#or stories that feature people with darker skin as the main character are often ignored or labeled as “badly written”

[weird-gay-disaster]

I'd probably be more okay with being in LGBTQA+ places online if they weren't so predominantly white. And the only thing white people have ever done for me is annoy me.

[evanescentjasmine]

I’m going to talk about a little pet peeve of mine with regard to portrayal of poc in fic, TMA specifically since that’s what I mostly read and write for. 

I suppose I should first start by saying that, of course, poc are not a monolith, and I’m certain there are other poc who have many different views on this issue. And also this post is in no way meant to demonise, shame, or otherwise discourage people from writing poc in fic if they’re doing something differently. This is just a thing I’ve been noodling on for a while and have had several interesting conversations with friends about, and now that I think I’ve figured out why I have this pet peeve, I figured I’d gather my thoughts into a post.

As a result of the fact we have no canonical racial, ethnic, or religious backgrounds for our main TMA cast, we’ve ended up with many diverse headcanons, and it’s absolutely lovely to see. I’m all for more diversity and I’m always delighted to see people’s headcanons. 

However, what often happens is I’ll be reading a fic and plodding along in a character’s PoV and get mention of their skin colour. And nothing else. I find this, personally, extremely jarring. In a short one-shot it makes sense, because you’re usually touching on one scenario and then dipping out. Likewise if the fic is in a different setting, is cracky, or is told from someone else’s PoV, that’s all fine. But if I’m reading a serious long-fic close in the poc’s head and...nothing? That’s just bizarre to me.

Your heritage, culture, religion, and background, all of those affect how you view the world, and how the world views you in return. How people treat you, how you carry yourself, what you’re conscious of, all of that shifts. And the weird thing is that many writers are aware of this when it comes to characters being ace or trans or neurodivergent—and I’m genuinely pleased by that, don’t get me wrong. Nothing has made my ace self happier than the casual aceness in TMA fics that often resonates so well with my experience. But just as gender, orientation, and neurodivergence change how a character interacts with their world, so do race, ethnicity, and religion. 

As a child, I spent a couple of years in England while my mother was getting her degree. Though I started using Arabic less and less, my mother still spoke to me almost exclusively in Arabic at home. We still ate romy cheese and molokhia and the right kind of rice, though we missed out on other things. She managed to get an Egyptian channel on TV somehow, which means I still grew up with different cultural touchstones and make pop-culture references that I can’t share with my non-Arabic-speaking friends. She also became friends with just about every Egyptian in her university, so for those years I had a bevy of unrelated Uncles and Aunties from cities all over Egypt, banding together to go on outings or celebrate our holidays.

As an adult who sometimes travels abroad solo, and as a fair-skinned Arab who’s fluent in English, usually in a Western country the most I’ll get is puzzled people trying to parse my accent and convinced someone in my family came from somewhere. When they hear my name, though, that shifts. I get things like surprise, passive-aggressive digs at my home region, weird questions, insistence I don’t look Egyptian (which, what does that even mean?) or the ever-popular, ever-irritating: Oh, your English is so good!

At airports, with my Egyptian passport, it’s less benign. I am very commonly taken aside for extra security, all of which I expect and am prepared for, and which always confuses foreign friends who insisted beforehand that surely they wouldn’t pull me aside. Unspoken is the fact I, y’know, don’t look like what they imagine a terrorist would. But I’m Arab and that’s how it goes, despite my, er, more “Western” leaning presentation. 

This would be an entirely different story if I were hijabi, or had darker skin, or a more pronounced accent. I am aware I’m absolutely awash with privilege. Likewise, it would be different if I had a non-Arab name and passport. 

So it’s slightly baffling to me as to why a Jon who is Pakistani or Indian or Arab and/or Black British would go through life the exact same way a white British character would. 

Now, I understand that race and ethnicity can be very fraught, and that many writers don’t want to step on toes or get things wrong or feel it isn’t their place to explore these things, and certainly I don’t think it’s a person’s place to explore The Struggles of X Background unless they also share said background. I’m not saying a fic should portray racism and microaggressions either (and if they do, please take care and tag them appropriately), but that past experiences of them would affect a character. A fic doesn’t have to be about the Arab Experience With Racism (™) to mention that, say, an Arab Jon headed to the airport in S3 for his world tour would have been very conscious to be as put together as he could, given the circumstances, and have all his things in order. 

And there’s so much more to us besides. What stories did your character grow up with? What language was spoken at home? Do they also speak it? If not, how do they feel about that? What are their comfort foods? Their family traditions? The things they do without thinking? The obscure pop-culture opinions they can’t even begin to explain? (Ask me about the crossover between Egyptian political comedy and cosmic horror sometime…)

I’m not saying you’ll always get it right. Hell, I’m not saying I always get it right either. I’m sure someone can read one of my fics and be like, “nope, this isn’t true to me!” And that’s okay. The important thing, for me, is trying.

Because here’s the thing. 

I want you to imagine reading a fic where I, a born and raised Egyptian, wrote white characters in, say, a suburb in the US as though they shared my personal experiences. It’s a multi-generational household, people of the same gender greet with a kiss on each cheek, lunch is the main meal, adults only move out when they get married, every older person they meet is Auntie or Uncle, every bathroom has a bidet, there’s a backdrop of Muslim assumptions and views of morality, and the characters discuss their Eid plans because, well, everyone celebrates Eid, obviously.

Weird, right? 

So why is this normal the other way around? 

Have you ever stopped to wonder why white (and often, especially American) experiences are considered the default? The universal inoffensive base on which the rest is built? 

Yes, I understand that writers are trying to be inoffensive and respectful of other backgrounds. But actually, I find the usual method of having the only difference be their skin colour or features pretty reductive. We’re more than just a paint job or a sprinkle of flavour to add on top of the default. Many of us have fundamentally different life experiences and ignoring this contributes to that assumption of your experience being universal. 

Yes, fic is supposed to be for fun and maybe you don’t want to have to think about all this, and I get that completely. I have all the respect in the world for writers who tag their TMA fics as an American AU, or who don’t mention anyone’s races. I get it. But when you have characters without a canonical race and you give them one, you’re making a decision, and I want you to think about it. 

Yes, this is a lot of research, but the internet is full of people talking about themselves and their experiences. Read their articles, read their blogs, read their twitter threads, watch their videos, see what they have to say and use it as a jumping-off point. I’m really fond of the Writing With Color blog, so if you’re not sure where to start I’d recommend giving them a look. 

Because writers outside of the Anglosphere already do this research in order to write in most fandoms. Writers of colour already put themselves in your shoes to write white characters. And frankly, given the amount of care that many white writers put into researching Britishisms, I don’t see why this can’t extend to other cultural differences as well.

[the-sound-of-her-wings]

I Am Not Starfire, And That's Okay

I recently read I Am Not Starfire and I had lots of thoughts, which are under the cut. It is spoiler-heavy and an analysis of the main character, who I find to be a charming, flawed, and incredibly human character.

Mandy is a fascinating character and a great look at a teenage girl who feels ostracized by the people around her and who feels disconnected from her parent. Mandy is by no means flawless, and that's what makes her very interesting. It also makes her relatable.

Mandy starts by talking about how she's noticeably different from her mom, being the "Anti-Starfire". She's a regular kid, can't fly, and doesn't own a swimsuit, while her mom is a superhero, can fly, and always wears bikinis.

On page 11 she mentions "her mom hasn't liked how I looked since I was twelve. She wears less than a yard of fabric every day, yet somehow, I'm the one who's dressing weird". While I understand people who call this slut-shaming, and I'm inclined to agree, but I think it's a little more nuanced than that. The next page reads, "My friend Lincoln convinced me this is the cultural divide that happens between family generations born in different countries or universes. His parents were born in Vietnam." This tells me that the authors intended to point out the difference in dress more as another difference between Starfire and Mandy, and less as a reason to blatantly slut-shame Starfire. I think there's absolutely a conversation to be had about why the authors decided to use this language instead of conveying the point differently. I also think it speaks to how Starfire has more or less been sexualized from inception, and how people look down upon her character because of that. In the context of this book, though, it's one of Mandy's character flaws that I think fits her both as a character and reflects what I've seen from actual teenage girls. Our society coaches us to view women who dress a certain way as less than women who don't and unlearning that takes time and effort. I don't think this comment about her mom should have been put in there by the authors, but I do think it fits in with the values American society in particular teaches about women.

