#‘Eurocentric features’ ‘Eurocentric cultures’

[kaftan]

pet peeve #6738: people saying “Eurocentric” when they mean European

[ansburg]

not to soapbox but like. diasporic asians growing up the in the west were constantly told we were uncool, ugly, unfit for leading roles, and just so generally other that many of us still struggle with that self-hatred and deal with the material discrimination that comes with looking "different" from the default. so many diasporic asians have stories about how our creative accomplishments or potential were discounted because we were told we didn’t have enough “personality” – a judgment call that can’t be divorced from how racial triangulation has worked to alienate asian people from dominant cultures in the diaspora.

you know how asian people have been treated by western fantasy? we’re either

ugly and monstrous

exotified beyond recognition

or we don’t exist.

(thanks david. it’s not like thedas is the only continent the player can explore or anything. or that boats exist. where does solas get his tea btw? where do the silks in orlais originate from? why are there always asian aesthetics present without asian faces?)

when a game like bg3 comes along and the studio makes a decision to make an asian companion, it’s huge for us. that’s our crumb of representation. karlach is very obviously not “eurocentric” in her features – if anything, westernized beauty standards would have her face redone to comply with market demands.

she has monolids. she has a flat nose bridge. her cheeks are full and round, buccal fat very much in attendance. whatever she may have arguably been in previous patches, that is not what she is now. and pretending like her face – a face that, newsflash, asian people can relate to – is just a toy you can pop features out of because they don’t have enough “personality” to you, or because they’re too “soft," or because you don’t think a face like hers is “warrior-like” (whatever the fuck that means), is insensitive at best and willfully ignorant at worst. her asianness isn’t a setting to opt out of any more than wyll’s blackness is.

lastly, i’m exhausted that it even needs to be said, but being a person of color does not absolve somebody of intercommunity harm. minority status isn’t an excuse to get out of self-reflecting. it’s okay to step back and say, “wow, i didn’t think about how i’d affect members of this community,” without digging your heels in like one mistake on the internet is an extinction-level event.

studies:

[selfindulgentfandomstuff]

How about some positivity to combat all the bullshit stuff happening in my (and probably everyone else’s) life right now?

(Also I don’t really know how to make this all aesthetic and stuff but I think it does not matter bc I don’t wanna detract from my point anyways!!)

SHOUTOUT TO ALL THE SELFSHIPPERS WHO FEEL UNDERAPPRECIATED AND OVERLOOKED!!!

SHOUTOUT TO…

- selfshippers of color (ESPECIALLY black selfshippers, you shouldn’t have to put up with all the bullshit you have to deal with in the selfship community and other fandom spaces and your f/os would NOT stand for it, they would absolutely call anyone out on their racism)!!!

- mixed selfshippers of color as well (your f/os would love learning about all aspects of your heritage)!!

- transmasc selfshippers!!

- transfem selfshippers !!! (You gals also deal with so much bullshit and I want so much better for you and so do your f/os, they will ALWAYS hype you up for being the beautiful woman you are!)

- gay selfshippers!!!

- lesbian selfshippers !!

- bisexual, pansexual and other m-spec selfshipper s!!

- asexual, aromantic and aroace spectrum selfshippers !!!

- intersex selfshippers !!! (I see so little rep for you guys, I hope we can change that!! Your f/os would never ask you invasive questions without your consent and they would always support you against anyone who was weird to you about being intersex!)

- selfshippers whose f/os ‘don’t match’ their real life orientation (your real life identity is NOT invalidated by your attraction to fictional characters)!!

- queer selfshippers who don’t feel like typical and conventional labels fit for them!!

- physically disabled selfshippers!!!

- neurodivergent selfshippers (especially cluster B folks, the hatred I see directed at you is just awful and I desperately want people to stop acting like your flavor of neurodivergence has any effect on your morality. Your f/os wants to learn as much as your willing to share about your neurodivergent self and how to better accommodate you) !!

- selfshippers with intellectual disabilities !!

- selfshippers who don’t feel included in American and Eurocentric imagines, be they about physical features, seasons or cultural aspects!!!

- selfshippers who are ‘older’ (you are NEVER too old to selfship, it makes me so happy to see selfshippers past their 30s bc it reassures me that could be me!) !!

- selfshippers with fem f/os (so few imagines centered around fem f/os.. we need to change that)!!!

- fat selfshippers!!

- selfshippers with not ‘conventionally attractive’ features like acne, moles, stretch marks, self harm scars, etc (these are NOT ugly features but even if they were, you are still a person deserving of respect and kindness)!!!

- tall selfshippers who don’t feel included in most self insert imagines where the f/o is taller than the reader insert!!

- PLEASE PLEASE ADD MORE IN THE REBLOGS!!! If I forgot and didn’t include you or someone you care about, please reblog with that addition!! I want to see ALL of the amazing people the selfship community is comprised of!!!

