(1)Thank you for answering! I don't find a lot of black people in fandoms which I completely understand. I'm sorry your interests have caused you to suffer through internalized racism and antiblackness. i hope it's gotten better for you as you continue to grow. I've been fortunate to not suffer through it. I firmly love being black and I've never hated it. My hate for myself stems from my lack of skinniness, my scars, and big ass head rather than my black features.
(2)Of course I have my problems with the black community but it's normal stuff like the fact that they limit black boys as soon as they're born or the hypersexualization of black girls in the community and The lgbtphobia and barely concealed misogyny. But I just feel guilty for not being interested in black content created by black people. I really try to be interested but it's like everything for black people is a carbon copy of one another.
(3)I really try to be interested but it's like everything for black people is a carbon copy of one another. It's like all the scripts follow the same formula and it is exhausting. Why can't we explore space or fight demons and fall in love with angels? Why can't we be sorcerers and witches and warlocks? Why can't we be werewolves and lost royalty? You know. And it's like when black creators make their own movies it's the same thing and I'm tired.
(4)Why can't black boys and girls be exposed to things other than the suffering of their people? It's important yes it is but it should not be our only narrative in the media. Hopefully it changes for future black babies. Thank you for listening. Sorry I'm so painfully shy that I can't message you yet lol.
Hi!! Sorry for the huge delay! I’ve had the flu this week and I’m just an unorganized mess of a person in general.
But I understand what you’re saying. The lack of diverse stories that involve black people is a huge problem and even when we are the ones writing the stories, we still fall back on a lot of harmful stereotypes and pigeonhole ourselves. I understand on one hand, it’s creators and writers being authentic to themselves and their life experiences and that’s valid. They should be able to tell their story even if it involves gangers and drug dealers and the caricatures we’re used to seeing because that is the reality for a large number of us.
On the other hand, I think a big reason our stories seem so monotonous is that we’ re not used to seeing ourselves in other positions. It’s honestly a vicious cycle. When you don’t see yourself being represented in fantasy or horror or romcoms, those types of stories don’t feel authentic to write??? When you spend a life time forcing yourself to shed your race so you can relate to white protagonists, you almost... forget that someone who looks like you could have that role.
Like I’ve been writing fantasy novels since I was in 8th grade. I’ve written entire series about vampires and banshees and magical words where people have special powers and it wasn’t until I was in college that I sat back and realized every main character (which were always based on myself) was white. I never wrote a single black character into any of my own works.
To have diverse stories we have to unlearn centuries’ worth of bullshit that have culminated in us not seeing ourselves as real multidimensional people. We’ve been taught for too long that our only literary value is in our trauma. We have to unlearn how to write about the black experience as if there’s only one, and acknowledge the nuances that come with being black.
I think we’re starting to see that coming though - I really do. We’re seeing more works that center around the diaspora, fantasy worlds built around African origin myths, black superhero shows. My students really love Black Lightning on the CW and it has queer characters too who they love! Lena Waithe and Issa Rae are two of my favorite Hollywood creators right now. They’ve made some groundbreaking stuff and they’re only just getting started! It’s going to take some time, but I really think that if we keep demanding diverse stories and working on our own art, we’re going to get those special stories out there that you and I want to see!
