And the world turned upside down...

[browngirl]

I want to write a global, coherent, beautiful essay about art revealing our humanity to each other, but I would probably fall short into mawkishness. So I'll just say this.

When I was a teenager, after my parents had diligently worked for a decade to teach me to be homophobic among other moral stances, I read a handful of novels featuring same-sex love stories, and I saw that love is love, and all my parents' careful teaching didn't take. This is fortunate, not least since when I later realized I'm bisexual I never hated myself for it.

I know, with certainty down below my skin into my bones, that there are children whose parents have carefully or carelessly tried to teach them to be racist, whether flagrant hatred or the seeming kindliness of paternalism, who have been listening to _Hamilton_ and hearing people of color as fully sentient, talented, valid human beings, who know better than their parents in part due to this musical and all the people who brought it to life, including tonight's Tony winners among the cast, not least Mr. Miranda.

Today I watched this with E:

We watched it three times in great delight, and she's extremely excited to see it during her birthday month, and I hope, I so hope, that if someone ever tells her she shouldn't identify with a Polynesian girl, or anyone else however seemingly different, or worse yet that she can't expect people not "like" her to identify with her, that these pernicious ideas slide right off her because she's met Moana, because she knows me, because she knows better.

Comments

[gingicat]

That explains the very thoughtful sociological discussion I overheard <3

[acelightning.livejournal.com]

[eustaciavye.livejournal.com]

There are going to be so many "Moana is unimpressed" memes now.

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

Representation matters.

[hand2hand.livejournal.com]

HUGS

[chienne-folle.livejournal.com]

My father is an extremely racist person. He's openly racist, rather than covertly racist, and he tried to teach me all that crap.

But I fell in love with a Vulcan at the age of eleven, and once your heart is occupied by an extra-terrestrial, the minor physical differences among humans seem trivial. I'm in love with someone whose blood is a different color than mine, so don't tell me the color of somebody's skin makes any goddamned difference! :-)

Art matters.

*hug*

[lb-lee.livejournal.com]

I am really excited about Moana. We lived in New Zealand a while, and so this trailer gives a huge sense of nostalgia.

[dandelion-diva.livejournal.com]

You write so beautifully.

Thank you! I hadn't seen this trailer yet. Can't wait to show the kids. :)

Love you.

[hitchhiker.livejournal.com]

holy shit, that movie looks amazing!

[hitchhiker.livejournal.com]

also i'm very glad you didn't take after your parents :)

[juliansinger.livejournal.com]

I hope with you.