PROSHIP/COMSHIP/‘NEUTRAL’ DNI

[blackexcellence]

Welcome to Black Excellence 365, where we celebrate all things Black and Excellent every day of the year. This month, for March, we will be taking a look at a new theme and source of pride & expression: Hair ✂️.

This month is all about hair, and its importance to Black style, culture, music, history, politics, and, most of all, Black Excellence. Black hair is an essential part of the Black experience. You name it, we’ll look at, explore, and celebrate it: cornrows, box braids, natural coils, knotless braids, goddess braids, twists, pixie crops, locks, wavy hair, crochet braids, and everything in between. Black hair goes hand-in-hand with every aspect of Black life and touches every corner of the world. Care for Black hair is a labor of love ❤️and a long, long process that involves washing, detangling, combing, oiling, braiding, twisting, and decorating the hair, which creates not just a sense of beauty but honors its spiritual power. And this legacy lives on today across Black life. In the 60s, the Afro was a big expression of Black power, pride, connection, and revolution popular with artists, performers, youth, and activists. Some artists would use their hair as an expression of art, as they do today, while young Black Americans would ‘fro their hair to emulate the style of the civil rights heroes like the Black Panthers and convey Black pride, as pioneered by the Queen, Angela Davis. Since that time, Black hair has become a symbol of celebration, a reminder of our roots, and a call to embrace heritage while politically rejecting Eurocentric ideals. Today, the Natural Hair Movement is carried with pride and power. Black hair has always been political — in the same vein, in 2019, The Crown Act (sign the petition|email your legislator) was passed as a starting point to support Black Folx in their appreciation of their hair — their CROWN 👑. Whatever the period, whatever the style, It is all Black Excellence and is here to be celebrated 24/7. 

But BE365 is nothing without you: so POST your favorite hairstyles, iconic Black cuts, shapes, and styles, and your cutting-edge hairdressers and stylists who turn Black hair into art, and Black Excellence. And don’t forget to tag your content with #blackexcellence365 for the chance to be featured. And last but not least, join us for our celebration and of the very best in Black hair of every shape and every style. Make sure you join in, follow, and smash that share button using the tag #BlackExcellence365. 

Welcome to March in #BlackExcellence365 ✊🏿✊🏾✊🏽!

[cinderellahoneymoon]

anyways bipoc selfshippers I LOVE YOU southwest asian selfshipppers I LOVE YOU southeast asian selfshippers I LOVE YOU south american selfshippers I LOVE YOU african selfshippers I LOVE YOU selfshippers who always feel their country and culture are overlooked I LOVE YOU

selfshippers whos hair isnt straight or wavy and cant be combed through i LOVE YOU selfshippers whos skin doesnt go red and cheeks dont flush visibly I LOVE YOU selfshippers whos eyes arent bright or gemlike or light I LOVE YOU selfshippers whos skin isnt light as snow or even remotely close I LOVE YOU selfshippers whos english isnt perfect or their first language I LOVE YOU

all you selfshippers who dont fit the eurocentric norm, i love you from the depths of my heart. especially those of us with darker skin who are made to feel lesser because of it. know that even if your content doesnt get as much reach as those with more eurocentric features and ships, it always makes the day of someone like me to see someone like us in the community

pro/coms.hip dni you arent welcome in this community and i dont love you in the slightest

[yooniesim]

I'm sitting here thinking about a pretty age-old debate on simblr... the race of sims that have black hairstyles, particularly in cc preview pics.

I know it's been talked about repeatedly, but when it comes to cc previews for paid cc I think it's especially worth talking about. Some people say, well, the creator only uses a few different sim models each time, it's not like they're intending to be racist or something. It's just for convenience, because they're busy, they're hustling, they gotta pay their bills. They always use the same sim, so it's fine. But like... isn't that gross to y'all? Someone making money off of black hairstyles, but they can't even be assed to go in cas for 15 mins to make a black sim? Isn't that a prime example of appropriation of black culture for profit? Like the human aspect of us as a person is gone, it's just another part of us being advertised and sold. Black hair makes money, black hair cc is limited, it will sell and nothing else matters. It feels like black hairstyles are some kind of trend with them too, because none of these creators made them before it was possible to profit off of them... back then it was "too hard" just like now it's apparently "too hard" to make a different preview sim.

Also, it's not lost of me that when a creator does make a black sim for their previews, they're as light skinned and white looking as possible. Whether just by skintone, very eurocentric features (like they just gave a white sim slightly darker skin), vitiligo to make most of the skin light, or claiming the sim has albinism. And while some of this I'm sure is just finding that aesthetic more "pretty", I also think this has to do with potential sales. I'm going to be honest... besides engagement by black simblr itself, I've noticed a lot of posts I have get less engagement/reblogs if the sim in question has darker skin and darker hair. It's much more likely to pick up in the mainstream cc finds blogs/YouTube videos etc, if the content is for white sims or the sim has lighter skin and light hair. I don't care about engagement and simply make whatever sim I want to make, and since I do have that variety, it's how I noticed this strange trend. And with the volume of content paywall creators make, I think they noticed this too. Posts with lighter skinned sims get better engagement, and thus, make more money.

