Angrier Geek, thanks for being here in the comment section, putting out all these trashcan fires <3

Any time someone uses social justice warrior as a pejorative I know what follows is going to be inane bullshit. Frankly, being a warrior for social justice sounds awesome to me!

So, on the one hand, we have Daredevil’s stereotyping and, on the other hand, we have Doctor Strange’s whitewashing. This forces a lot of Asians and people of Asian descent into the position of wondering whether shitty representation really is better than no representation at all. I have personally found myself…

Yes, me writing an entire post about my ambivalence and trying to find a middle ground on a issue is clearly “black-and-white thinking.” Great logic there, Sherlock.

Yeah. Kinda like how white people are represented in Asian cinema, right? You can ask the two white actors in Chinese movies how they feel “under-representation” and call us back.

White supremacist groups especially had a hate-on for Idris Elba playing Heimdall. Heimdall is described in Norse mythology as the whitest of the white and has become a kind of adopted mascot among those kinds of shitheads. Honestly, Marvel casting a black man in that role was great idea; if they'd cast a white actor…

No matter where you are, one person doing #1 isn’t going to make a difference*. Just like one person boycotting doesn’t make a difference. But other than spreading the word and trying to get others to join us, all we can do is vote with our individual wallets.

“So, where was this article when Michael B. Jordan was cast to play Human Torch? Is it only a problem when white actors fill non-white roles?”

I will add that if it’s outrage you wanted over those casting choices, there was plenty of it. By racists. I can’t speak for you, but I’m not really keen to join those ranks, myself.

I’m stuck between my academic brain and my fan heart.

If you don’t see how replacing one of a gajillion White characters by a minority is not the same as replacing one of the handful of minority character by a White person, I can’t help you. You’ve got blinders on, and nothing anyone will say will remove them.

So, I was not gonna reply. Then, I was gonna reply defending Marvel. But then I thought about it. And here is what I have to say:

Yeah I don’t understand why people get upset when someone not from that nationality or race actually speaks up about something. Heaven forbid a white person actually cares about racism or white washing. Which is a major problem in Hollywood.

Not that it should matter, but Katharine Trendacosta IS Asian-American. Her mother is of Japanese descent. Though I agree with Angrier Geek that there is great value in people outside a minority group advocating for it.

Did you know that every time you use the phrase “social justice warrior” an angel flies down from heaven to take a giant invisible shit on your face? Then you’re walking around with your head and face and shoulders dripping with the stuff, and no one can quite see it or smell it but they know there’s something wrong…

Exactly. This kind of assumption always comes from someone who doesn’t want to hear about minority experiences. Its an attempt to silence *anyone* who supports someone not in the ruling class. I’m sure there are ppl who would rather fight their own battles, or not fight at all and be left alone. I respect that choice…

No. No one should be silent simply because it’s not “their problem.” That’s a ridiculous position to take. There’d be no progress if most people thought that way. Especially when the offended group in question has clearly spoken out about it.

Actually, we do want people speaking about this issue, keep it up io9. Asian representation has always been awful in american pop culture, and its great to see major media outlets finally start talking about it. Not sure why you would think that we wouldn’t want this, as it influences every aspect of our lives growing…

Asian living in America here: I personally *do* like having non-Asian allies talk about the lack of representation of Asians in well, everything, since you fuckers in the majority seem to ignore our opinions and existence anyway. So please, non-Asian person, just sit the fuck down. You don’t speak for all of us.

I’m glad that Asian people have a guy who hates sjws (aka is probs racist) and is not only happy with white washing... but will speak on their behalf to say “if you aren’t Asian don’t say anything I don’t like because I don’t like it.” Such bravery and compassion are rare these days.