As an Indian person, I've always been kind of taken aback that avatar The Last Airbender can basically base their show off of Hinduism and yet their only representation of an Indian character or a hindu character is a racist caricature. And it's things like this that slowly build a normalization of racism towards South Asian people.
I don't know if I'm the only Indian woman seeing this. But is it just me or there is significant hostility towards Indian women online from other fellow Indians. I first came by this whenever I came across a post made by Indian women born in the West. But I see it from creators from back home also. Like I have to hold my breath every time I go into the comments of an Indian woman online. The amount of judgment, mockery, the critique without understanding context is pretty wild. Many of you say that the next generation of aunties are going to be a lot more healthier. But you still engage in the activity you critique those women for.
Kataanger/Zutara Anti: Behind every Zutara account I’ve encountered its always, without fail, a Latina with an Asian guy fetish.
I have never ever been proven wrong on this.Some of the time it’s a White girl with a similar thing but 90% of the time its a Latina.
What in the racist, sexist, lgbt+ erasure fu€ketry is this?
This Indo-Caribbean girly is hella surprised to find out she's Latina. I'm less surprised at my bisexuality once again being erased but it being replaced with a very straight Asian male fetish is one I didn't see coming ngl.
I'll tell my Latino husband that per some jackwad on the internet I'm now straight and no longer attracted to him - or femmes - because I ship Zutara. But I also might be white with an Asian guy fetish? We're not sure, it's a bit of schrodinger situation at the moment.
If your generalization requires erasing swaths of people's race, gender and sexuality, then maybe it's a crap take and you're a racist pos.
This is so insane. Do Kataangers know that people of Hispanic/Latino communities are one of the most targeted groups right now????
Does this take make them think they're woke??? It feels like they pick an ethnicity that is in harms right now to mask their racism as "fandom discourse and advocacy". This is what I mean when I say women of colour are YOUR pillars of morality so YOU can feel better. If we don't fall in line, we get punished. Kataangers think they're leftists but what leftists don't get a lot of the western world was built in genocide, slavery which has led into anti-blackness and misogynoir, ableism, white supremacy, misogyny, homophobia and so much more. It's in grained into our systems to think you're immune from it, is like saying the US doesn't do propaganda. Leftists have a lot of work to deconstruct themselves from these systems. Just because you think we should not be killed because we are black and brown does not make you the social justice warrior you think you are. When you have takes like these in order to defend a fictional ship that harm women of colour well I worried how you carry yourself in real life.
If another character did what Aang has done, thought out the show. I bet you would see a lot of criticism for that character. But because it's Aang he often gets excused (his parenting, kissing Katara without consent).
Along with just being able to ramble about Zutara. This blog also feels like a log of me growing up. Like some of my recent posts, come from me learning new stuff from uni. Like, using your interests to understand concepts is so interesting.
As someone who likes Zutara. I find it quite interesting that a criticism that we get is that we are racist colonizers. While many people who do ship this ship are women of color or a part of marginalized communities that have been victims of colonization and imperialism. However, when we do mention that we are women of color we often are not even listened to. I just find it so interesting that if you're doing this much and for only a fictional pairing. I'm worried about real world implications. But I also think this goes back to people expecting women of color to be the pillars of morality and when they don't fit your moral views, you act with bigotry with a thin veil of trying to adhere to progressive values.
Why did I give Katara OCD in my peace is not yours?
While it is arguable that there's not really any Canon ideas that lead to me associating OCD with Katara. But if someone who struggles with intense intrusive thoughts but will not be able to get an official diagnosis. I felt really passionate at the time about OCD and somehow giving it a platform so my readers can be.encouraged to do some reading on the disorder. I feel like Katara is a deeply passionate person who I deeply find a lot of myself in. There's a lot of discussions of what ifs and obsessions with something that may or may not happen. But I wanted to explore mistakes and bad things that one does in the past. OCD doesn't make you feel healthy guilt it makes you feel constant shame. As someone with intrusive thoughts I wanted to be able to express how I felt through beloved characters. I think one of my biggest obsessions is being a morally good person. And I know some people have themes that focus on one aspect of morality. But mine affects every single topic that falls into morality. OCD is not really widely understood so I thought that if I used my writing skills I would be able to destigmatize it. When I stopped writing the fic I was going through a really bad spiral. I recently just started finishing chapter 4. When I had another spiral yet again. Intrusive thoughts aren't kind to the idea of nuance. I hope that maybe in some ways I can make a dent in the idea that puritanical thinking is the only way to achieve good and moral decisions.