Have you ever noticed, even in paywalled cc packs, there will usually be a sort of token effect? One white sim, one ethnically ambiguous sim, one black sim. This is great if you're showing off something that will vary for different skintones- makeup and skin details, for example- but why is it always like this? And why is the variety usually only in previews for cc packs instead of solo items (like hairs)? It feels like it's all to sell better, to appeal to different demographics and say, hey, I didn't forget poc exist! Please pay for my content! It feels disgenuine, and since creators like this rarely engage with the community anymore besides paid content, it's hard to figure out whether they feel this way or not.

Personally, I don't care much what people do in their own games- I might look at them weird for a sec, but I move on, cos it's their issue not mine. But like many other aspects to this community, when it crosses over into paid content, it sparks my interest. It feels like everything, everything, is about maximizing profit now. And for the people that focus on that, that's their prerogative and all, I can't exactly stop them, but. It's just something I observed and wouldn't mind discussing with y'all.

(Note: I don't apply the "profiting off black culture" part to black creators, obviously. Also no hate to any creators that do this stuff. Be reasonable adults, please. I'm just discussing in a constructive criticism type of way.)

[machineryangel]

Haven't seen anyone talk ab it but Twin Drums studio (the majority of its core team of nine are Black, female, and queer) is developing a (successfully kickstarted!) Afro-fantasy game called The Wagadu Chronicles and I'm rly excited for its launch and you should check out their links

"This is a very personal project [...]" Twin Drums' founder and creative director Allan Cudicio explains. "For me, that meant looking back at my career realising how hard I had to fight just to get some Black characters in the games I was working on, or to get the artists to have an African-inspired setting and not the 40th European, French/Venetian inspired setting. It was very much a personal fight I had to go through."

"The game is political," Cudicio continued, describing the game as 'immersed in a Black, queer positive source'. "Too often we hear in our industry 'We don't do politics', which is fascinating. It's better to embrace what politics you have and for us it's anti-colonial, it's feminist, it's anti-ableist."

"[The Wagadu Chronicles] is an African-inspired fantasy sandbox MMORPG, so you travel through this African-inspired world, doing what you could call life skills: farming, fishing, crafting," Cudicio said. "It also has combat, mostly PVE, inspired by single player turn-based RPGs. Community is very important. Every village you see in The Wagadu Chronicles has been created, nurtured and expanded by communal efforts, which again is inspired by traditions of the continent. (x)

Wagadu removes the lens of medieval European influences in fantasy by being based entirely on African mythology. “A lot of games is nonconsensual killing and getting rewarded for it, whereas in Wagadu, and with nature, it’s about consent,” explains Cudicio. “That’s like traditional Yoruba hunters of the south of Nigeria. When they hunt, they chant a blessing and ask permission for the animal. In some cultures, you also ask for forgiveness or thank them afterwards. I think it’s important to rethink hunting not as something that’s very Western and capitalist — which is about the domination and destruction of nature — whereas in African societies it’s about balancing and respecting it.”

Suffice to say, being set in an African fantasy world also means players will only be able to play as Black characters, with a large selection of African names to choose from. “I know if people have that freedom, then white players will be lazy and just pick white people, and not challenge themselves, and then the setting will not be Black anymore,” says Cudicio. “To keep Wagadu African, there needs to be an artistic direction to say, like, this is a Black world, so everybody who plays has these features.” (x)

There have been black people in fantasy previous of course, but often their stripped of any tangible African influence. “I think what happens is you get very Western fantasy with people painted black, basically. There’s metal armour or a French looking knight, just with an afro or black skin. It’s good, it’s better than nothing, but we need to move a step further. It’s a very Eurocentric blackness.” (x)

[ghostlysleuth]

Do you have any tips for when designing poc characters?? Like what not or to do, etc.

this is massively edited down to just keep the essentials. this isn't going to be as explicit as you were maybe wanting but saying "don't draw black characters this way, don't draw asian characters that way" isn't something i wanna do because it's not a good feeling to review a list of offensive design practices from a trauma standpoint and likely wouldn't be for any other people of color reading.

study from real photos.

really, any set of photos of people of color work but if you want a resource where people are not models nor actors that have been plucked up for their marketableness, here's a good site: Humanae — Angélica Dass (angelicadass.com) it's a photography collection associated with pantone to showcase diversity in shades of skin.

study faces within a group.

no two ppl look the same and character design is about showcasing this through certain features.

from these, study how much differently color works for melanated/non-white skin.

again, it's different for everyone even within groups. admittedly this is only something you'd need if you have a more in-depth or painterly style, but still. avoid grayish base skin tones. the aforementioned site is actually great for this.

