non-whites

[seldear]

You know, I'd really love it if professional authors (and, hell, fanfic authors) took an interest in "those coloured people" on the Stargates - both SG1 and Atlantis. I haven't met a professional author yet who was interested in Teal'c, Teyla, or Ronon as anything other than sex fodder or background.

And, no, underdeveloped does not mean uninteresting.

And yes, I know the term "coloured" is an insult in the US. I'm using it deliberately to describe the mindset I see in professional (and fanfic) authors: "only the pretty white people count."

To tell you true, I'm freaking tired of it.

Comments

[allisnow.livejournal.com]

Playing devil's advocate...

Is it the fact that they're colored, or the fact that they are the 'outsiders' and therefore ostensibly the most difficult to write for?

I'm not saying it's a good excuse, I just feel compelled to point out stuff like this when people automatically take out the 'race card'.

BTW, I like your icon :)

[seldearslj.livejournal.com]

Well, there's certainly two layers there, in that all the coloured people in Stargate either start off as outsiders (Teal'c, Teyla, Ronon) or become outsiders (Ford). So part of it is certainly attributable to the way the characters are written on the show.

However, I personally feel that the argument of "they're just [insert differentiation here]" breaks down when we're talking about work derivative from the original canon - whether authorised (tie-in novels) or unauthorised (fanfic).

I mean, when people go on about how the like fanfiction because of the "ability to take the characters somewhere else", it would surely stand to reason that the characters least "taken somewhere else" would be the most attractive prospects, right?

Or am I not thinking in the appropriate herd-mentality? :)

[allisnow.livejournal.com]

You can definitely take characters like Teal'c and Teyla and Ronon somewhere else... but it takes more work. Your average white female writer from the US or UK or wherever has to go outside her cultural 'comfort zone' in a way I think has more to do with the characters 'outsiderness' than the fact that they were cast as colored people.

So for me, at least, the question isn't 'why don't people write more about Teyla or Teal'c or Ronon', but instead something like 'if Lorne was black, would people still write as much about him as they do'.

[seldearslj.livejournal.com]

If we're arguing that the trio's "invisibility factor" among fans is due to them being "an outsider" rather than the colour of their skin, then doesn't the fact that they're all "alien" mean that everyone who's from Earth (and I'm presuming that everyone in fandom is from Earth, although there are a few I'd happily disown) has to step outside their comfort zone to write them?