Two thoughts on Purple People
Aug. 28th, 2013 09:48 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
browngirlThis should be a polished essay, but I'm so tired my eyes keep unfocusing, so rather than never writing this down while waiting for the right moment, I've jotted this pair of linked thoughts.
One of the many things I noticed about this trio of splendid cosplayers is that the Princess Bubblegum has not tinted herself the same skin color as the character she's complying, but the others have: PB is pink, and while she's a pretty unnatural pink, still, many real people are various shades of pink. I found myself thinking about the recurring discussion of cosplay and skin color, and that it makes sense to only change one's skin color to one that's not seen among actual people. Painting oneself purple is an obvious costume but painting oneself brown skirts too close to the historical awfulnesses of brown face; presumably, in the Star Trek universe, one might not paint oneself purple anymore and probably won't paint oneself green, since purple and green people are real in that ficton.
There's probably a bunch of sensible essays out there about this -- I've only just begun exploring the world of cosplay. I was just thinking this and thought I'd make a note.
Speaking of sensible essays, I found this essay on "Invoking strangely colored people". Oh, if I had a nickel for every time I've seen someone say something that boils down to "It doesn't matter if you're White or Brown or Purple, if we all stop Talking ABout Race and Ignore It all racism will Go Away..." I could probably make bail if the next time I heard such a statement I went ahead and smacked the person making it. I don't know what I hate more, the idea that POC cause racism by refusing to forget who we are, or the blithe manner in whcih someone who doesn't have to deal with racism declares that because they don't none of us do or should.
[People do this about other forms of bigotry too, but that's another post.]
Ah, purple people. Where's the Purple People Eater?
One of the many things I noticed about this trio of splendid cosplayers is that the Princess Bubblegum has not tinted herself the same skin color as the character she's complying, but the others have: PB is pink, and while she's a pretty unnatural pink, still, many real people are various shades of pink. I found myself thinking about the recurring discussion of cosplay and skin color, and that it makes sense to only change one's skin color to one that's not seen among actual people. Painting oneself purple is an obvious costume but painting oneself brown skirts too close to the historical awfulnesses of brown face; presumably, in the Star Trek universe, one might not paint oneself purple anymore and probably won't paint oneself green, since purple and green people are real in that ficton.
There's probably a bunch of sensible essays out there about this -- I've only just begun exploring the world of cosplay. I was just thinking this and thought I'd make a note.
Speaking of sensible essays, I found this essay on "Invoking strangely colored people". Oh, if I had a nickel for every time I've seen someone say something that boils down to "It doesn't matter if you're White or Brown or Purple, if we all stop Talking ABout Race and Ignore It all racism will Go Away..." I could probably make bail if the next time I heard such a statement I went ahead and smacked the person making it. I don't know what I hate more, the idea that POC cause racism by refusing to forget who we are, or the blithe manner in whcih someone who doesn't have to deal with racism declares that because they don't none of us do or should.
[People do this about other forms of bigotry too, but that's another post.]
Ah, purple people. Where's the Purple People Eater?
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Date: 2013-08-29 03:12 pm (UTC)That's what people who say "black, white, purple, green with blue polka dots" miss, I believe. They think if they were to suddenly suffer a freak accident that turned their skin dark (and maybe changed their hair), well, they wouldn't suffer all that much.
If it happened, if they lived it, such a person might understand that although skin color shouldn't matter, it *does*, and you can't understand *how* it does until you pay attention.
Fortunately, there is a way you can find out how widespread racism is, and it doesn't involve taking a pill. You can listen to Black people and believe their accounts.
You can hear facts from that. You can't get a gut level understanding of it.
I'm a man; I have no idea what it's like to face the challenges a woman faces. I can imagine it sucks, I can listen to stories, I can believe those stories, but I can't have a deep down understanding of it. I won't know what it's like to want to put on my favorite clothing and flash back to some hideous comment someone made at random while I was wearing it, and wondering if there's a connection or not; I can't imagine what it's like to be followed by a random creepy guy and not be able to ignore him, because I can't think "I can probably take him, and if I can't, he'll by-god know he's been in a fight," unless I've had some pretty significant training in how to fight; I can't imagine having someone listen to me explain some technical detail of how SQL Server works, and then explain patiently to me that, no, I'm wrong, it actually works (exactly the way I just said, but this time, a man helped me wrap my pretty little head around it).
I can only imagine those things. Listening helps, but it's not the same as living it.