LOOK INTO RACIST CARICATURES.

literally, people wouldn't find themselves "accidentally" slipping into racist designs if they just KNEW, explicitly knew, and internally acknowledged what people of color find offensive or what has been used against them in depictions of themselves.

yes, this includes looking at the old offensive cartoons, illustrations, etc. it's painful and uncomfortable and rough but it must be understood how these caricatures were a means of dehumanization and are mistakes to be learned from.

again, i'm not gonna list out exactly how not to depict a black person, an asian person, jewish person, latine, middle eastern, etc. etc. etc., because i feel these things should just be known, but if it's not, literally just be aware (or get aware) of the racial stigma faced by the group of people you are attempting to represent. put care into how you are depicting them.

BUT ALSO KEEP IN MIND: you shouldn't jump to default to white eurocentric features simply to "avoid" the any sort of backlash or offense that may be taken. because if you do so, a) in attempting to not be offensive, you're still perpetuating the upholding and favoring of white eurocentric features, and b) well, you're just stifling yourself.

designing characters of color REQUIRES acknowledgement of non-eurocentric features; hell, in the best cases, it's a celebration of these features.

as you would in replicating a style of architecture, a technique of painting, a depiction of a culture, you have to observe and become knowledgeable.

addendum: obviously, i'm not white, so i don't know the depths of how pervasive racism and white supremacy can be in a white person's personal life and upbringing; but i do know that racism and white supremacy are pervasive even (ESPECIALLY) in art, a much more tangible and permanent thing than a state of being, and knowing this, i do reserve a small margin of patience for white folks that are wanting to try to be in the know on this topic, especially younger people who have yet to unlearn certain things. if anyone reads this and thinks "well, it's not their responsibility or any person of color's to teach you these things," you're correct, but yknow. the effort's there, and trying's all we can do.

[queen-breha-organa]

It hurts to see how normalized whitewashing has become in media and fandom.

People are so caught up in making racism one thing, like slurs or stereotypes, that they forget or intentionally ignore the many layers to racism and it’s casual role in society and media.

Whitewashing pushes Eurocentric standards like beauty or lifestyle as the ideal, and actively harms People of Color by looking down upon or erasing our features, skin tones and culture.

Whitewashing is racist. Whitewashing is a form of racism.

Whitewashing is harmful, whitewashing is degrading, it’s dehumanizing. It makes you feel ashamed. It makes you feel ignored.

It makes you feel ugly.

Yet it’s so normalized that people don’t even recognize it as racist.

A comic book character with dark skin is played by a light skinned actor in live action, but no one blinks because both character and actor are the same race. They ignore the colorism.

An animated show based on a live action media animates an Actor of Color with lightened eyes, a thin nose and lightened skin. But no one blinks because “it’s just animation.”

A character of color’s culture is removed or pushed aside for a more American centric story and plays into the “American Dream” stereotype. This is cultural whitewashing.

This is casual racism in media.

No matter what form or what media, whitewashing is racism.

And it hurts.

[simpforsix]

With all the stuff about the Titanic submarine I keep thinking about the tourism of sites of mass tragedy and human remains. It’s a really important conversation that I haven’t seen many people discuss outside of historical and final care provider circles.

The Titanic is a grave. The only reason that submarines are even permitted to go through it is because it’s in international waters. Other shipwrecks, like in Lake Superior, are frequently declared grave sites and have restrictions or bans on exploration of their structure. At the very least, there should be incredibly strict restrictions on Titanic exploration. It should not be a tourist destination. There may be still be human remains in certain parts of the ship, and the mud around the ship is filled with corpses. Considering the tragedy only happened 100 years ago, this tourism is very disrespectful. Also, exploration of the Titanic could potentially damage the structure, which would hinder academic research as well as further disrespect the dead and those who remember them. The structure will not be around for much longer.

Tourism of sites of mass tragedy can also be very dangerous. Obviously we know why the Titanic is dangerous, but it goes beyond that. Oftentimes people are not aware of the danger, or are reassured by authority that it is safe. For instance, many people visit active volcanoes, and some have been injured or killed by eruptions. For some, the danger is a feature. There are people who visit Chernobyl, an even more recent site of mass tragedy than the Titanic, despite being aware of the danger of radiation. It’s thrill-seeking, but instead of a rollercoaster people are putting themselves in danger to walk through human remains.

Our natural fascination with mortality leads many to disrespect the dead. The viewing of human remains in museums is a big debate, and I personally don’t think that we should display human remains without previous consent from the person. Imagine how you would feel if yourself or a loved one was displayed in a museum, or had your resting place constantly disturbed by tourists. 

It’s also important to note that this type of tourism disproportionately impacts people of colour. Eurocentric society systematically dehumanizes the bodies of POC, and this becomes crystal clear in how we treat their remains. Egyptian mummies remain on display in museums despite the disapproval of many Egyptian people. Many black bodies, particularly of women, have been displayed in museums, such as Saartjie Baartman who was finally buried in 2002. Indigenous human remains are also frequently displayed, and ancient burial sites are viewed as cursed land and get destroyed by construction. The remains of people across Asia have been sold and displayed, with recent displays posing the human remains of Chinese prisoners. Most human bones being sold originated from graverobbing the graves of Asian and Indigenous people. None of these people consented to this treatment, and these communities are still being harmed by the commodification of their dead.

