Parsing Tom Brevoort
The Mary Sue parses Marvel VP Tom Brevoort’s response to a fan asking about Marvel’s responsibility to its female characters.
Finding Hope in Wuthering Heights
Paterson James found hope in the casting of James Howson’s casting as Heathcliff in Andrea Arnold’s Wuthering Heights, revealing “a hidden history” and “reflect[ing] black presence in the UK throughout the nation’s history.”
Franklin, 1968
The Edge of the American West has a post about Charles Schulz’ introduction of Franklin in Peanuts as Schulz’ quietly anti-racist response to the times, and juxtaposes it with Hank Ketcham’s Jackson, the first African-American character in Dennis the Menace. Scroll down to the comments for an excerpt […]
Samuel Delany on Racism and Science Fiction
In the 1998 New York Times Review of Science Fiction, Samuel Delany writes about the history of African-American writers of science fiction, race and racism in science fiction and why Octavia Butler might wonder, “Why, when you invite me, do you always invite that guy, Delany?”
The Problem with “Black Spider-Man” and “The Batman of Africa”
David Brothers points out exactly what the problem is with the phrases “Black Spider-Man” and “The Batman of Africa.” “…that it is essentially covert, or maybe just casual, white supremacy.”
Hollywood’s Self-Fulfilling Delusion around Race
NPR’s John Ridley talks about the lack of diversity in film adaptations of comic book characters: “There’s a self-fulfilling delusion at work in the studio system that white audiences won’t pay to see black actors cast outside a narrow type of role.” But a new study indicates, that’s […]
The Cultural Gutter 