Page 15, 16, and 17 all point to a far more complicated state of existence than Mandy points out within the first few pages. For one thing, Mandy has to deal with people who love her mother and only want to use her to get information about her mom and the other teen titans. This is shown by the "Titan groupies" who ask her to tell Starfire what they say about her. Another thing she has to deal with is the expectation to be a superhero and have powers like her mom, and the questions about who her dad might be. She gains her first real friend, Lincoln, because he tells the people asking about her parentage that they are assholes.

It is revealed that Mandy has a crush on Claire after she gets assigned a group project with her. Mandy is in denial over the crush. She thinks about the fact she's meeting Mandy at the end of the day throughout the rest of the school day, causing her to explode something in Chemistry Class. I find this to be highly relatable and gives her character a softer side to the edginess she desperately tries to portray herself as.

While talking about the project with Claire, it is revealed that Mandy ran out of her SATs and didn't complete them. While Mandy tries to paint this as a cool badass moment, the way the comic artist portrays the scene makes me think Mandy had an anxiety attack. Mandy didn't run out of her SAT because she's some kind of alternative badass who doesn't need to take them. Mandy ran out because she got overwhelmed by the sounds of people chewing and the pressure of the test. While she frames it differently, it's clear to me that Mandy is avoiding taking the SAT again because she doesn't want that to happen again.

When Claire invites her to hang out with her friends, Mandy gets treated like she isn't there, or as some kind of unwanted outsider. The topics they discuss seem to be specifically made to make Mandy uncomfortable, like mentioning how stretchy jeans are only made for fat people, and asking if aliens don't go to college. Jaded by this, Mandy makes up that aliens actually have to go through this huge blood right and battle to the death, but tells Claire's two friends she was joking before leaving. This tells me that Mandy deflects her pain by using humor to cope and has no issue clowning on people who are trying to belittle her for being an alien.

Starfire tries to bring up going to college after this, and Mandy just flees to her room. She hasn't told her mom she didn't take the SAT yet or that she isn't going to college. She feels distant from her mom, which is explained further through a montage of birthdays where she never got her powers. Her mom expects a lot from her, and Mandy thinks Starfire is disappointed about her lack of powers.

Later, Mandy invites Claire over to her house to complete the project they are working on. The Titans are still there when Claire arrives, but she seems to ignore them, as they leave shortly after. Mandy and Claire bond as they continue the project. Mandy reveals to the reader that she's never had a girlfriend, except for one time at sleep-away camp where she kind of dated a girl for four weeks. She didn't tell her who her mom was because she was tired of living in the shadow of a superhero. But the relationship ended because Mandy had lied about who her mom was, and the girl she was dating didn't understand why she would lie. I think this really shows just how much Mandy actually wants to be a normal girl like everyone else, to the extent that she'd lie about who her mom was. Her edgy demeanor at school and around town where her mom is known to be her mom is a defense mechanism to having lived under the shadow of a superhero her entire life.

When it's revealed that Claire took a photo with the Titans at Mandy's house, Mandy is understandable heartbroken, and furious. She thought she had been making a real connection with Claire, but this photo makes her think she's been used, again. Claire seems genuinely baffled by Mandy's reaction to this, thinking little of it. But to Mandy, it is a breach of trust from someone she thought cared about her. I think her angry reaction to Claire makes sense because of this, even if it might have been disproportionate to the offense.

On top of this, Starfire has discovered that Mandy walked out of the SAT and doesn't plan to go to college. After a heated conversation, she runs away, but her mom finds her. And then Blackfire finds her. Turns out the fake story she told Claire's friends earlier in the story was actually true, even though Mandy didn't know it.

Since Claire actually cares about Mandy, she tracks down Lincoln who explains to her why Mandy reacted badly, and that she should probably apologize for taking the photo. Claire also admits that one of the friends from earlier, Deb, actually dared her to take the photo. Claire is a good person at heart, but this action shows that she can still be influenced to do something that would hurt another person. And while she might not have known it would hurt Mandy, Deb probably did.

Starfire and Blackfire fight since Mandy has no powers, but Starfire gets injured causing Mandy to realize just how much she loves and cares about her mom, even though they don't see eye to eye on most things. This finally unlocks her powers, as she's let go of most of the resentment she's held against her mom. She even gets asked for an autograph by someone in the audience after the battle.

The story ends with Mandy training her powers, studying for the SAT, and reconciling with Claire, sharing a kiss, and becoming girlfriends.

I've seen a lot of discourse that frames Mandy as being "not like other girls". I don't believe this framing actually fits Mandy very well. The only girl Mandy ever says she is not like explicitly is her mom. She is the only woman she compares herself too, and the only person who she seems to have a lot of resentment for, aside from people who use her to get to Starfire. Additionally, Mandy falls for someone who is what a stereotypical, normal popular girl is often portrayed as. She's preppy, wears makeup, gets good grades, has friends, and runs a fairly popular Instagram account. If Mandy was extremely into the "Not like other girls" rhetoric, she would've made fun of Claire for all those things. Instead, she admires her for them. Mandy is fat, has acne/freckles, dresses goth, and wears a nose ring. If this is the reason people are identifying her as a "Not like other girls" girl, then they don't understand that trope. Simply dressing differently from your peers, being fat, and hating your mom does not make her the "not like other girls" trope. It actually makes her like other, real-life girls who dress and act similarly, because that's who they are, not because they somehow think they are better than other women.

I'd also make the argument that, fundamentally, Mandy IS different from other girls on the account of having a superhero mother and potentially a superhero father. Her life is completely altered by Starfire's existence as her mom and is likely only relatable to the children of other superheroes and celebrities. She is not like other girls because of her mom, and that still doesn't make her someone who falls in line with the conception of being "not like other girls".

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and hope others do too. I read Mandy as a flawed character who was trying to figure out how to exist outside the Shadow of her mom- and eventually succeeds, by learning to embrace her mom. I would've preferred if Mandy had a slightly darker skin tone, as her features seem black-coded to me and Starfire is also often black-coded. Otherwise, I do think this was one of the best DC Graphic Novels for Young Adults I've read, alongside Teen Titans: Beast Boy and Teen Titans: Raven.

[delusionalteenagewhispers]

5 Years

Fandom: Markiplier Universe

Paring: Dakiplier/Damien x Gender Neutral!Reader

Part of a Series: Yes or No 

Disclaimer: GIF IS NOT MINE!! CREDIT TO OWNER! ALL MARKIPLIER CHARACTERS AREN’T MINE! THEY BELONG TO MARKIPLIER!!! 

A/n: Hello!! Before you read the story read this!! This is for anybody to read no matter if you are black or white or mixed or blue or pink or red or green. I do say something about being pale but I mean as in the color of the skin had depleted like how dark looks almost gray the reader looks like that, grayish. ALSO IF ANY OF Y’ALL HAVE LIKED IT I HAVE PUT UPDATES TO IT! CAUSE I WANTED TO MAKE IT BETTER!

Warnings: Mentions of Death, Mentions of Depression, Mentions of Cheating, Mentions of intoxication, Who Killed Markiplier spoilers, Cussing I think, Tons of flashbacks, TONS of angst, fluff

Summary: It was Five years later after the incident in Markiplier Manor. Everyone from that night was scared some way or another. Either if you went crazy and became murder. Or you lived when you were supposed to die. Or you tricked your friend out of their body only to be fused with another person within the same body to only become someone, completely different. Or to be tricked out of your own body by someone you thought was a friend. Everyone went their own ways, everyone leaved except one person who couldn’t leave, who was trapped there. And five years later they are visited by an old friend, by someone who was once in that same manor that very night.

Main Masterlist -> Here

Request List -> Here 

———–

It was a a quiet day, just like every other day for 5 years. Horribly, horribly quiet. Not a sound was made. Not even when a ghost like figure roamed the halls. Making a point to not stare out the windows too long but they couldn’t help it as they saw the bright blue sky. Just calling to them. They stopped at the a window, a big window. The figure looked longingly at the sky, at the outside world. They were so enamored by the outside world they didn’t take note of the loud sigh coming from just outside the house.

