May. 18th, 2009 at 4:02 PM
Though I have learned that listening is a whole lot better than trying to justify oneself about things that matter like this. The author and defenders didn't think: would they have argued so much if it was a huge anachronism they missed, or a quote from someone 100 years later? Why not shut up and learn, and maybe say Oh shit, I screwed up.
Following a bunch of links I found a fabulous essay by a woman of color writing Science Fiction/Fantasy, Nalo Hopkinson: Looking for clues It's all good, articulate, emotional and inspiring. My favorite bit is this:
... by Samuel R. Delany, which comes from a speech he gave at the Studio Museum of Harlem: "We need visions of the future, and our people need them more than most."
Which is true and right and meaningful but she follows immediately with this:
And yet, that isn't really why I write science fiction and fantasy. It's more like the result, not the reason. Or like the air I'm breathing when I sit down to write.
I hope, very much, we can go on from there.
Comments
The author and defenders didn't think: would they have argued so much if it was a huge anachronism they missed, or a quote from someone 100 years later? Why not shut up and learn, and maybe say Oh shit, I screwed up.
So fucking true. I cannot understand why they -- e.g., Lois Bujold -- can't figure this out. I expected so much more from her, and from many others.
And how they have been thinking in terms of clarification, sure that if they just explained it properly, everyone would understand that they weren't being racist. But it isn't about them, dammit.
I'm hoping that if they'd acknowledged the critique, that the people who were hurt by the unthinking assumptions would have accepted the situation. Maybe there will be fewer next times.