When writing becomes a form of activism
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As a fantasy author, I try to stay far away from politics. If you’ve read my books, you can probably guess some of my views, but I don’t like cramming things down anyone’s throat.
However, the recent profusion of hate-mongering aimed at minority groups around the world has crossed the line. It is no longer a political issue; it is a question of human decency.
When Trump was first elected, I had nearly a dozen friends who came out on Facebook the next day–some about their sexuality, others about mental health issues they had never spoken of before. They did this to say that they personally felt victimized by Trump’s rhetoric. They felt as though they had no place in the world Trump had imagined, and now half of the US population had just shown that they either agreed with him or didn’t care who he tore apart on his road to victory.
This, more than anything, shook me to my core.
But I felt helpless against such powerful forces. How could I support my friends, living overseas as I do? What can one person do against a tide?
When I returned to my writing, I was fueled by anger. I was determined to create a world through my writing that did not bow down to Trump’s demands. I blasted “End of All Hope” on my headphones and pounded away at a new scene where I gave one of my gay characters (who had fallen for his best friend and was originally doomed to end up alone) a chance at finding love.
I know it sounds crazy to use fantasy as a real-world influencer. But there have been multiple studies showing that those who read Harry Potter growing up have more accepting views towards minorities. J.K. Rowling may not have done a perfect job with her inclusion of real-world minorities in her fantasy world, but she dug deep into the underlying prejudices that shape society through her portrayal of muggle-borns, half-giants, house-elves, and the divide between muggles and the magically gifted.
Ever since the election, I’ve become painfully aware of the atrocious way minority groups are misrepresented throughout mainstream media, and I want to do my part to change that.
Only by changing our own perception of who is “us” and who is “other” can we truly become a more inclusive, accepting society.
Since most of us don’t have intimate experience with every minority group out there, we often (inadvertently) rely on the media to help us make up our minds what to think about those groups. And that is how hatred is perpetrated. It’s easy for someone ignorant to say “All ____s are ____. We don’t want them here” if they don’t personally know anyone who fits in that category.
By including a more representative cast–whether in a book, a movie, or a TV show–anyone involved in media production can help break down some of those stereotypes.
Of course it’s hard for me, as a white woman, to fully understand the experience of someone without my privilege. But as intimidating as it can be to face the inevitable criticisms that will come for not doing a specific minority group justice, I think it’s worth trying, rather than writing an all-white, all-straight cast of characters just to remove any risk of offending someone. That just perpetrates the problem.
And as authors, it is our job to feel empathy for our characters, to put ourselves in their shoes and try to view the world from inside their heads, not from a judgmental outside perspective. I write from a male perspective all the time, which is as much of a mental challenge as any other form of getting into another’s head. So I draw on the experiences I do have. I may be Caucasian, but most of my friends growing up were Asian-American, and I could see (and hear) first-hand how their heritage shaped their experiences but did not define them. And I may not be affected by the recent travel ban in the US, but I live in New Zealand with my Kiwi husband, and I’m only allowed to live here because of my visa. I can easily imagine how horrifying it would be to suddenly get cut off from the life you have built in a country not your own, the only life you know. I can draw on these experiences to widen the worlds I create, rather than falling back on stereotypes.
White-washing is an easy trap for epic fantasy authors to fall into as well, even though we write in different worlds, because many of us create a medieval-type society centered around a light-skinned European-esque main culture, occasionally complemented by the darker-skinned “others.” Think Game of Thrones and Lord of the Rings.
I was guilty of it myself when creating my epic fantasy world. But I haven’t published any books set in that world yet, so I have the chance to re-think my own assumptions and defy stereotypes.
If our leaders insist on moving backwards, we have a responsibility to do the opposite. If more authors and filmmakers can give minorities the richness of character they deserve, I hope the gradual shift in perception will be enough to overwhelm the negative trend currently taking hold.
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What are your thoughts on this? Can writers actually make a difference?
Am I doing the right thing by trying to write an inclusive cast, or do I risk offending people from through lack of experience?
And if you’re a writer yourself, have you struggled with this before?
I love having my beliefs challenged. So if you have a new or controversial perspective to share, please do!