A short, frustrated sigh had left a blue and red highlighted man’s vocals as he looked in front of him. At the very house that left him how he was now, filled with anger and pain. Slowly he walked forward, testing if he could really set foot inside. The figure continued to look out the window with that longing look in it’s eyes, but anger was gracing their features as their eyes stopped on the man red and blue highlighted man. He seemed, not of this world. Not anymore at least. He seemed confident, serious. But Y/n knew better, Y/n knew who this man was. Or who this man used to be. It was five years ago when Y/n was tricked out of their own body by a woman named Celine who worked with spirits and things of that nature and a man that they once considered a friend, maybe even more. It was five years ago when they had been all tricked by a man named Mark who sought out for his own kind of sick revenge who not only hurt the one he intended, he hurt the others as well. The innocents in all of the chaos. 

It had been a nice, sunny day when Y/n had arrived to the house. They were the assistant to Mayor Damien, an old friend from childhood, much like the host of the party of that fateful day, Mark. Y/n and Mark were great friends in high school, But Mark and Y/n soon lost contact as Mark became rich and famous and earned himself a wife. And Y/n went to college, and soon got a job working alongside the only person who had bothered to keep in contact with them, Damien. And after about a year of working alongside Damien the party came around. How Y/n regretted going, regretted taking those vacation days with Damien to “take a break.” It just one night, one day, that everything had changed. 

It was a long story, of what happened that night. 

Mark was dead, killed. Lighting struck for no reason when the word “murder” was spoken. Y/n became the partner for a detective who was invited to the party, an old friend of Mark’s. Damien seemed off, not like himself, kind of like he was a different person. They met a gardener who knew the house had spirits and a supernatural element. Celine busted through the door. Celine told everyone how the house had a supernatural element. A fight broke out between the Colonel and the detective. Secrets and things of the past came out in the heat of the fight. The words of the Colonel and Celine once having an affair on Mark. Colonel taking money from Mark for the sexual aspects of his relationship with Celine. The colonel shot the detective and Y/n was shot next. Y/n woke up in a dark space and saw ghostly version of Damien and Celine both highlighted in two different colors. Damien was blue, Celine was red. Y/n was told to trust them, that they’d be brought back to life, that it would all be okay. Y/n came back to life only for the colonel to go insane. To think it was all but a joke as he thought he had killed Y/n. The Colonel became a broken man that day. Y/n only wished they could have done more but before they could they were pushed out of their body by Damien and Celine who formed together to become something that scared even Y/n. And Y/n was trapped in the house, able to go from mirror to mirror outside of the house but no one could see them or hear them. Only the fusion of Damien and Celine could hear but he ignored them. Causing Y/n to only become angrier, to become detached from reality it’s self. 

The man highlighted in blue and red was Darkiplier, a shell of a man and woman he once was, Damien and Celine. Y/n broke their gaze from the window, from the bright blue sky lined with fluffy clouds.Y/n saw as Dark make his was through the halls until they saw him at the balcony. His back was turned to them as he gazed outside. It was the very same balcony where Y/n had almost confessed their love to him. But sadly it never happened. Y/n thought that maybe if they did, their fate could have been changed. But then again, Y/n was thankful they didn’t, because they knew deep down things would have still went the way they went, and Y/n would have only been left with a bigger hole in their heart. 

“ You know, I’ve thought about this day for years. Watched you through the mirrors. Trying to get you to acknowledge me. But then again how could I blame you. Nobody likes reminders of guilt, even you.”

Dark stared at the sky, he knew they would be there. But he didn’t want to look at them. He didn’t want to see them, how they’ve changed. It was when he ignored the broken whispers they spoke from the mirror. Oh how the whispers have taunted him. It was when a small whisper from the broken shell of person behind him, made him come back. 

“ It’s nice to see you too Y/n.”  

“ So what else have you been doing instead of avoiding me that is?” Dark scoffed at that as he continued to look in the opposite direction then Y/n. Making a point not look at them.  

“ You know, avoiding things don’t help, Damien.” Dark continued to look at the sky. He ignored the use of his old name. He ignored the way their voice seemed broken. He didn’t want to think about it. He knew he shouldn’t have some back, but the hope that maybe he could get a little bit of his old self back filled him with the bravery to go back. But now, all he wanted to do was run. 

“ Look at me, Damien.” Dark didn’t speak. 

“ Damien, Look. At. Me.” Dark didn’t make any movement. 

Y/n grew angry and yelled,“ I SAID, LOOK AT ME DAMIEN!”  

Dark swung around and was met with the ghostly figure of one of Damien’s best friends, his companion, the one he loved but never got to tell them. Damien was Dark. Only half but that side of his mind still had control over him, he was still Damien, just changed and fused with a darker humanoid. 

 Dark never cried anymore, Dark never showed any type of emotion anymore except anger. Not since the week after that fateful night. But at that moment he wanted to cry. The guilt of what He/Damien and Celine did filled him. It was his Y/n, but it wasn’t. His Y/n was gone and in their place was the shell of what they once used to be, much like himself. Their skin turned pale, well paler than it used to be. The color seemed to be gone from them. Their eyes seemed empty except two emotions Dark often felt, sadness and anger. Their clothes seemed old and wrinkled and dirty.

“ Y/n…” He said, his tone was monotone but if you listened closely you could hear the heart break in his voice. And all Y/n did was listen anymore. 

“ I watch all of you, did you know that? Through those fucking mirrors! Nobody can see me or hear me. I’m just stuck. Stuck either watching people I once cared about living their lives while I’m stuck in a mirror or this god damn house. You know, Mark, he got no karma for what he did, he’s as happy as can fucking be. Just continuing on manipulating people to get what he whats. William is fucking insane, killing people left and right, going by Wilford and I can’t help but feel it’s partially my fault. The Detective well he survived that day, almost killed by William, but now he’s stuck in his own concocted hell-space within his own mind. And you, well lets just say your little game of ignoring my calls isn’t very fucking amusing.”

Dark glared at the ground as he gritted his teeth and lied, “ I wasn’t ignoring you, I simply just did not hear you.”

“ BULLSHIT DAMIEN!” 

Dark looked up quickly at Y/n’s outburst. He was remembering how calm Y/n used to be, how they would never yell. They were always so calm, so soft, so pure. Now, they changed and it was all his fault and Dark couldn’t help but get angry. Sure he was angry at himself but Dark had the tendency to lash out on other people for his own mistakes.

“ SHUT UP, YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO SPEAK TO ME LIKE THAT! I AM TO BE RESPECTED! AND MY NAME ISN’T DAMIEN RESPECT IT OR SO HELP ME YOU WILL REGRET IT!” He yelled angrily, frustrated, he gritted his teeth when he heard Y/n’s laughter fill the room, fill his ears. He remembered how he loved that laugh, how at any chance he’d get he launch at just to hear the sweet laughter of Y/n. But now, he wanted to cut damn his ears off. 

“ And what will you do if I don’t respect that Damien? You can’t do SHIT! I’m a ghost, a shell of a person I once was cause someone stole my body. AND BECAME A MONSTER! So no, I will not respect you because if saying an old name, one of the names you used to go by because I know Celine’s not anywhere in there, I will, if it’ll make you realize that you can’t just ignore me like all your other problems and expect them to go away then I will!” 

Dark didn’t know what to say, he breathed, trying to calm himself before he did something he’d regret. He knew coming back was a mistake but hearing that final whisper made him come back, “ I loved you Damien.”

“ What you said, was it true? That whisper that made me make the stupid choice of coming back. Or had it just been one of your whispers to just taunt me?”

Y/n softened, Dark could tell the difference. Y/n looked a lot like they used to look, still emptier, still with that sadness overwhelming them but they looked softer. 

“ Of course it was…” Y/n whispered before walking a little further, Y/n stood at the railing, looking out at the sky no longer looking at Dark.

“ Of course it was true. Sure I hit low at that point but I needed you to feel the guilt that you weren’t feeling. I needed you to acknowledge my presence. It was the last thing I could think of. And it worked.” 