Engaging with sites of mass death needs to be done respectfully. The dead deserve our care. 

It’s natural to be curious about tragedy and death, and engaging with our own mortality can be healthy. There are ways to engage with these topics respectfully. Many online resources are available to learn about death, with my personal recommendation being the youtube channel Ask a Mortician. Visiting cemeteries is another great way to engage with death, so long as you abide by the rules and have good intentions. There are some great documentaries about instances of mass death, with many available for free on youtube. You can visit designated memorials of the sites. The Titanic itself has a section in a graveyard in Halifax. I also recommend donating to and supporting the efforts of communities to have their human remains and cultural artifacts repatriated.

Sites of mass death need to be treated with the same respect as cemeteries. They are important and full of education, but we need to remember that these are real people. The dead are not fantastical oddities; they are us.

[jester-lover]

Hobie with a Desi! S/O

cw/ fem! Reader, horrible attempt at writing British people, including multiple desi cultures bc my girlies need all the representation we can get (it’s slim pickings out here) all fluff, some cultural struggles, but everything is resolved, mentions of insecurities

(LONG POST- headcanons and a drabble)

I'm goth and I had a literary awakening when Hobie showed up

There are literally only two ways I see the two of you meeting

The first involves you being a friend/relative of Pavitir’s, who is exceptionally happy his two homies are getting along

In this situation, Hobie would know a little more about you from the get go, and you most likely would know about him (Pav thinks he’s so cool, he’ll talk about his friends to anyone who’ll listen)

Another; in my opinion, funnier, way for the two of you to meet is him accidentally crashing a desi wedding when he’s on Spidey business

You would be mildly peeved with him for disturbing the wedding, but his spunk and generally opinionated personality make you fall for him

Either way, congratulations! You have the world’s loveliest punk boyfriend

As a boyfriend, Hobie loves helping out in any activity you need help with

He’s the type of boy who tries his absolute hardest to be there for any event that is important to you

No matter if its a massive grad party or a late night pizza run, Hobie is there and having the time of his life

Now, moving onto the cultural aspect, Hobie adores learning about other cultures

Your family is weary of him at first, because of the way he dresses primarily

He manages to find a place in their hearts after they see the way he treats you (with respect and dignity!!!!)

Also the fact that he eats whatever your mom makes, entire plate, man will lick it clean

(I mean, have you seen how much British people love takeaway?)

“Is your mum home yet?” “She’s making something good I bet, she always is.”

He can HANDLE spice, and he’s good with kids (his interaction with Mayday proved that to me)

Your parents may end up, in a shocking event, liking him!

Hobie is your biggest hype man whenever you wear cultural clothes, especially if they’re a little on the edgy side, dark colors and all that

Lehengas, shalwar kameez, sarees, etc, he loves them all

“You're dressed up, aren’t you?”

He’ll explain it to you in this mysticised ‘stepping on eurocentric beauty standards’ type of way, but you know deep down he just thinks you're super pretty

He’s obsessed with your features, no matter what you look like, he thinks you have the most perfect face in the world

If you ever make Hobie Desi food, he’ll be in love with you forever

He loves pani puri, especially if the pani is a lil spicier

His love language is acts of service, and you making him something to eat is like, you are nourishing him?? With bomb Desi food?? he’s is seeing heaven rn

He most DEF asks Pav (who then asks Gayatri) for advice on how to impress you

This leads to him, hanging onto your windowsill, with a Mendhi tube in his hand, and a calm smile on his face

As Hobie slid off his mask, his gorgeous hair fell to the sides of his sharp face. Placing the spiky mask on your side table, he sauntered towards your bed, abruptly sitting down and motioning for you to follow him. 

You sighed, and smiled as you took your spot in front of him. He was alway so considerate, taking your interests into mind whenever he swung by.

“You know, I’m not a pro at this or anything.”

He grinned, almost wolfishly, and placed the small sharp tipped tube into your lap.

“I could care less, do anything on my hands.”

You gently took one of his hands into both of yours, spreading it out to see the flesh of his palm, his nails were painted red this week, courtesy of you, of course.

His long bony hand flexed as you gently took off each of his silverish rings, one by one. 

You were completely focused on this simple act, treating him with a gentleness only you could offer him, a complete contrast from his usual existence. 

“I don’t have a lot of time today, my cousin’s getting married, we have to go to some pre wedding events.”

Hobie perked up in interest, sliding his free hand to smooth out your gingham sheets.

“And what do you plan to wear?”

His mind flashed through all the traditional clothes he’s seen you in, each more ornate and beautiful than the last.

“The lehenga most likely, the peach-ish one, with the sparkles.”

