So with that point out of the way, permit me to briefly explain that the real "fail" that brought this about was little more than internet drama. Racism, or sexism, or any sort of catch-words with volatile meanings are great ways of steering discussion away from an actual topic at hand. They are probably used more often unintentionally (and without enough thought given to them) and spur-of-the-moment than intentionally to distract. Unfortunately, people are too eager to simplify a complex issue into such us-versus-them issues such as discrimination. And when overt racism clearly isn't applicable, you can toss in race privilege. It's just as potent, and has the nice benefit of somebody always being able to say, "you think you don't have it because you do!"
Starting with the "RaceFail 09" issue, virtually everything I read on it -- and I hope you trust me that I tried to make sense of it all -- was mostly of the "he said, she said" kind of gossip. A says X and B says Y and blah blah blah. Nobody seemed to really be interested in the ACTUAL ISSUES at hand. This seemed to continue right on into the star trek community where I found it.
Now in all fairness, there was quite a bit of hostility everywhere. Some people were outright dismissive of others' genuine concerns. But some of these others wouldn't deign themselves down to actually try to open a dialogue. And if they didn't want to discuss, that's fine. But if you don't want to discuss something, you (preferably) just don't say anything in response, or at least just politely decline and explain that it's not for discussion, just introduction. And yet there was no lack of posts making claims of racism, sexism, and all sorts of discrimination. Whatever genuine issues there were became lost once people got more interested in arguing than resolving issues. The whole thing just screams drama.
So here's where I try to tie all of it together. People have some pretty strange ideas when it comes to race, sex, and so forth. Some people like to hide behind these issues. As soon as somebody disagrees with them on such a topic, to them it can't just be a difference of opinion. It suddenly becomes an assault on their identity. It's probably not even intentional in most people. But it does happen. And I think this is --or was -- a perfect example of how it all plays out. Accusations left and right, and any real issues get left behind. In fact, I would go so far as to say this is actually hurting discussion of race issues more than it helps. Racism can be a very sharp word, and it should be. Throwing it around, willy-nilly, regardless of how appropriate it may be to the topic at hand simply dulls it. Toss out "racism" when it's just a matter of opinion, and soon enough, that really is what racism becomes, just a matter of opinion. And then the truth of the matter will really get lost.
[I'll post it over at the startrek community, too, in case that is your preferred venue.]
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Date: 2009-03-19 12:44 am (UTC)Starting with the "RaceFail 09" issue, virtually everything I read on it -- and I hope you trust me that I tried to make sense of it all -- was mostly of the "he said, she said" kind of gossip. A says X and B says Y and blah blah blah. Nobody seemed to really be interested in the ACTUAL ISSUES at hand. This seemed to continue right on into the star trek community where I found it.
Now in all fairness, there was quite a bit of hostility everywhere. Some people were outright dismissive of others' genuine concerns. But some of these others wouldn't deign themselves down to actually try to open a dialogue. And if they didn't want to discuss, that's fine. But if you don't want to discuss something, you (preferably) just don't say anything in response, or at least just politely decline and explain that it's not for discussion, just introduction. And yet there was no lack of posts making claims of racism, sexism, and all sorts of discrimination. Whatever genuine issues there were became lost once people got more interested in arguing than resolving issues. The whole thing just screams drama.
So here's where I try to tie all of it together. People have some pretty strange ideas when it comes to race, sex, and so forth. Some people like to hide behind these issues. As soon as somebody disagrees with them on such a topic, to them it can't just be a difference of opinion. It suddenly becomes an assault on their identity. It's probably not even intentional in most people. But it does happen. And I think this is --or was -- a perfect example of how it all plays out. Accusations left and right, and any real issues get left behind. In fact, I would go so far as to say this is actually hurting discussion of race issues more than it helps. Racism can be a very sharp word, and it should be. Throwing it around, willy-nilly, regardless of how appropriate it may be to the topic at hand simply dulls it. Toss out "racism" when it's just a matter of opinion, and soon enough, that really is what racism becomes, just a matter of opinion. And then the truth of the matter will really get lost.
[I'll post it over at the startrek community, too, in case that is your preferred venue.]