“You really think I didn’t feel guilt?” Y/n looked over at him to see his fists clenched together and Y/n had watched him through the mirrors many times to know he was on the verge of a temper tantrum or a sob fest. Either one, Y/n hoped they’d finally be getting somewhere. Possibly closer to man they once fell in love with. 

“ Y/n, Of course I felt guilt, of course I want to ignore my mistakes and sadly that includes you! You were a mistake! What I did was a mistake but I don’t regret it! I am a stronger man than what I used to be. Who I was, was WEAK! And the sooner you understand that the sooner you will feel peace within yourself!” 

Y/n smiled, a small smile and Dark felt weird. He felt something he hadn’t felt in years. After that fateful day all Dark’s emotions seemed to have been ripped from him except anger and the rare sadness he had. He was left with a sadistic, angry version of himself. The anger of being betrayed and the supernatural forces of the house and being joined together with Celine changed him into a much stronger being, but a very dangerous and sad one. But now he felt what he would always feel when he saw Y/n smile, how he felt when he would hear them laugh, how he felt when they chose to spend time with him instead of taking time to themselves. He felt, happy. 

“ I know I am a mistake, but it’s nice to know you finally accept it. I did love you, and in a way I always will. What you did, I hate you for but I’ve accepted a long time ago that Mark is the villain in the story. Not you. I spoke to you because you were the only one who could hear me and I knew you’d be the only one to see me at this house because what you walk around in is my body. And in reality I was lonely and your finally back. Sure your different and your not the same man, but your the man I fell in love with and that’s gotta count for something, Darkiplier.” As Y/n spoke, they walked closer until they were so close their noses could touch. Y/n lifted a hand to his cheek, and surprising them both, he touched him. Y/n knew it was the connection between their body and they knew they could try to take it back, but they wouldn’t do that, not to the man they loved. 

“ I will always love Damien…”, They whispered, “ And I know, I’ll love you too, Darkiplier.” 

—–

I really hope you like it!! I worked really hard on it!! 

[petalsbloomed-a]

VERY LONG  CHARACTER  SURVEY !! RULES.  repost ,   don’t  reblog  !    tag  10  ! good  luck  ! TAGGED.  stolen !!! TAGGING. anyone who wants to do this tbh cuz this is long as shit and i dont want anyone to do this who might not be able to aljdhfskjdhkj

BASICS. FULL  NAME : galo thymos NICKNAME : himbo, idiot, rookie, newbie, #1 firefighting idiot AGE : 21 BIRTHDAY : june 30 ETHNIC  GROUP : japanese (+ korean / western european) NATIONALITY : american LANGUAGE / S : english / japanese / studied french and spanish SEXUAL  ORIENTATION : demisexual ROMANTIC  ORIENTATION : biromantic RELATIONSHIP  STATUS : single HOME  TOWN / AREA : promeopolis (i envision this being around nyc / tri-state area) CURRENT  HOME : lives with older sister and niece PROFESSION : firefighter, undergraduate student

PHYSICAL. SKIN : pretty fair tan, but he sometimes appears a little darker than usual. his skin does a strange thing where it changes shade in different lighting. his skin is usually smooth, but right after getting finished with work, he sometimes is covered in dust and appears somewhat dried out. EYES : slightly upturned, deep-set, wide and somewhat of an almond shape. irises are usually very round, and are a bluish-cyan color. pupils often alight with mischief. in intense lighting, you can see a little red dot reflecting off his eyes. LIPS : pretty thin and nude, hard to notice. matches his skin tone very well. usually quite smooth. tends to get chapped after working. COMPLEXION : pretty fair, but in different lighting, he can look a lot tanner than what he really is. BLEMISHES : he has a few moles here and there, but overall his skin is fairly clear and clean. he doesn’t suffer from acne nearly as much as he did when he was in grade school. SCARS : he has some tiny, barely noticeable acne scars on his face, chin, and neck. the most noticeable ones are on his left arm from when he was practically set alight by a burnish flame. these are thick and quote coarse, and can cause some discomfort when touched. he also has a very small nick in his left ear, which was how his sister identified him when he found her after being separated from their family after the burnish incident when he was a kid. TATTOOS : an arrow that goes right below the nape of his neck to the middle of his back. the point is at about the small of his back, and there are a few decorations along the arrow. HEIGHT : 6′0, 183 cm WEIGHT : 165 lbs, ~75 kg BUILD : very muscular, quite athletic. very beefy arms, strong chest, well-built abdominals. however, his thighs and waist are pretty thin and trim. FEATURES : his most distinct features are his dramatic haircut and scars on his left arm, as well as the small white line on the outer helix of his left ear. his chest and shoulders are also quite broad in comparison to his rather thin waist. ALLERGIES : slight peanut allergy, dust, pollen. USUAL  HAIR  STYLE : undercut with a dramatic, spiky blue mohawk. USUAL  FACE  LOOK : mischievous smile or smirk; sometimes looks a bit wistful, like he’s thinking about something. USUAL  CLOTHING : is normally shirtless, wearing thick red firefighter pants with a yellow “3.” most often wears black rubber boots, black gloves, ear lobe piercings, and an industrial piercing. sometimes wears a black tee-shirt.

PSYCHOLOGY. FEAR / S : spiders, bugs, needles, being in love (kind of), losing his sister or niece, finding out his parents are dead. ASPIRATION / S : to continue his firefighting career, to receive a masters in emergency medical technology / fire prevention & safety technology. POSITIVE  TRAITS : brave, caring, friendly, modest. NEGATIVE  TRAITS : daring, reckless, sensitive, over-attachment. MBTI : entertainer (ESFP-A) ZODIAC : cancer TEMPEREMENT : choleric / sanguine SOUL  TYPE / S : performer ANIMALS : zebra VICE  HABIT / S : twiddling thumbs, jiggling leg (usually the right), twirling & playing with hair, biting nails, chewing lips, swearing, sighing, pen clicking. FAITH : none; would consider himself agnostic. GHOSTS ? : yes. AFTERLIFE ? : not sure. REINCARNATION ? : not sure, but leaning towards no. ALIENS ? : yes. POLITICAL  ALIGNMENT : independent, opinions slightly more left-leaning EDUCATION  LEVEL : graduate student

FAMILY. FATHER : nikanor thymos MOTHER : agape thymos SIBLINGS : danai thymos (older sister) EXTENDED  FAMILY : james (ex-brother-in-law), aria (niece) NAME  MEANING / S : his first name is of an unknown meaning, but it could mean “from gaul” in greek. his last name comes from the greek word “thumos”, which means “spiritedness” or “the need of recognition.” HISTORICAL  CONNECTION ? : not that we know of, i think ???

FAVORITES. BOOK : harry potter / hunger games MOVIE : the lion king 5  SONGS : rick astley - never gonna give you up, lady gaga - born this way, beyonce - countdown, ariana grande - god is a woman, pitbull - timber (feat. kesha) DEITY : zeus HOLIDAY : christmas MONTH : july SEASON : summer PLACE : his bedroom / the lounge at work WEATHER : partly cloudy SOUND : meditation sounds SCENT / S : coffee, flowers, fresh baked desserts, fresh pizza, light cologne TASTE / S : coffee, vanilla cake, milk chocolate, parmesan cheese, green tea anything tbh FEEL / S : soft blankets, comfy pillows, loose-fitting clothes ANIMAL / S : dogs NUMBER : 13 COLORS : teal blue / flame red

EXTRA. TALENTS : piano, singing, writing, linguistics, thinking quickly, firefighting BAD  AT : drawing (sort of), getting himself organized, following orders (sometimes) TURN  ONS : kindness, sensitivity, acceptance, openness, agreeableness TURN  OFFS : irresponsibility, lack of free time, ignorance HOBBIES : piano, singing, writing (stories, poems, etc), karate TROPES : ambiguously gay, antiquated linguistics, broken tears, calling your attacks, the chosen one, firemen are hot, going commando, hunk, idiot hero, innocently insensitive, large ham, mr. fanservice, oblivious to love, the protagonist, rookie red ranger, scars are forever, shonen hair, you gotta have blue hair (found here, there’s a lot more actually) QUOTES : “medals are made to be awarded to and from people who deserve them.” / “you can’t just kill for no reason!” / “[i’m] the universe’s #1 firefighting idiot!”