You undid the little plastic pin at the top of the Mehendi tube, applying a slight pressure and making a small line on his palm to start out with.

Hobie looked at you closely, remembering the last time he saw that specific lehenga.

“That one’s cute.”

You laughed a little, looking down at your messy drawing.

“I was going for a flower but it sorta looks like a palm tree.”

He looked down at his hand, a messy smudgy, and less than finished flower was on his palm.

“Maybe, a couple more petals on the top, yeah?”

You squeezed the Mendhi tube again, carefully drawing three extra petals on the top.

“There! I think that's good.”

Hobie looked down at his palm and kept a laugh back, poorly albeit.

The flower wasn’t necessarily bad, just a little wonky.

“It's absolutely beautiful.”

You smiled.

“Hold your hand still until it dries, then peel off the crumbly bits, okay?”

Hobie mockingly saluted with his other hand, matching your smile.

“Anything you say.”

You giggled, taking his face in your hands gently, careful to avoid snagging one of his piercings.

“What am I ever gonna do without you?”

His expression turned a little soft, keeping his smile steady.

“Let's hope it never has to come to that.”

[alpaca-clouds]

What if Colonialism had not happened?

(Completely honest here: I did not plan that this blog fell onto this week. I mean, while I had suspicions for a while that Nocturne was gonna feature colonialism this heavily, I did not know. I just planned out the times for my posts and this happened...)

Let me talk a bit about history and once more about the fact that, no, history is not inevitable.

A lot of alternate history tends to be more right leaning. And it tends to be very eurocentric. Even if we talk about "what if Columbus did not come to America" it ends up being about how it would have changed European history. Not about what it would have meant for literally everyone else.

Now, we could talk a lot about "how could it not have happened?", but the thing is that there are so many little things that could have done different. For once, of course, if the crusades had happened differently, colonialism probably would not have happened the way it did. (Because boy howdy, those things were connected.)

If the Reconquista movement of Spain had failed, there is a good chance that Columbus never would have gotten the funds to do his expedition to find India the long way around - and hence would never have gotten to America. Which might not have guaranteed that Africa, Asia and Pacifica would not have been colonized, but if that had happened it would have changed the way it happened considerably.

The reason I pose the question however is, to make clear another thing. See, one of the reasons that a lot of alternate history tends to be so completely desinterested in what happened outside of Europe and MAYBE (East) Asia, is the racist believe that outside of Europe and (East) Asia there was basically no civilization going on. The idea that basically outside of Europe and Asia people were some hunter/gatherer normads without... anything. Sure, people tend to be somewhat aware of the the Maya and the Mexico (Aztec) people, but not much outside of it. But there were. There were cities and there was agriculture. There were so many different cultures in the Ameircas alone.

And of course it was not just the Americas. It was Afrika, too. It was the parts Asia that folks tend to act as if they were not civilized.

And yes, that is the reason that I pose the question. It is not that I have an answer. Because it is hard to say what would have happened in that way. There is a good chance that the pre-colonial empires still might have fallen one way or another. There is a good chance that some of the cultures that were eradicated through genocide might have died off in some other way, too.

But we also know is that millions, who died through the volence colonialism would have lived. Not all of them would have had full lives, of course not. But many more than had in the real world, in the real history.

We often look at history and accept it as inevitable in one way or another. But it wasn't. There were people that made the active decisions to do all those horrible things. Not only those in power, but also those following orders.

Just to make it clear: There is a good chance that something between 80 and 100 million people lived in the Americas alone before contact with Columbus. And now just look at the figures above and realize... how many people were just... killed in one way or another.

[nopointic]

blue eye samurai was so funny to me how everyone who saw mizu's blue eyes immediately were like YUCK! 🤮 DEMON! *hides children behind them* because in modern society today it's the opposite. i remember always being bummed when a character would have blue eyes and that was their defining beauty trait. books would go on to describe characters with brown eyes as dull and lifeless and you don't think these things stick with you but it does. and then colored contacts came out. and i remember so many black people in my city buying blue contact lenses to feel "prettier". it became a huge thing. so with black girls it was ok we gotta straighten our hair with toxic chemicals and for a bigger glow up pop in blue contacts.

then photoshopping became very common. fans would give their favorite artists blue eyes. i remember this specifically with zayn in one direction. it made me so fucking mad. zayn looks like something out of perfect runway anyways. and here fans were making his eyes blue and saying "now he's perfect!" imagine thinking zayn malik needed a makeover. mind boggling then and now.

but here we have a whole show where the culture is like nah those blue eyes? that shit is demonic and ugly. it's obviously cruel and nobody should be treated as such.

but remember when fowler bragged how one day they would love a face like his and consider his beauty above their their own when he got done colonizing their country? it happened.

in damn near every country where nonwhite people exist, european features are the pinnacle of beauty.

we see this when we have "international" modeling show. a model from every country but the sharp jawlines and lightest skin always win. loose curls not tightly coiled hair like some black people have. thin bodies. tall bodies. international but those qualities are always wanted. the same fucking look. a slight shade difference at most.

