Shorter America's Best Critic: Race and neurosis
RVCBard, you think you're not worthy? Well, you're not! Aren't you glad I told you? Now STFU!
Slightly (and much more rage-filled) longer:
Hey, jerk-off. Fuck you. No, really, fuck you. I'm so glad for you that somehow, in spite of this, this, this, this, this, and this, you have never once entertained the idea that a lot of straight people think you're worthless to society. Aren't you just a superior human being. And I'm so glad that you broke your own goddamn arm patting yourself on the back for all you've done for us whiny shiftless negroes in your infinite and unending warmth and grace. I shure am real sorry that we just keep on yappin' and a-whinin' and muckin' up your pretty, pretty mind with our desire for actual equality, actual respect and fair goddamn treatment. Sorry to trying to take them seats up near the front of the bus. We should be glad to be on the damn bus.
RVCBard is trying to do her thing, do her part to make the world a better place, to do better work. Sometimes that starts with a small group of people. A group that, if instead of sneering, you'd read about is focused on producing. Which sounds a lot like the seed of a theatre company. So...does that pass your muster, Mr. Thomas, suh? Can she go ahead now, suh? Much obliged.
Now, I know, you're going to come back and say I'm calling you a racist and that using "slave dialect" is offensive and you're not acting like the massuh. How dare I slander you like that?!? Dude, look at her post. Read this one. See the bit there about condescension? She's talking about you. That's what you're doing. That's what people who have power do to people who don't. It's also called bullying.
You, my good friend, are the walking, talking embodiment of white privilege. Honestly, if it was possible in the laws of physics, I shouldn't have written my piece; I should have just linked to yours and said, "Everything you read here? This is why black artists get screwed." I'd almost think that RVCBard made you up, just to prove her point.
I know you saw a play about a black person written by a black person the other day, but how exactly does that translate into "real power" becoming "accessible" to Blacks (and double super-fuck-you for looking down your nose at whatever RVCBard wants to call herself)? Did a black person program it? Did a black person select it? Was it produced at one of our many, many large, well-funded and nationally recognized black theatres? Or at one of the large, well-funded, institutions led by a black artistic director? No? Really? You don't say. And, gee, I wonder if it has anything to do with Black History Month, the shortest fucking month of the year, since you didn't see it in April or May or September? But, you know, the president's black so we make decisions now. I saw that shit in a trailer, so it must be true.
Asshole, I go after you and tangle with you and mock the shit out of you because it's fun, because you're so often wrongheaded, mean-spirited and full of shit, but mostly, mostly, because, you, sir, are the motherfucking inside voice of the establishment. You, sir, are the quiet little voice inside of other critics' heads that says "Good niggers sit quietly and don't make waves...or even better, just go off with their own kind. It's just better that way." You are America's most honest, most perfect, most true critic. Adding nothing to the work, nothing to the discourse, nothing to anything at all, but your own rancid, blinkered, self-satisfied opinions. Your all-encompassing love for the "canon" isn't smart or interesting or even perceptive. It's boring and weak and cowardly. Yeah, cowardly. You want to sneer at people who choose to go anonymous, but you're the real coward. So scared of anything you haven't been told is good that you shit on it out of reflex.
Did I mention fuck you? Because, if I didn't, hey, pal, fuck you.
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19 comments:
There's a lazy sort of inertia in theater that allows these unfair practices to continue. And I do think it's laziness more than an out-and-out prejudice, but even so, trying to get the institution to change is like swimming upstream.
Yes, Thom's fortitude must be stronger than mine, because bigotry really, really gets to me. I wish I could be all, "Civil rights? Who needed 'em!"
I also find it a little startling that he fell into the conservative meme, re: Gays vs Blacks, which is designed to pit two minority groups against each other.
I do think there is homophobia withing the black community, but the real culprit is religion. To a lazy examiner it might look like black or Latinos are more homophobic than whites, but actually these minority groups living in the United States, proportionally, are much more religious than whites who outnumber them. In short, religious institutions need to be called out on their bigotry, not black or Latinos who are still fighting for their own civil rights. Nearly all homophobia is faith based.
Conservatives love it when blacks and gays fight. Pitting them against one another is a great way for none of us to get anywhere!
Uncle Ruckus by any other name . . .
I also find it a little startling that he fell into the conservative meme, re: Gays vs Blacks, which is designed to pit two minority groups against each other.
I do think there is homophobia withing the black community, but the real culprit is religion.
Yeah, because nobody can be Black, gay, and religious.
RVC Bard, I'm not sure what your beef is with what I wrote. Of course a person can be all three of things.
To clarify my point 9or try to) i only mean that the accusation that the black community is homophobic is false. The RELIGIOUS community is homophobic.
Do you disagree that homophobia is mostly faith based?
Also, didn't mean to get off topic, 99. Sorry.
RVC Bard, I think I read your comment incorrectly.
Josh- I wholeheartedly agree on basically all points. It is a smoke screen and totally odious. Homophobia exists in all sectors of the society and to single out one group or another as more homophobic is bullshit.