MUN QUESTIONS. Q1 :   if  you  could  write  your  character  your  way  in  their  own  movie ,   what  would  it  be  called ,  what  style  would  it  be  filmed  in ,  and  what  would  it  be  about ? A1 : honestly??? i think i would keep it the way it is, BUT i would like to have seen some more canonical information about galo’s family. as of right now, we know that kray saved him after his family was attacked by the burnish. if i were to direct a new movie about galo, i would focus it mainly on his family. Q2 : what  would  their  soundtrack / score  sound  like ? A2 : i think it would be a mix of melancholic music as well as more upbeat stuff. on my blog’s main page there are links in the sidebar to both a soundtrack playlist as well as a pop music playlist; i definitely think it’s fair that a variety of genres would suit him and his experiences. Q3 : why  did  you  start  writing  this  character ? A3 : when i first watched promare, i was instantly drawn to this buffoon himbo. i’ve always had a thing for upbeat, energetic characters who are also quite caring and a bit dumb (which yes galo is very smart but he has his moments). while their personalities differ greatly (despite having the same personality type), he reminds me a lot of lance from vld, who i absolutely adore as well (and i also rp him too oops) Q4 : what  first  attracted  you  to  this  character ? A4 : again, probably his personality. while i’m not as energetic and upbeat as galo and i have a very, very different personality type than him, i feel like i definitely do understand him. i understand why he feels he needs to be overly confident, and i also have my moments where i just need to storm off and be alone. god i could write paragraphs and paragraphs about why i like galo but i wanna keep it short and sweet and just stick with those two points, which i consider to be the biggest points. Q5 : describe  the  biggest  thing  you  dislike  about  your  muse. A5 : look, i know i said i liked confidence, but something about galo that annoys me is the fact that he can often seem too confident. like yeah he seemed pretty humble in that pizza scene at the beginning of the movie, but i can’t help but feel a twinge of annoyance towards people who put themselves right into the center of attention and be all like “yeah i know i’m great.” like my boy i love you but do u have to announce urself every time u appear on the scene??? and pls stop being so reckless u honestly might die too soon one of these days we want u to be around for us to enjoy u Q6 : what  do  you  have  in  common  with  your  muse ? A6 : i definitely feel like we both have our moments where we just need some peace and quiet. of course, everyone needs this, but when galo talked about running off when he was pissed reminded me of me; i tend to go and cool off and vent to myself if i’m annoyed about something. we’re both naturally people-oriented and love to be around others, even though galo likes being the center of attention a little bit more than myself. Q7 : how  does  your  muse  feel  about  you ? A7 : in the sense that if galo were real, i honestly think we would get along fairly well. we have different ways of dealing with things, but we have similar habits and personality traits. however when it comes to rp blogs, while i do like to headcanon things about my muses that mirror my own opinions and beliefs, i do consider the mun/muse relationship fairly symbiotic. we as real people can learn so much from fictional characters and in how we play them, and of course, the mun will determine some things about the muse that will deter from canon. Q8 : what  characters  does  your  muse  have  interesting  interactions  with ? A8 : i just started this blog and have had very minimal interactions, so it’s hard to say ! i’d say that an interaction with a kray muse would be the most interesting. part of me wants galo to forgive kray and to have a better relationship with him post-movie canon, but there’s still so much about galo and kray’s relationship pre-movie as well; what was their relationship like? was kray like a father to galo? how can i describe the psychological mindset that galo had after finding out that kray betrayed him? there’s so much about these two that i really want to discover and look at, while of course providing my own insight (cuz that’s what muns do, right?). Q9 : what  gives  you  inspiration  to  write  your  muse ? A9 : i like to study galo’s actions in the movie, and try to find the underlying cause of the actions he takes. however, when it comes to headcanons, i will often think of a scene or an idea in my head and then internally apply it to galo and see if it works. this is usually what kindles my writing fire: the thoughts that often rush through my head. Q10 : how  long  did  this  take  you  to  complete ? A10 : like two whole days lmao im so slow

[bodhirook1138]

The Problems with Aladdin: Orientalism, Casting, and Ramadan

Originally posted on Medium.

Edward Said and Jack G. Shaheen did not do the work they did so that movies like Aladdin would still get made.

I say this as someone who has had a complicated relationship with the 1992 Aladdin animated feature. I loved it when I was a kid. For a long time, it was my favorite Disney cartoon. I remember proudly telling white friends and classmates in third grade that Aladdin was “about my people.” Although nothing is said in the movie about Aladdin’s religion, I read him as Muslim.

When I grew older, I read Jack G. Shaheen’s book, Reel Bad Arabs, which analyzes about 1,000 American films that vilify and stereotype Arabs and Muslims. Among these films is Aladdin, which Shaheen reportedly walked out of. Shaheen spoke out against lyrics in the film’s opening song: “I come from a land from a far-away place/Where they cut off your ear if they don’t like your face/It’s barbaric, but hey, it’s home.” Although he convinced Disney to remove the lyrics for the home video release, the final verse was still there: “It’s barbaric, but hey, it’s home.” As a 1993 op-ed in The New York Timeswrote, “It’s Racist, But Hey, It’s Disney.”

In Edward Said’s seminal book, Orientalism (1978), he described orientalism as a process in which the West constructs Eastern societies as exotic, backwards, and inferior. According to Said, orientalism’s otherization of Arabs, Muslims, and Islam provided justification for European colonialism and Western intervention in the Middle East and Muslim-majority countries, often under the pretext of rescuing the people — especially Muslim women — from themselves. In addition to orientalism’s practices of constructing the “Orient” as the West’s “Other,” Said asserted that another major facet of orientalism involves a “western style for dominating, restructuring, and having authority over the ‘Orient.’” In other words, it is not the Arab or Muslim who gets to define themselves, but rather the West does.

There are plenty of excellent and detailed critiques out there about how the original Aladdin is filled with racist, sexist, and orientalist tropes, so there’s very little, if anything, to say that already hasn’t been said. In her extensive report, “Haqq and Hollywood: Illuminating 100 Years of Muslim Tropes And How to Transform Them,” Dr. Maytha Alhassen argues that Hollywood’s legacy of depicting Arabs and Muslims as offensive caricatures is continued in Aladdin, where the main characters like Aladdin and Jasmine are “whitewashed, with anglicized versions of Arabic names and Western European (though brown-skinned) facial features” and speak with white American accents. Alhassen notes the contrast with the “villains, Jafar, and the palace guards” who are depicted as “darker, swarthy, with undereye circles, hooked noses, black beards, and pronounced Arabic and British accents.” In another article, “The Problem with ‘Aladdin,’” Aditi Natasha Kini asserts that Aladdin is “a misogynist, xenophobic white fantasy,” in which Jasmine is sexualized and subjected to tropes of “white feminism as written by white dudes.” Not only does Jasmine have limited agency in the film, Kini writes, but her role in the film is “entirely dependent on the men around her.”

When Disney announced plans to produce a live-action remake of Aladdin, I learned through conversations that the Aladdin story is not even in the original text for Alf Layla wa Layla, or One Thousand and One Nights. It was later added by an 18th century French translator, Antoine Galland, who heard the story from a Syrian Maronite storyteller, Hanna Diyab. Galland did not even give credit to Diyab in his translation. Beyond the counter-argument that “the original Aladdin took place in China,” I am left wondering, how much of the original tale do we really know? How much did Galland change? It’s possible that Galland changed the story so significantly that everything we know about Aladdin is mostly a western, orientalist fabrication. For a more detailed account about the origins of the Aladdin tale, I recommend reading Arafat A. Razzaque’s article, “Who ‘wrote’ Aladdin? The Forgotten Syrian Storyteller.”

Disney has been boasting about how the live-action Aladdin is one of the “most diverse” movies in Hollywood, but this is an attempt to hide the fact that the casting of this film relied on racist logic: “All brown people are the same.” It’s great that an Egyptian-Canadian actor, Mena Massoud, was cast in the lead role, but there’s inconsistency elsewhere: Jasmine is played by British actress Naomi Scott, who is half Indian and half white; Jafar is played by Dutch-Tunisian actor Marwan Kenzari; and Jasmine’s father and a new character, Dalia, are played by Iranian-American actors Navid Negahban and Nasim Pedrad, respectively. The casting demonstrates that the filmmakers don’t know the differences between Arabs, Iranians, and South Asians. We are all conflated as “one and the same,” as usual.