hell the natural hair movement with black people is oddly just a parade of expensive products to give one the looser curl pattern that society accepts. curl puddings and products to combat "shrinkage" makes up majority of black hair products in the natural section. it's something.

chemically straightened hair. the natural hair that grows out of my black scalp has been called unprofessional and needed several laws to protect others like me from various job discrimination policies. kids with natural black hair are still being told their hair is out of dress code.

skin bleaching is popular in several ethnic cultures. i can find a bleaching soap at my local big box retail store. they're not advertised but it's still a big seller. i want you to put that into perspective.

many products today boast about glowing skin. brightening is a nicer way to say bleaching. turmeric powder and lemon in everything now.

western media loves to point fingers at koreans now due to an increase of kpop in the media. they judge those who spend a massive amount of time, money, and resources to obtain a strict set of beauty standards. lighter skin, weight loss plans, sharper cheeks, new eyelids, color contacts, chin exercises you can learn on youtube it goes on and on. western white people judge asian people on their beauty obsession standards and it's tone deaf. it's a slap in the fucking face when i see it. your ancestors told all of us people of color we were ugly and needed to look like you to succeed in life. now we do it and you wanna point fingers and talk about how vain and fickle we are? that's fucked up! it pissed me off!!!!!!

so i guess it's a bitter taste in my mouth when i do laugh at mizu's "unfortunate eye color" being the cause of so much pain. because now it's the opposite.

as the cool kids say, she would do "numbers" in beauty standard rankings now. ethnic, but not "too" ethnic. blue eyes, androgynous and athletic but not too bulky and long hair? the algorithm says money honey!

funny how all this works out. eurocentric beauty is a hell of a drug. no katana will be able to kill that. no body positivity campaign or hashtag will undo any of this global phenomenon we now live with. we can call brown eyes beautiful now in songs and yet the angels in the church will always have blue eyes. this is the first time i've not seen a fandom go batshit insane when seeing a person of color WITH blue eyes. usually it's all caps with phrases like "woke liberal bullshit" or something. the fallout from the black little mermaid with red hair showed this very well.

white people have damn near colonized every other race and then they cry foul at the thought of a non white person with eyes other than brown and hair other than black and brown. it's the funniest shit. i mean they'll accept a mermaid. but her being black with red hair? too far. we truly would have never heard the fucking end if they made halle wear blue contacts as ariel. white people would have lost their fucking minds on another level lbh!

we joke that brown contacts would have given mizu an easier life. it's sobering that blue contacts and other fucked up beauty rituals give people of color the same easier life now.

mizu in blue eye samurai during that period is shunned for their appearance. today mizu would do numbers on instagram and make money being the face of some random blue low calorie sport drinks available at big chain stores.

anyways that's my TED talk on blue eyes, eurocentric beauty standards and why i really really love how blue eyes samurai shows all of this. i am in awe of the creators making this show from them having a biracial asian baby with blue eyes. because so many don't even realize how their blue eyes will always leave them being talked about no matter what. they will be called a a faker with contacts, have to constantly prove with baby pictures their eyes were and have always been blue. people will make immediate judgements and even though you would think this would not happen in 2023 it does.

so i commend the parents for making this show. it's a conversation we need to have more. how society treats those with certain features when you are not in control of said features. and how far we go personally to try to "fit in" in a world that is hell bent on neat and tidy labels. this is good this is bad blah blah blah.

i fucking love blue eye samurai. please let there be a season 2!

[brw]

it's just shocking how often people will come to the conclusion that rather it being a SYMPTOM of systematic racism and erasure of people of colour, of rromani people and rromani features and rromani culture that the twins are often coloured as white and with white features, it instead shows that they are actually white americans and whitewashing them is totally fine. like.................. you could come so close to realising how persistent and major racism and colourism in the comic book industry and in the film industry is but somehow it's easier to say that these characters should be depicted as white, never mind that STORM has been played by lighter skinned actresses and often depicted with paler skin and Eurocentric features because comics have a RACISM PROBLEM and this slowly improving and wanda and pietro slowly getting depicted as darker with nonwhite features can only be described as a positive move in the right direction for better representation.

[laninasinamor]

this post is an analysis of a passage in Tenoch's book . it's a lil long. contains sensitive topics. tw: racism, colorism, SA. you have been warned but if you wish to continue, feel free 😊

A PASSAGE FROM TENOCH HUERTA’S “ORGULLO PRIETO” - “BROWN PRIDE” ✊🏾🤎

Translated:

On the other hand, racist acts are not exclusive to white people or the dominant group. We brown people have assimilated the problem and have become victims and perpetrators at the same time.

In fact, when the members of Poder Prieto - a movement that seeks to raise awareness about the influence of racist practices in people's lives - have spoken about the subject, we discovered that many racist attacks that we have suffered throughout our lives they have arisen from our families, from ourselves or from other people also with brown skin.

