--- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com, "DJ VIBE" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> > Battlestar Galactica: (New Series) Well, there's a COMMUNICATIONS > officer. . . . Apparently all of the other Black people, with the > exception of the religious leader, were killed in the bombing of > Caprica. Same with Buck Rogers - I don't recall ever seeing a dark > face on there, with the exception of the singers with three mouths - > guess all the Black folks were killed off in the cataclysm while > Buck was traveling through time. It seems that all the Black people live on Gemina (not Jemima, but too damn close) and are zealatous worshipers of the Kobol lords. Besides the communications officer, we've got the security guard who slips the president her meds, a priestess, and the leader from Gemina who was the first to bow before the Pres last episode. Wow, a race of magical negroes. You know Ron means well, but come on. Perhaps we'll have some strong characters when the Pegasus shows up. > > I think its that sci-fi in general doesn't have very many Black > folks in it at all levels - writers, producers, directors, etc. I > think that when none of the people who create something look like > Wesley Snipes, chances are they will have issues, or at least some > difficulty, seeing a Black face in that role - especially when that > role has real power and possibilities for sexual attraction. In the > new BSG, there's NO real reason why Adama couldn't have been Black, > for example, unless the racial politics on Caprica also echo our > civilization. In fact, the very concept of the series should lead to > more color-blind casting as the Roman Empire, which this > civilization is based on (or which perhaps was influenced by *this* > civilization?) didn't do ethnic-based slavery. > > A good example of what the lack of Black folks behind the scenes > does is the movie Pleasantville. This was an entire movie about > people who lived in a Black and White world. The movie makes the > point that the people there weren't alive until COLOR was > introduced - yet there were NO Black people in the movie and only a > few people of color in the beginning high school sequence in "our" > world. > > To me, being Black and all, it seems obvious that the most shocking > and obvious thing in this movie would have been the introduction of > a Black person, or a whole *bunch* of Black people. Imagine finding > out about the concept of color and then finding out that not only > things can be different colors but PEOPLE as well! But I > digress. . . . > > One of the things the original show *did* do well, IMHO, was show > diversity - not just in the casting (having Asian and Black major > characters) but the extras as well. Unlike Friends and other TV > shows which seem to exist in some mythically White world (no Black > or Hispanics in friggin NEW YORK!?!), there were people of color > there - yes they were in the background, but there were THERE. > > Anyway, I've always said we'd be much better off if, instead of > begging Whitey for inclusion, we would form companies and produce > our own media. If we really want to see Sci-Fi and other media > outlets change their views, or lack therof, of Black folk, we need > to get up off our collective duff and make them or, if lacking the > knowledge and ability to make them, make it a point to support those > who are. If films like Sankofa and Rosewood got the support we give > films like Scarface and Willie Wonka (I *think* I saw 1 Black person > in the film not counting the Oompa Loompa guy), I don't think > this > would be an issue. Thoughts? ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> <font face=arial size=-1><a href="http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=12hau5g37/M=362335.6886444.7839734.2575449/D=groups/S=1705034827:TM/Y=YAHOO/EXP=1123186127/A=2894362/R=0/SIG=138c78jl6/*http://www.networkforgood.org/topics/arts_culture/?source=YAHOO&cmpgn=GRP&RTP=http://groups.yahoo.com/";>What would our lives be like without music, dance, and theater?Donate or volunteer in the arts today at Network for Good</a>.</font> --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/scifinoir2/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