Then there’s the casting of Will Smith as the genie. Whether deliberate or not, reinforced here is the Magical Negro trope. According to blogger Modern Hermeneut, this term was popularized by Spike Lee in 2011 and refers to “a spiritually attuned black character who is eager to help fulfill the destiny of a white protagonist.” Moreover, the author writes that Lee saw the Magical Negro as “a cleaned up version of the ‘happy slave’ stereotype, with black actors cast as simpleminded angels and saints.” Examples of the Magical Negro can be found in films like What Dreams May Come, City of Angels, Kazaam (which also features a Black genie), The Green Mile, The Adjustment Bureau, and The Legend of Bagger Vance. In the case of Aladdin, the genie’s purpose is to serve the protagonist’s dreams and ambitions. While Aladdin is Arab, not white, the racial dynamic is still problematic as the Magical Negro trope can be perpetuated by non-Black people of color as well.

I need to pause for a moment to explain that I don’t believe an Aladdin movie should only consist of Arab actors. Yes, Agrabah is a fictional Arab country, but it would be perfectly fine to have non-Arabs like Iranians, South Asians, and Africans in the movie as well. That’s not the issue I have with the casting, and this is not about identity politics. My problem is that the filmmakers saw Middle Eastern and South Asian people as interchangeable rather than setting out to explore complex racial, ethnic, and power dynamics that would arise from having ethnically diverse characters existing within an Arab-majority society. Evelyn Alsultany, an Associate Professor who was consulted for the film, states in her post that one of the ways Disney tried to justify casting a non-Arab actress for Jasmine was by mentioning that her mother was born “in another land.” However, this seems to have been Disney doing damage control after they received some backlash about Jasmine’s casting. The result is convenient erasure of an Arab woman character. Moreover, the change in Jasmine’s ethnicity does little, if anything, to reduce the film’s problematic amalgamation of Middle Eastern and South Asian cultures. Alsultany writes that “audiences today will be as hard pressed as those in 1992 — or 1922, for that matter — to identify any distinct Middle Eastern cultures beyond that of an overgeneralized ‘East,’” where “belly dancing and Bollywood dancing, turbans and keffiyehs, Iranian and Arab accents all appear in the film interchangeably.”

Other examples of how the film conflates various Middle Eastern and South Asian cultures is highlighted in Roxana Hadadi’s review: “Terms like ‘Sultan’ and ‘Vizier’ can be traced to the Ottoman Empire, but the movie also uses the term ‘Shah,’ which is Iranian monarchy.” Referring to the dance scenes and clothing, she writes they are “mostly influenced by Indian designs and Bollywood styles” while “the military armor looks like leftovers from Ridley Scott’s Kingdom of Heaven.” An intersectional approach to the diverse ethnic communities represented in the film would have made for a more nuanced narrative, but this would have required a better director.

Speaking of the director, it is amazing that, of all people, Disney hired Guy Ritchie. Because if there is any director out there who understands the importance of representation and knows how to author a nuanced narrative about Middle Eastern characters living in a fictitious Arab country, it’s… Guy Ritchie? Despite all of the issues regarding the origin of the Aladdin story, I still believed the narrative could have been reclaimed in a really empowering way, but that could not happen with someone like Guy Ritchie. It’s textbook orientalism to have a white man control the narrative. I would have preferred socially and politically conscious Middle Eastern and Muslim writers/directors to make this narrative their own. Instead, we are left with an orientalist fantasy that looks like an exoticized fusion of how a white man perceives South Asia and the Middle East.

Lastly, I have to comment on how this movie was released during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. In fact, the film’s release date, May 24th, was just one day before the last ten days of Ramadan, which are considered to be the most important in the month. During Ramadan, Muslims around the world fast — if they are able to — from dawn to sunset every day for 30 days. The time when we break our fast, iftar, typically involves dinner and prayer with family, friends, and/or the community. But Ramadan is more than just about fasting, it’s a time of self-reflection, compassion, and strengthening our connection with Allah, our loved ones, and community. I don’t believe Disney released Aladdin during Ramadan intentionally. If anything, I think the film’s release date is reflective of how clueless and ignorant Disney is. It’s so ridiculous that it’s laughable.

I don’t want to give the impression that Muslims don’t go out to the movies during Ramadan. Of course there are Muslims who do. I just know a lot who don’t— some for religious reasons and some, like myself, for no other reason than simply not having enough time between iftar and the pre-dawn meal, sehri (I mean, I could go during the day, but who wants to watch a movie hungry, right?). Even Islamophobic Bollywood knows to release blockbuster movies on Eid, not towards the end of Ramadan.

But this isn’t about judging Muslim religiosity during the holy month. No one is “less” of a Muslim if they are going to the movie theater or anywhere else on Ramadan. My point is that Disney has not shown any consideration for the Muslim community with this movie. They did not even consider how releasing the film during Ramadan would isolate some of the Muslim audience. It’s clear that Disney did not make efforts to engage the Muslim community. Of course, there is nothing surprising about this. But you cannot brag about diversity when you’re not even engaging a group of people that represents the majority of the population you claim to be celebrating! In response to Shaheen’s critiques of the original Aladdin cartoon, a Disney distribution president at the time said Aladdin is “not just for Arabs, but for everybody.” But this is a typical dismissive tactic used to gloss over the real issues. No doubt Disney will follow the same script when people criticize the latest film.

I don’t have any interest in this movie because it failed to learn anything from the criticism it received back in 1992. The fact that a 1993 op-ed piece titled, “It’s Racist, But Hey, It’s Disney” is still relevant to the live-action version of a film that came out 27 years ago is both upsetting and sad at the same time. As I said earlier, Edward Said and Jack Shaheen did not exhaustively speak out against orientalism, exoticism, and vilification to only see them reproduced over and over again. Of course Disney refused to educate themselves and listen to people like Shaheen— their Aladdin story was never meant for us.

[charlettebffxiv]

LFRP - Charlette Bellamy

BASIC INFO

NAME: Charlette Bellamy

AGE: 28

RACE: Elezen (Duskwight)

GENDER: Female

ORIENTATION: Unknown

MARITAL STATUS: Single

SERVER: Balmung

PHYSICAL APPEARANCE: Tall, grey-blue skinned Duskwight with a moderately-athletic build.

PERSONAL

PROFESSION: Charlette is part of an order that guards a library in her home village. The library itself is a kind of archive that keeps sensitive and dangerous knowledge locked away. Her main responsibility is to make sure no one steals anything or causes damage to the library and it’s contents. She enforces the rules of the library and is currently traveling on a mission for the order.  (Find out more IC)

HOBBIES: Charlette loves to read, write and find new stories to listen to and collect. She’s an aspiring writer herself, hoping to chronicle the grand adventures of heroes the likes of which she has spent many hours of her time reading about. You can often find her reading or writing in her notebook and she loves listening to other peoples stories.

LANGUAGES: Common

RESIDENCE: Charlette originally is from a small village in The Black Shroud. However she is currently situated in Ul’dah where she rents a room at the Quicksand.

FEARS: Public speaking, failing in her task to her order or failing her friends, and closed spaces (mild claustrophobia). Most of all she fears irrelevance, that she wont leave a mark on the world once she’s gone. Like a book on a dusty shelf, even if no one reads it at least there’s something to show she was here.

POSSIBLE HOOKS

WARK! MAGAZINE: Charlette recently joined the production team on WARK! along side her friend Q’talhdi. She’s featured in one of the editions of the magazine and is a known proofreader and editor.

THE QUICKSAND: Charlette lives in the Quicksand and is a common guest at the inn where she often reads her books while people watching. She doesn’t mind someone walking up and starting a chat with her.

BOOKS AND READING: She loves books, they are an integral part of her personality and she will be happy to talk about them for hours. Whether about new reading prospects or sharing opinions over the latest edition of ‘A Study in Thanalan Economic History’ she’s always enthusiastic about the written word.