Also on the laziness point: it's the path of least resistance, so we all have to generate a whole mess of resistance to change that.
RVC - First off, heh. Secondly, I don't think that's what Josh is getting at. Can you tease out what you're saying a bit more?
RVC - First off, heh. Secondly, I don't think that's what Josh is getting at. Can you tease out what you're saying a bit more?
Because statements like that come with truckloads filled with heaping bags of shit.
In a nutshell, the people who attempt to put race, gender, sexuality, and religion in conflict are forgetting about this little thing called intersectionality. What's ironic about it is that both bigots and their detractors often neglect this.
I've always loathed "explaining" homophobia with religion - particularly when it comes to Black people. It strays too close to the idea of Black people being primitive, childlike, and stupid.
In addition to that, talking about religion through the lens of its social functions is like talking about sexuality through the lens of pornography.
Okay, I see your point. But...there is a high correlation between religion and institutional homophobia, just like there's a high correlation between religion and anti-abortion views. Which isn't to say all members of all groups share all points of view. That's reductive. But you also have to call it out as you see it.
I don't see it as "explaining." It's a correlation. I'm of the opinion that if you want to change something, you have to be clear about the root causes and circumstances. If you want to combat homophobia, you have to deal with religion.
99,
Of course, but not in the way I see it being done.
RVC Bard, i really didn't want to fight with you. I love your blog and have really been in agreement with you in your discussions on race and theater, and I'm loathe to get off topic (again, 99, sorry.) that said...
Puh-lease.
"In a nutshell, the people who attempt to put race, gender, sexuality, and religion in conflict are forgetting about this little thing called intersectionality."
I didn't forget that. I readily acknowledged that a person can be Black, religious and gay. Your point about intersectionality came out of nowhere.
"I've always loathed 'explaining' homophobia with religion - particularly when it comes to Black people." I have to say I'm utterly baffled by you comment here. Homophobia IS explained by religion. Religion is almost always the root of gay unacceptance, and I really can't see how you could refute that. Does this mean all religious people are homophobic? Of course not. But let's be honest with ourselves.
"It strays too close to the idea of Black people being primitive, childlike, and stupid." I think you just made a huge leap there. Nobody here came anywhere close to saying anything like that.
To counter all this, I find it offensive that you would put religion amongst monikers like race, gender, and sexuality as if it were something immutable, fixed, and deserving of protection. It isn't and it's not.
Josh,
You're really taking my comments way the hell out of context.
Let me shift gears so you'll stop jumping down my throat for shit I'm not saying.
Do certain things overlap? Sure, but focusing on what people believe (which is only a small part of religion) when it comes to homophobia is like focusing on intent when it comes to racism. It does a lot to eradicate outright bigotry, perhaps (I have my doubts), but little to dismantle systems of oppression and imbalances of power.
Me? You started this!
Anyway, your point isn't any clearer to me so let's just call the whole thing a draw.
Really, you guys couldn't prove my point more forcefully if you tried.
Thomas, you're still a schmuck.
RVC and Josh, I think you guys are talking at each other and talking about the same basic thing: people are people and the big things are the big things. We can all agree that people defy their stereotypes across the board. Focusing on that is indeed a way of muddying the waters. Focusing on the big picture gets shit done.
I hope we're all cool. Except Thomas. He still sucks.
Really, you guys couldn't prove my point more forcefully if you tried.
Why should I give a shit?
Hey gang,
I think this comment thread has gone off in some ugly and unintentional directions... so let me say this:
(1) there is a correlation between church attendance and support for anti-gay ballot initiatives
(2) statistically speaking, african americans attend church at a higher percentage than other groups
(2a) This church attendance is often said to "explain" black homophobia by social scientists because when you correct for church attendance, homophobia between different races occurs at fairly similar rates.
(3) that being said, post-Prop 8 studies showed that black churchgoers voted for prop 8 at a lower rate than white church goers.
I think it is undeniable that there's a lot of homophobia in traditional religions. That is not to say that someone can't be gay and religious, or that someone can't be pro-gay and religious. But simply that there is a strain within conservative religions that feeds and capitalizes off of homophobia. I think that's about as obvious a statement as saying "peanut butter has peanuts in it", but there you go. I don't think Josh was saying that all religions-- and all believers-- are homophobic. But I don't want to put words in his mouth.
. . . there is a strain within conservative religions that feeds and capitalizes off of homophobia.
I wasn't denying that in the least.
If a random Bible-thumper approaches me on the subway, would it be prudent for me to tell him (and it's always him) that I'm queer?
Um, no (DUH!). Not if I want to ride the subway in peace and not have someone try to convert me. I'm not even touching the Jewish thing.
Of course there's a correlation between religion and prejudice - duh! Sort of like geography and Klan activity. Josh lost me when I read his post as assuming religion was a cause. But now I see that wasn't the case.
oh and btw:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHw8tZDc0cI
isaac,
That vid's been removed.
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