People aren't just WHITE or NOT WHITE. Mixed races exist! Your aggressive attempts to force Dick Grayson to be white are frankly appalling.
That’s nice. So since you clearly don’t follow me or know what you’re talking about, I’m going to be more patient than this deserves.
First of all, you’re misunderstanding me.
I’m not saying Dick can’t be a mixed race. I’m not excluding him from the possibility of being PoC.
I’m saying that as his character currently stands in comic books and pop culture, he is a white character. He’s drawn, treated, and understood as a white character to casual people. If someone new to the fandom walked into the comic book shop and picked up an issue of Grayson, they’re not going to go, “Wow! Due to a vague retcon 15 years ago, this title is led by a PoC! I think I’ll buy it!” No. That’s idiotic rationalization, and it’s not how reality works. Dick is treated as a white character by this industry and by society. He’s treated the same way as Wally, Roy, etc. Dick is not perceived by the general public or the majority of the comic fandom as a PoC. Does that mean Dick shouldn’t be a mixed race? Of course not. I’m just the only person stupid enough to give this fandom a reality check. The tumblr community is the only place that puts a hellbent emphasis on this retcon from ~15 years ago.
I’m not sure why. Maybe people feel better about loving this character if they can justify him being a minority somehow, but you have to realize that the comic industry is not like other types of literature where once something is revealed in canon, it’s set in stone. That’s the exact opposite of how the comic industry works. We have retcons, we have outdated facts. Maybe fifty years ago, Dick could speak Chinese. In the past couple decades, though, Dick hasn’t known how to speak it, so would you venehemtly insist that Dick still knows Chinese even though the past couple decades do not reflect that? I think we can agree it would be pretty stupid if you did.
When it comes to Dick being Romani, I’m trying to explain that this has become an outdated concept in a similar way. Maybe once long ago, Dick was written as Romani blood, but that’s the last occurrence, and everything since then in this industry has ignored it. I’m not saying this is a good thing; I’m saying it’s the reality. This is not about me wanting Dick to be white or not wanting him to be mixed. I’m just saying that, realistically, Dick has had nothing to do with the Romani culture since approximately 15 years ago during Devin Grayson’s retcon, which we all agree is a problematic foundation in the first place. I mean, it’s bad enough that the only canon source material we have to go off of is inherently racist. Then consider the fact that Dick has had nothing to do with this retcon since then.
By all means, you can and anyone else in the fandom can perceive him as a mixed race. I’m not against that, and I’m not stopping anyone from doing that. I’ve even said several times that I prefer Dick with a darker tint to his skin, and I do think him having Romani ancestors is interesting. I’ve gone on record saying that it could be interesting if writers approached Dick as someone trying to reconnect with his roots. I think many of us can relate to wanting to connect to our past heritage, and it’s an approach that you rarely (if ever) see.
So, no, I am not vehemently saying that Dick must be white and only white and can never be anything else. If you think that’s what I’m saying, then you can shut the fuck up and take that shit elsewhere, because I’m done with this fandom’s witch hunt. If what I’m saying is so problematic to you, then fine, I’m a horrible person by your standards. Since I can tell I don’t like you, that doesn’t faze me.
What I am actually saying on this blog is that even if you consider the Romani retcon canon and consider Dick a mixed race yourself, it doesn’t mean that’s the way he’s being perceived in the industry or by society in general, which is why it’s problematic when the fandom raises Dick Grayson up next to real PoC characters as if he’s a champion for diversity. This character has barely had anything to do with the Romani culture in his entire existence. In an ideal world, I agree that he could be great representation, but with how this situation stands in reality, Dick is actually a horrible candidate to represent a racial minority, and the fandom is wasting way too much time obsessing over him and their vague reasoning at the expense of the real Batfamily representation that we actually do have.
>> Many Romani people have white skin. This in no way, shape or form negates their culture or the race they come from, and I would still consider them a PoC race due to the struggles and prejudice they face on a daily basis in multiple countries.
But consider that Dick is not only ignorant of and an outsider to Romani culture, but he is drawn and treated as a white person as well. Dick Grayson is an American character, and looking white is enough to give you white privilege in America, even if you are actually a mixed race. Many mixed races do face struggles and prejudice against their culture even if they are perceived as white, but Dick isn’t someone who would understand these struggles because he was never raised in this environment and was clueless of the Romani culture until he was an adult.
What really kills this entire thing for me, though, is how inherently racist Devin Grayson wrote this retcon. It would be different if another writer had picked up the idea and made it respectful, but the only writer we have who has explored Dick Grayson in terms of this culture is Devin Grayson, who was thoughtless and even harmful in her portrayal.
With all that said, I think the fandom has overstepped their boundaries in the way they bully and pressure people into calling Dick a PoC, especially when the last 15 years of his history are silent in this regard. Even if people want to consider this retcon canon (all the power to you), is it really right to call Dick a PoC? In your headcanons, sure. In fanfictions and fanart, sure, live the dream. But to call Dick Grayson a PoC in the real world and put him on lists with real minority characters? I mean, look at this
Am I the only person who sees something wrong here? We’re using a very vague retcon that’s rarely ever brought up about this character’s ancestry to decide that he’s suddenly someone who represents a racial minority?
Even if Dick is a mixed race (and as far as Secret Origins #8 is concerned, this is canon for New 52 \o/), Dick still does not look like a PoC, which is why he is a character perceived by society as white and why he is someone who is for all intents and purposes benefiting off of white privilege. He is a character that white people will see as white. He is a character that minorities that will see as white. The only people who don’t see Dick Grayson as white are the hellbent people in this tumblr fandom who force it down people’s throats until people are either shamed into calling him a PoC or simply pressured into it.
If you still perceive Dick as a Person of Color despite all that, then I think you’re missing the point of why the term PoC was created in the first place. It’s a term for people who are commonly prejudiced against, so they can rally around each other for a feeling of safety as well as force change through society. Dick Grayson being a white character in pop culture does nothing to help the PoC struggle. The only reason I happen to be vocal about issues like these is because people are too scared of being shamed by people like you in order to allow this to be an open discussion.
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