STORIES: She loves collecting stories, whether about someone she’s met or something they heard and decided to share. She’ll often pull out her notebook and take down some details if someone decides to share an adventure or childhood tale.

OTHER: Charlette is generally a kind and well-mannered soul but she can also be serious. She has a task, set before her by her order, that she takes strongly to heart. She’s been traveling around Ul’dah, searching for something and inquiring about trade in artifacts, both underground and legitimate.

OTHER

STYLE: I don’t mind long form or short RP. A quick meet-up to chat a little or a long DMed event are both fun in my books. I usually post answers of about 2-3 sentences, within reason, but don’t mind if something clearly needs a one word answer.

I like my stories and RP to be grounded in some kind of logic or realism. I don’t mind magic, dragons and grand tales of death defying events. But I don’t much enjoy when serious problems are fixed at the click of a finger or a flick of the wrist. Injuries last, money has to be earned, learning new skills takes time and effort.

It’s fun to be the grand adventurer, it’s also fun to take the journey to get there and RP the nasty bits along the way.

THEMES: I’m happy to RP in both light-hearted and mature themes.

I enjoy social RP themes such as Slice of Life/Day-to-day and Romance/Relationships (Friendships/Families/Colleges/Students and Teachers). I find these important for character building and believe they make relationships feel more colourful.

Action/Adventure/Mystery and other heroic pursuits are a favourite of mine. Going on a fun jaunt to discover lost knowledge or delving for treasure in a dungeon are classics that cannot be ignored!

Darker stories with less fairy tale endings are always fun too. Violence/Gore and Antagonistic, Supernatural or Eldritch themes that deal with death and other harsher subjects in the world are welcome.

Erotica/ERP is on the table, but I do not jump into this or Dark/Mature RP without context. I need story leading up to it, IC effort to reaching these points and justified reasons for it happening. I like it when there’s a reason other than ERP/Dark RP for the sake of it.

AVAILABILITY: I am a night owl EU player in the CEST timezone (6 hours ahead of ET) so I won’t always be on during NA prime time.

I’m always happy to discuss setting up times, however, and will try and make it work for something I enjoy. My time is far more flexible on the weekend, but for RP during the week, other EU contacts and people with EU-friendly schedules are preferred.

Another option is RP via Discord, but I prefer to have an established connection via in-game RP first.

CONTACT INFO

Tumblr DM/Comment (@CharletteBFFXIV)

In Game (Charlette Bellamy)

Discord - please ask in DM

[her-culture]

Colorism and Its Effects on Our Society Today

Growing up, she and I were twins! Her three pigtails mirrored mine even down to the small bow-shaped clips that held them in place. She was witty, intelligent and, to top it all off, she looked like me, and my mom, and my aunts. We were like long-lost sisters despite her being a cartoon character from the Rugrats. Susie Carmichael was an influential character for me because she portrayed something I didn’t see a lot of -- an average little girl of color. According to Heart of Leadership, More than 90 percent of girls – 15 to 17 years – want to change at least one aspect of their physical appearance, with body weight ranking the highest. Colorism is discrimination against an individual's based on their darker skin complexion. However, it is not limited to skin but can expand to other phenotypical features like hair, nose, eye color, lip size, etc. Colorism can be found between people of different races but is usually practiced among people of the same ethnic or racial group. It is important for writers to combat colorism in their work because it not only engages a broader audience demographic, but it is also imperative that marginalized groups of people see proper representation of themselves in order to end a legacy of self-shame and discrimination among people who share a part of their identity.

Colorism runs deep across the world. The effects of this phenomenon are evident through similar micro-aggressions and practices like skin lightening or skin bleaching. Skin lightening in Caribbean countries has become a dominant epidemic among women. For example, in Jamaica, since some women cannot gain access to safe skin lightening products made by legitimate companies, they purchase substances used for other parts of the body like hair bleach, to apply on their skin and lighten their complexion. These practices are discussed in a short online documentary entitled Skin Bleaching in Jamaica. The long term results, however, can be severe chemical burns, hyperpigmentation on the skin if the person does not stay out of the sun, and skin cancer. Colorism in the Caribbean and other part of the African diaspora can mainly be traced back to the mid 1400s at the beginning of European colonization in African communities and the enslavement of African people. During this time, enslaved Africans with lighter skin, loosely coiled hair, lighter eyes or any phenotypical features that resembled those of a White-European, received more food, better-quality clothing and even favoritism among slave owners.Skin lightening is present some Asian communities. According to BBC News, the skin-lightening business is estimated at £8.5 billion ($13 billion). Pale skin can be equated to success, beauty, intelligence, etc. In their book How to Know Hong Kong and Macau, Robert Ignacio Diaz, Dominic Cheung and Ana Paulina Lee discuss this topic. They write, “The practice of recoloring one’s skin is directly related to the desire to achieve higher social status.  Historically, a person's skin color has been a clear indicator of economic and social status. As early as pre-Qin China, there has been an association between one's wealth and one's skin color”(18). The desire for lighter skin in some Asian communities can be traced back to more than 3,000 years ago. Royalty and other members of high society did not have to work outside. Any heavy outdoor work was done by servants and people who were apart of the lower class. These people usually worked as blacksmiths, farmers, carpenters, etc. and meant that these workers would have more exposure to the sun, meaning that their skin would be darker.

The problems brought about by skin lightening, however, are being combatted by countries’ legislators who are actively attempting to create a more diverse and socially equal society. For example, an article by Purvi Thacker entitled “Another African Nation Bans Popular Skin-whitening Creams”, reported that in May of 2015, the Ivory Coast outlawed all skin-lightening agents. But, there’s still more work to be done. The effects of colorism runs deeper than the physical. It runs on a mental level too. The way a specific group of people is represented in media outlets and literature can also affect how they are treated in their community. It is important for writers to combat colorism in their work because it is important that a variety of people depicted in order to end discrimination against people's identity.

Representation in writing isn’t just about portraying a specific group of people realistically; it’s about giving young writers, illustrators and readers inspiration to make creative spaces that invite people of every background. Through this, we will be able to combat controversial topics like sexism, racism, colorism, ableism etc. Mike Mosley’s article “Is America Witnessing a Black Film Renaissance?” in The Grio,argues that portraying more characters of different colors can challenge people’s preconceived ideas about race and gender and create constructive dialogue that leads to a more inclusive society. He writes, “In 2016, shows like “Atlanta,” “Queen Sugar” and “Insecure” have challenged our views on masculinity, homophobia, intersectionality, mental health, black identity, double standards in dating, black ownership, code-switching and white fragility.

They’ve also managed to do this while being unapologetically black. And while the aforementioned shows are being discussed in our newsfeeds daily, we’d be remiss to not mention the prominent rise of black nerd culture, often dubbed “Blerd.” We’ve recently seen a rise of black characters playing historical comic book characters in projects such as Mike Colter in Netflix’s “Luke Cage” and the all-Black cast of Black Panther featuring the likes of Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong'o, Danai Gurira, and newly added Angela Bassett. Oh, and let’s not forget John Boyega’s amazing job in Star Wars” (1). Writers like Toni Morrison, in her pieces The Bluest Eye and Beloved, tackle racism and spirituality while writers such as Junot Diaz use their skill to discuss sexism, like he did in his short story, Alma -- published in The New Yorker.Writers, whether novelist or screenplay writers, should battle color-ism in their work because doing so invites a larger audience to their creations and makes literature more inclusive of the readers that support it.

Writers usually use past experiences and research to create their works so, it’s not always easy to incorporate a broader demographic in their work. Here is a short list of suggestions:

1. Change your character’s description. If you’re not writing with a historical time period in mind and are just writing something fun, change your main character’s physical traits. For example, instead of having long straight hair, your character could have thick curly or coily hair.

2. Step out of your comfort zone and create spaces where you can ask questions.No one is expected to know everything about all groups of people so asking questions about unclear topics can help.

3. Do some more research. Often time, especially when people are writing historical pieces, they don’t realize that some people have been ignored in historical pieces and so, they don’t write about these people. For example, the blockbuster hit, Hidden Figures, follows the story of three African-American women who helped America win the Space Race. Their story was never told in textbooks so bringing it to light now, encourages young women of color to pursue careers in Mathematics and Engineering.

