demonstrations of subverted self-loathing and (the more amusing) claims from multiple people that

Comments

[reallyreally]

If feel sort of guilty for this post even though I'm not sure I've outed myself as the whitest-whitey or as having experienced a lot of abuse :P Mostly because I'm more pissed off about racial-related thing for the sake of my students than for myself. I definitely did go off into the whole racial-identity-discussion thing, though, and I'm sorry for that!

I'd love to read your take on the "what white means in an North American context"-questions I brought up in the previous post, though, because I'd really like to understant it more than I do at the moment.

<3

[reallyreally]

(erh, saying "outed myself as" implies that I think I AM the whites-whitey. I'm obviously not. ARGH INTERNET COMMUNICATION).

[glockgal]

No don't be sorry! In fact, please c&p your other comment here, because that would be awesome and I love you for kick starting things.

I was afraid that now that I've created this, no one would speak up.

*MWAH* Thanks Mikey. YAY.

[reallyreally]

Mwah, I wont, then! I really didn't mean to switch the focus from the matter at hand. And yay! I will c&p it in it's own comment :)

[frogy]

Damn! I really wanted that puppy!

[glockgal]

*ponders* Maybe this should be a contest. That puppy IS damned cute. XD

C&P from previous post: what is "white" in a North American context?

[reallyreally]

I don't know, I feel I have to share parts of my life which relate to this in like, general pissed-off-ness

lol thousand comments from one person, WHAT

[reallyreally]

(and it's not really a part of the racial thing, but I am also a queer transguy)

[glockgal]

(North) Americans can be so messed up, but I think that's because we're such a mixed bag of race and cultures. Every answer is different from different people! In some ways, it's kinda good. In other ways, you get people who feel 'American' is the same as 'white'. And it's just like..."bzuh?"

That whole invandrare thing is seriously a fascinating thing that I didn't know before now. That does bring a skewed version of perception.

I remember trying to explain to an Afghani fellow in London that I was 'Canadian'. He just wouldn't accept that as an answer, even going so far as to say I was ashamed of who I was. I barked "Well, if I was white, would you accept that I was a CANADIAN?!" before my bf dragged me out of the chip shop. The separation between 'white' and 'North American' in people's eyes can be, really, quite hard. Sad, but true, innit. :/

[reallyreally]

Yeah, I think a lot of the time people over here think of Americans as white or black, possibly latino (another interesting thing, before Swedes got a general understanding of "latino" from American tv-shows etc, I think most people would consider latinos white, but invandrare) but not asian, which is also totally weird. Like, there are black and white Americans, and then there are latinos and asians living in America. Does that explanation make sense?

Yeah, the whole invandrare thing means that a black person who moves to Sweden from Nigeria (as an example) would be seen as an invandrare, but a black person who moved here from America would probably be seen as American. Granted, the black American would be more noticed than a white American, but still, it adds like... a different dimension to something that is already studpily complex and frustrating.

[bossymarmalade]

This is an excellent idea! While I understand people wanting to share their stories, I was getting frustrated with the constant refocusing from the issue at hand. Setting aside a forum specifically for personal discussion is for the win!!

[glockgal]

SO SHARE, JO JESSICA. YOU GOTS TO RECOGNIZE YO SEDIMENTARY ROCK FORMATIONS.

[bossymarmalade]

ahahahha! Well, you asked for it: I'm really aggravated at all the attempts to refocus this on whiteness. "Prove to me they're not white!" "You make it sound like all white people are the same!" "I also face discrimination even though I'm white!" "I think it's okay for some of the cast to be white!" "Talking about my white experiences doesn't change the focus

[delux_vivens]

Can we not JUST ONCE deal with an issue about representation of PoC without hearing from the white side of things? JUST. ONCE.

You know the rules.

No.

This is why I've gotten so involved in and comitted to POC focused online spaces, because these issues so often cannot be discussed at all without becoming completely focussed on white people's feelings, guilt, shame, or general trauma. Even (and especially) if the topic at hand is about the experiences of POC.

Sharing overload

[darthneko]

Ohhhhh.... sure. I'll kick start with a little personal history because it's a subject I'm very ambivalent on. Besides, I'm in a soul baring sort of mood today. Let's try this - I don't have a racial identity and I kinda resent it

Re: Sharing overload

[reallyreally]

And yet, if I go into an asian market, even if I've dyed my hair red or blonde at the time, the staff will usually pick me out as being part asian.

I've got Jewish heritage and the only people who pick up on it are Jews. I've never had someone who isn't at least part Jewish ask me about it or assume that I'm Jewish.

Oh, and the Jewish part of my family is also from Argentina, which is also quite an important part of my identity, but impossible to guess unless I say so. I suppose I am Switzerland too, in a way :P

Re: Sharing overload

[darthneko]

Yeah. It's not so much that I don't feel strongly about the whole subject, I'm just a bit confused by everyone assuming I'm on different sides. =P

Re: Sharing overload

[reallyreally]

Yeah, totally! *sharing and recognising feelings :D*