Sometimes I think about the interaction Katara and Aang had during the Southern Raiders episode, where Katara asks Aang for Appa, which delves into an uncomfortable conversation between Aang and Katara. If you notice Aang starts to question Katara's choices. And I saw someone make a post mentioning that he was the first one to bring up revenge. And that post had me thinking quite deeply about that point. Because it made me realize how quickly he assumes the worst of Katara. While keeping in mind that she was Aang's pillar of support and friend. The fact that he immediately assumes the worst actions out of her shows a lack of confidence he has in her. It also makes it interesting when we know that he's in love with her. You could argue that he has taken her off a pedestal, but I would disagree. It reads to me that as long as she follows a specific direction that makes him comfortable, she will be on that pedestal. But the minute she deters away from her comforting and compassionate attitude. He clearly thinks of the worst possible scenarios. He automatically assumes that the friend who is shown time and time again to be one of the best people he has ever known will do something horrible.
On the other hand, he makes it worse by comparing her to Jet. Someone in their eyes is someone who actively harmed innocent people. And that made me feel very uncomfortable with the fact that he is very easily able to compare her to someone who has done wrong things in his perspective. He gives her the classic lecture that if you harm your enemy, you're just as bad as your enemy. Which only furthers the fact that he genuinely does not believe in her moral judgment. It almost feels like he doesn't know Katara at all. In a way, you could argue that because he's always put her on a pedestal to the point where she was just a love interest and not a human being with complex emotions.
On the other hand, Zuko seems not to be involved in this argument, and in fact, he lets her make the choices that she needs to make. He only speaks up when it is meant to make room for Katara to make her own choices. Zuko also disagrees with the Airbender teachings. Which is not offensive at all, since the Alta version of Buddhism is very whitewashed. But I think this goes into my argument of why Katara and Zuko feel so human and Aang doesn't. Because even though Aang experiences negative emotions through his Avatar outbursts, even with the well-justified grief of losing his people and Appa. Aang, to me, in a way, does not feel aware that he has negative emotions (or does not want to admit too). Which can make it frustrating when he lectures Katara on a topic she is well justified in feeling upset about. Because in some way he comes off of as being above the emotions she's feeling. When we see an episode later that he VERY MUCH experiences negative emotions.
Katara and Zuko feel negative emotions, and they own them; they get upset over things such as the loss of a parent or feeling frustrated about not being able to accomplish something. They get angry, they feel bitter. They are willing to bite someone verbally to get how they feel out into the world. Aang is a goody two-shoes, but his ideologies feel puritanical and binary. They often feel black and white, which is why he slots Katara into those positions of good and bad. Zuko and Katara find nuance in humanity. They know the rules of right and wrong, but they also know the nuances between right and wrong. I think this is what makes Katara and Zuko feel so much more real: they know that not everything is black and white. Katara goes on an arc that teaches her about nuance, and Zuko goes through a redemption, but if you notice, he's not a goody two-shoes but rather someone who still indulges in “darker” emotions while preserving goodness.
I was reading through my old Zutara metas I wrote last year. And as I read them, I could feel that I was 18. Like even though it was a year ago, I could feel that I was younger.
do you guys ever think about how insane the lightning scene was during the agni kai like specifically zuko SACRIFICING his life for KATARA????
like let’s break it down together.
zuko stupidly (affectionate) mentions lightning to azula, provoking her. god knows why he did that, it was only gonna end badly. then she bends lightning, and i think she knows at this point that zuko Can lightning bend since he redirected the lightning back to ozai on the day of black sun. ozai definitely told azula.
and azula KNOWS zuko cares about katara deeply. if there’s one thing she knows, it’s how to take down zuko. and so she PIVOTS, shooting the lightning at KATARA instead, which literally disqualifies her from the agni kai. did she know she wasn’t going to win? she just wanted to hurt zuko? not too sure. but ANYWHO she bends the lightning to katara.
and zuko sees this. and he’s like absolutely NOT. and this boy…RUNS FASTER THAN LIGHTNING.