Writers working against colorism and discrimination are critical to developing as an inclusive society. Marginalized groups of people use positive representation to inspire themselves. Ending self-shame and bigotry can start right now with just a pen and paper.

[i-am-very-very-tired]

There is no love left between a black man and a black woman. Take me for instance. I love white women and hate black women. It’s just in me so deep that I don’t even try to get it out of me anymore. I’d jump over ten nigger bitches just to get to one white woman. Ain’t no such thing as an ugly white woman… and just to touch her long, soft, silky hair. There’s softness about a white woman, something delicate and soft inside of her. But a nigger bitch seems to be full of steel, granite-hard and resisting…I mean I can’t analyze it, but I know that the White man made the Black woman the symbol of slavery and the White woman the symbol of freedom. Everytime I’m embracing a Black woman, I’m embracing slavery, and when I put my arms around a White woman, well I’m hugging freedom (Eldridge Cleaver 1968:107).

No other group in America has so had their identity socialized out of existence as have black women…. When black people are talked about the focus tends to be on black men; and when women are talked about the focus tends to be on white women. (hooks, bell:1981).

Here in the UK, the visibility of black women in representations of mainstream Black British culture is such that you might be forgiven for thinking we are an endangered species. The near erasure of Black British women from this terrain, which is in the main dominated by black men and white women, is rarely commented upon, despite its prominence.  What is actually going on here? Is this some manifestation of the quite frankly ridiculous Eldridge Cleaver quote above. Or is it something else?

The (ahem) ‘urban’ (we know what they really mean) landscape that provides the basis of so much of Britain’s somewhat depressing representations of mainstream youth culture, borrows heavily from black culture, yet sometimes both seem almost entirely devoid of black women. The characters who populate these worlds are black men and white women. Access may be permitted to the occasional ‘mixed-race’ girl but beyond such tokenism, this is the white woman’s world!

From movies such as Kidulthood [1]to the presenters of the Kiss FM Takeaway show, who typify this phenomenon, the symbols of ‘Urban’ or Black British youth culture are routinely Black men and their white female partners.

Recently in conversation with a young black British man, I was surprised when he informed me that he “won’t date black women” the reason being that  “they (we) are too ghetto”.

This individual apparently saw no irony in the fact that he was saying this to myself -a middle class black woman- while his (blonde) girlfriend is white and working class.

Faced with the contradiction between the reality of the situation and a stereotype, this young man still succumbed to the latter, repeating the tired, black girls = ghetto, white girls = status, prestige, and success, narrative.This story is writ large within British popular culture, in which we can find a wealth of examples that illustrate perceptions of what differently racialised women represent. Wileys Heatwave video is a rich site for analysis. Here, the absence of black models- in preference of white- is stark, yet this is far from an isolated example, rather it is an all too common feature of UK Black British popular culture.

Within the binary thinking that underpins intersecting oppressions, blue-eyed, blond, thin White women could not be considered beautiful without the Other—Black women with African features of dark skin, broad noses, full lips, and kinky hair. Race, gender, and sexuality converge on this issue of evaluating beauty… African-American women experience the pain of never being able to live up to prevailing standards of beauty used by White men, White women, Black men, and, most painfully, one another. Regardless of any individual woman’s subjective reality, this is the system of ideas that she encounters. Because controlling images are hegemonic and taken for granted, they become virtually impossible to escape (Collins, 2000: 89-90).

Although Hill-Collins is taking about the African-American context, her insights are more then pertinent here.

Referring to Britain specifically, Mama informs us that this phenomenon is reflected in black men’s choice of partners.

As young women, many Black girls experienced rejection from Black males as ‘in white dominated situations black and white boys alike tend to conform to the prevailing aesthetic, and fancy white (if not blonde) girls more.” (Weekes 1997 cited in Mirza 1997).

Despite all this, Weekes goes on to outline Black women’s agency in the face such oppression, and notes that rather than passively accepting hegemonic beauty norms many black girls reject white constructions of beauty. However she acknowledges that despite this rejection whiteness is still too often used as the yardstick against which other types of beauty are measured.

Given this a context, it seems remarkable that researchers and journalists alike would disregard such considerations in their interpretation of statistics relating to Britain’s increasing ‘mixed-race’ population, but this is exactly what they do.

Lucinda Platt’s 2009 EHRC Ethnicity and Family Report, generated a volume ofmedia stories, all heralding the rise of ‘mixed-race’ Britain, a beautiful, brave, new brown future in which the scourge of racism has been vanquished. It would appear that post-racial utopia is achievable – all we need is love (if indeed love is defined as sexual relations between black men and white women).

Seemingly oblivious to the dynamics of relationships between men and women within black communities, and apparently unaware of any of the qualitative research carried out by black female researchers on the subject, the findings that at least 48% of African-Caribbean men are in “inter-racial” relationships, (usually with white women), are interpreted as hugely positive, a thermometer of improved societal interethnic relations, indicating a movement to a less racist society.

In the myopic and a-historical style that characterises contemporary discussions of mixedness, the report notes that ‘inter-ethnic relationships’ “have often been seen as indicative of the extent of openness in different societies and of the extent to which identities are adapting and changing over time”. Further ‘inter-ethnic relationships’ can be “taken to be a thermometer of ethnic relations in particular societies”.

I suppose they are correct, if you discount almost every example indicating the contrary. The slave societies of the Caribbean, North, and South America experienced ‘inter-ethnic relationships’ leading to the unprecedented levels of mixedness which characterize their populations to the present day, yet are not noted for their “openness”, nor their progressive achievements of racially harmonious societies. Likewise the Coloureds in South Africa are recognised as having one of the most mixed ancestries in the world but similarly South Africa is not usually upheld as a paragon of racial utopia.

Modern Britain is in large part the nation it is as a result of the slave trade and the subsequent colonial endeavour. These horrific events were the catalyst for the birth of the anti-black racism, unhappily now a feature of life across the globe.

However, with characteristic sleight of hand Britain inverts responsibility. Where there should be castigation there is instead self-congratulation.

Rather then the nation responsible for the savage kidnapping and life long bondage of millions of human beings, Britain reimagines itself as the nation that was central in the abolition. Rather then acknowledging the flourishing of a culture in which black women are routinely written out of existence, disregarded and undervalued, Britain reinterprets the evidence on mixedness to reinvent itself as the epitome of the progressive post-racial nation.

We live in a society in which damaging folk constructions of race, continue to position black women as less desirable then white, and black men as hyper-sexualised studs. This positioning is equally limiting and damaging to black men whom society attempts to force into a space, identified by Fanon, “fixed at the shifting boundaries between barbarism and civility” where the insatiable fear and desire for the Negro reveals itself “Our women are at the mercy of Negroes … God knows how they make love”; This is in many ways the manifestation of  a combined enduring fascination with, and  a “deep cultural fear of, the Black”,  which is “figured in the psychic trembling of Western sexuality” (Fanon, 1986: xxiv). Of course rather then any engagement with such complicated, and potentially uncomfortable, subject matter, sociologists instead inform us

race itself does not provide as meaningful a basis when selecting a partner, compared to other things young people may have in common like education, friends, attitudes and beliefs (Platt, 2009).

Whether such neat conclusions are wilfully ignorant or just naïve, they remain indicative of Britain’s almost pathological inability to engage in an honest discourse about race that might one day engender any real change.

[1] In Kidulthood, the actresses are in the main white, there is however one ‘mixed -race’ character. I have written elsewhere about how casting directors still seem reticent to commit to featuring darker-skinned black women. A convenient alternative is to employ ‘mixed-race’ individuals who serve the need to represent diversity but are still, less threatening, acceptable faces of blackness.

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Emma Dabiri is an Irish Nigerian writer and commenter. She is currently undertaking her PhD in the sociology. Her doctoral research explores the multiple ways being ‘mixed-race’ has come to be gendered. Her major passions include, African and African Diasporian performative and literary cultures, critical race studies, feminism and folklore. She is regularly invited to contribute to discussions on diverse issues ranging from performance, to race and feminism at various settings including the Africa Writes festival, Film Africa, UK Feminista, WOW Southbank Festival and BBC Radio 4. She blogs as The Diaspora Diva. Follow her on twitter @TheDiasporaDiva

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