These are daily micro-discriminations that, when accumulated, affect our moods and the way we live together and understand the world and our society, but also strengthen the monster that we seek to bring down.

Since we were children, our grandparents told us that the goal is to "mejorar la raza"*, our parents reminded us that "they treat you how they see you", our sisters confessed to us "how ugly, your girlfriend looks like a servant", or we blamed her for "look out for the güero* or the güera* from the neighborhood" and we thought that was why they were the most attractive.

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"güero" refers to someone with lighter complexion, white boy

"güera" = white girl

"Mejorar la raza" is a phrase traced back to the early years of colonization in Mexico by the Spanish.

Many Latino families still hear it today.

In English, it translates to "improve the race."

To add context, the Spanish implemented a caste system, a hierarchy of socio-racial classes, in order to keep status and power, centering the social structure around them and their culture on the top.

The highest in the system were Spanish people born in Spain. The lowest in the system were typically those of Indigenous as well as African blood. If you born either or both (Indigenous and/or African), chances are you were probably born in poor conditions and are not considered a full human being with rights.

This is where "improving the race" comes in. It centers around breeding.

The only way to elevate one's social status in the eyes of the caste system was to get married and/or bare children with someone richer in the eyes of society, in this case most commonly white/Spanish men or women. As a result, Mestizos (children with an Indigenous & Spanish parent) or Mulatos (children with an African & Spanish parent) would reap the benefits of having elevated their status by having more Spanish blood.

"Improving the race" has been used by many as an excuse for the rape of Indigenous woman by European colonizers!

These children were also considered more handsome because it erased their Indigenous or African features, replacing them with Eurocentric ones that were considered the epitome of beauty.

This would lead to HUGE resentment over black and brown people and their features.

The Result in Latin America: Harsh colorism!

Bad skin, bad hair, being ugly were associated with African features.

Being a maid, being short, being a hard worker are stereotypes, associated with Indigenous people

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They pit us against each other. That is why if you ask a Mexican who is their greatest enemy, they will respond with "another Mexican."

We have been taught to hate our black/brown skin. The colorist system implemented by our colonizers is what we must try our best in no longer partaking.

We must be okay with not worrying about tanning in the sun, or getting married with someone who is not white.

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shoutout to the Nashuri fam because we strongly are against colorist and racist rhetoric with our pro Indigenous man/Black woman ship! Love you guys! ✊🏾💙

thank you for reading my long ass post :)

[i-heart-hxh]

One thing I notice and appreciate about hxh is that in addition to the positive and very thick lgbtq subtext (which in it of itself is not treated as a joke or smut, but is treated as essential in regards to the two leads journeys) is the amount of black characters he put in, especially for a manga that debuted in the late 1990s. I don't know if I'm phrasing this correctly, but I like how they are portrayed as...people.

Battera or Squalla, for example, are villainous foils/comedic relief to the lighter skinned leads, but it's never on account of their blackness. Though they die, it's not necessarily in brutal or stereotypical ways (baise, tocino, agon, etc. don't necessarily suffer much prettier fates) . Even more positive characters like Abegane or Canary aren't necessarily 'good' (in terms of moral alignment), but then again, who else is in this universe? They feel like, well, people, with dreams and flaws and reasons of their own. Their blackness is never treated as the butt of a joke or even drawn attention to, but simply who they are as people(and again, not drawn in a stereotypically racist fashion either). I'm asking this because this is the first time I've seen so many incidental black people in an anime before, even ones that began airing today. It's even more surprising considering how monoethnic Japanese culture is and its eurocentric/colorist beauty standards (hence my comment above of never seeing any characters explicitly depicted as black in an anime before) and togashi as far as I know grew up entirely in that kind of society. Do you have any comments?

Hello! Thank you for the lovely ask! I agree that the diversity and humanity of Togashi's characters is one of his great strengths as a writer and artist. I love that he includes black and other POC characters among his cast and treats them like any other character, with varying designs and roles in the series. It's refreshing, and I definitely think he was ahead of his time on this subject. (Though I think you meant Beretta rather than Battera, easy mistake to make!)

You expressed this well and I agree with what you're saying, so I don't have a ton to add! I appreciate you sending this because it's a feature of HxH that deserves to be highlighted.

I did want to make a couple recommendations off the top of my head, though. Anime director Shinichiro Watanabe (known best for Cowboy Bebop, but he's worked on a bunch of other series as well) includes a lot of black characters in his works, as well as other POC characters, and he's said in interviews he intentionally makes an effort to include people of all sorts in his works. I also wanted to recommend the series Run with the Wind/Kaze ga Tsuyoku Fuiteiru for having a really wonderful black character named Musa. He is one of my favorites in the cast, and the series itself is fantastic! Just thought I'd bring these up in case you'd like some other works to check out.

Anime and manga have more of an international audience than ever before, so hopefully that'll encourage more creators to include diverse casts of characters!