Unless you live in Valinor, or have been hiding under a sea shell, you’re likely aware that White supremacy has made its way to the Land of Stories. Amazon Prime has launched the first three episodes of its audacious endeavor into the Lord of the Rings universe, and the fourth will…heir…today. Get it? Heir instead of -. NVM.
As stunning as the cinematography, story-telling, and acting have been, the program is besieged by critics who are displeased with the decision to cast a handful of minority actors - particularly Black ones - as characters within the land of Middle Earth. That’s right: in a cast of hundreds, maybe thousands, one Black elf, one Black dwarf, and two Black harfoots are four too many minorities in Middle Earth.
But wait, there’s more: this new…wave of white supremacy showed up on the shores of America’s imagination when Disney released its first trailer for a live-action production of The Little Mermaid. Revelations that Halle Bailey, a Black actress whos name is entirely too similar to Halle Berry’s, will star as Ariel led legions of middle-aged White men who have no business watching The Little Mermaid in the first place to declare war on Disney (again) for going “woke” (again). But even as the Rittenhouse clan hoists its Ted Cruz-shaped battering ram in its annual effort to knock down the doors of Cinderella’s castle, two epiphanies slow their progress: (1) they need the Disney channel to babysit the children they don’t actually want to spend time with; and (2) Disney owns ESPN and they lack the fortitude to abstain from watching sportsball during a sustained boycott. You win this round, Disney (again).
The whole debacle has led to the best clapbacks and memes that Buzz Lightyear’s internet has to offer. Here’s a few of my favorite:
And these points are well-taken. Some people can imagine a world full of strange races that vary in size, language, and culture; a world of dragons, gargantuan eagles, orcs that ride oversized wolves, spiders the size of houses, demons made of flame and smoke, stars-turned-human, glowing swords, magical rings, trees that talk and move. But a Black elf?? What in Númenór’s name is going on????
Others have pointed out that the objections to a Black mermaid are perhaps more ridiculous than those to the LOTR. So our imagination can tolerate Half-fish, half-humans that sing intelligibly beneath the oceans. But one with BROWN SKIN? Well, the Brown-web had a response for that as well:
We really could end the conversation there. But we’re not quite done yet. You’ll recall that Star Wars fans went into hyperdrive when they saw an Asian woman in space sharing the screen with a Black stormtrooper. Yet there was never an objection to James Earl Jones lending the richness of his voice to the character of Darth Vader. Even though the original actor who dawned the cape and mask was a British actor, no one seems to object that his cockney voice was replaced for that of an African-American’s, making the character absolutely iconic. Moreover, majority culture ate up problematic caricatures of minorities that were employed in the Star Wars prequels. Regarding The Little Mermaid, I can’t help but notice that there were no objections when Queen Latifah accepted the role of Ursula in the live musical performance of The Little Mermaid. Why is that?
Dark Omens
Why is it that White fantasy and science-fiction fans are unnerved by the depiction of Black actors/actresses in the role of beloved characters, but unphased by their representation among the despised?1 What is it that seems to make this discrepancy unique to American viewers? It’s one thing to want representation in the media we consume. This is, after all, the very thing that gives great joy to minorities who can finally see themselves in the roles they adore. However, it seems to be the case for those calling for more “realistic” depictions of utter fiction that there is no room in their imaginary worlds for people who don’t look like them. At least, not front and center. For those infected with the Black Fever that comes from fear of “wokeness”, there is a sense of scarcity that precludes the possibility of Caucasians and minorities sharing the stage.
Why would that be, do we think? It’s almost as though something unique and deeply rooted in American history has enabled majority culture to readily accept minorities as villains, but not so much as protagonists. There seems to be no room in the American imagination for a world untouched by White colonization. An alternate reality where black and brown cultures were allowed to develop and thrive unmolested, becoming equally powerful to the White cultures they share the earth with, seems a cognitive impossibility for some of us. Said another way, if our imaginations can fathom that black and brown people once inhabited these imaginary lands, a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, they can’t comprehend an alternate timeline wherein those diverse races weren’t also snuffed out by their lighter-skinned rivals. White America simply has no imagination for a diverse, fictionalized society in theirs.
Tell me why I’m wrong. I’m not wrong. But tell me anyway.
Here, some may point to the fact that Star Wars fans also reject the notion of a Black Inquisitor, which would somehow make the uniformity of their racism less problematic in their minds. Regardless, Star Wars is a unique genre in that some of the bad guys actually become beloved characters as well. In the case of the inquisitors, there’s enough mystique and prestige surrounding them that fans are drawn to the characters and want to see more of them onscreen. So, to the prejudiced, seeing a Black inquisitor in a key role - particularly one front and center with a redemptive arc - is unacceptable.