RUNS FASTER THAN LIGHTNING.
and absorbs the lightning, redirecting part of it, but he takes in most of it.
and then…azula goes after katara. and while he is on the GROUnd with LIGHTNING coursing through him, it literally burned and teared his insides, he is actively DYING…his instinct is to try to help katara.
let me say it again. he has just been STRUCK—not even struck—ABSORBED LIGHTNING…and his FIRST instinct when DYING is to reach for KATARA.
and mind you, this isn’t any regular schmegular lightning. this is SOZIN’S COMET CHARGED LIGHTNING. AZULA, ONE OF THE MOST POWERFUL BENDERS EVER WHOSE BENDING IS CURRENTLY BEING STRENGTHENED BY SOZINS COMET SENT THIS LIGHTNING.
his injury is on his chest, so while he’s convulsing on the ground, somehow he manages to FLIP OVER onto his CHEST…his lightning torn CHEST…and he tries to reach for katara to help her.
of course because he is actively dying, he can’t help her and his hand falls down.
but OH MY GOD?
and then katara’s point of view is SO AHHHH
because katara only came with zuko because he asked to. in her words, he admitted to his uncle that he needed help facing azula. and he asked her. she immediately caught onto azula trying to split them up, and she knew the agni kai was a bad idea. but zuko reassured her, and she knew it had to be done.
i wonder what context katara had of agni kai’s before this moment. she obviously knew zuko would have to fight azula, but was she aware of the significance of agni kai’s in zuko’s life? the fact that his father scarred him in one? that he was almost killed in both of the agni kai’s he’d participated in, at ages 13 and 16 respectively? did she know that his father tried to kill him with lightning the first chance he got on the day of black sun?
(did she know that the only reason he knew how to save her later on was because his father did the same thing to him?)
the fight comes to a standstill, zuko essentially beating azula. katara hears zuko mention lightning (idiot) and azula takes it.
katara knows how powerful azula’s lightning is. it killed aang.
and azula bends lightning, and suddenly, katara sees azula’s eyes lock on her, before it shoots out of her fingers, and katara is paralyzed in fear. but zuko, ZUKO jumps in front of her, saving her.
it isn’t until he hits the ground that katara is snapped out of her frozen state, immediately running to try to heal him, but azula is on her first.
katara then evades azula, who is unhinged (for reasons we will not get into here) and eventually outsmarts her with the water and the chains.
and katara runs to zuko, to heal him.
but i wonder what she was thinking. i wish this scene was more fleshed out. its pretty short (and sweet), katara flipping him over, healing him, he stops shuddering, thanks her softly. she thanks him instead, and she helps him stand.
but katara, realistically, was terrified.
azula’s lightning killed aang. and the only way she was able to bring him back was with the spirit water.
this is sozin’s comet supercharged lightning from azula. and she has no magic healing water.
(in my head she used bloodbending. but the fact that she canonically single-handedly revived zuko from sozin’s-comet-powered lightning from azula with just her hands is so incredible)
what if the moments she spent fighting azula were too long? what if she had already lost zuko by then? what would she have done?
at this point, she and zuko are far gone from being enemies. they are (canonically) friends. they have a deep connection. what if she couldn’t save him?
but for zuko, it was the easiest choice in the world. he didn’t hesitate for a second. katara’s life over his, always.
katara heals him, and he thanks her. so softly, so gently. and with tears in her eyes, she tells him that she should be the one thanking him.
i fear i want to throw up! i love them so much!
and i love this for katara. she has been taking care of everyone around her all her life, sacrificing her childhood for them. she assumed her mother’s role after she died. katara deserves to be loved the way zuko loves her. fully, completely, deeply, enough to die for her with no hesitation.
thank you for reading me freaking the freak out about zutara
Modern au zutara prompt: Tell me how you know your boyfriend won't cheat on you without actually telling me
Interesting, oddly personal prompt.
He is my boyfriend, and I would pick someone who is on par with me in terms of healthy communication and respect. Second, I'm his girlfriend, and if that is not enough for him not to cheat, then it is not my problem.
(This ask has been sitting in my drafts for months. When I got it at first, I cried over it after making a failed attempt at a response, I felt so ashamed, but I found it again after a while thinking I lost it. Now, even though it has been a while, I still think I have the right to speak up for myself.)