The Pedestal Problem

The other day, I was having a conversation with someone who said they were sick of certain groups claiming a 'moral superiority' over a group which has historically made their lives miserable (and continues to cause issues in various ways). Actually, I think this person has a point, albeit not the one that was intended. More specifically, it reminded me how much damage can be done by trying to 'balance out' negative stereotypes about an oppressed group by showing them as, well, morally superior.

The result, while possibly well-intended, doesn't actually solve the problem. It just creates a new one. Showing a group of people-- and the component individuals-- as paragons of Special who can do no wrong can be almost as damaging as relying on an offensive negative stereotype. It's about turning a group into the Other, even if that's an Other who is unrealistically pure. It's about reducing people to a role and an image and taking away the individuality and flaws that make someone human.

On a more insidious level, it's about erasing justifiable anger. The ideal Other is kind, wise, helpful, and full of quirky humour about their status as different from the accepted norm. They react to the frustrations and indignities and injustices of their life with calm and optimism. They gently and patiently educate the Generic Clueless White Everydude about their culture and make him a more enlightened person by signing off on his cultural appropriation spree, so that he can impress his friends and defeat his enemies with whatever ancient technique. They patiently accept their lot, and don't overshadow the lead character's conflict with their problems.

Finally, it implies that the Other can't have problems unrelated to their Other-ness, whether these are society-wide or individual. By holding up a society as a utopia of noble savages who are perfectly in tune with nature, you not only cause readers to barf, but ignore reality. Native Americans get the 'peaceful noble savage' thing a lot-- usually paired with a white person who is guilty about their people wrecking the environment-- while in reality there were multi-nation wars and feuds and treaties as complicated and violent and dramatic as, say the 30 Years War in Europe. And certainly any society has its oversights and failings, and individuals who fall through the cracks.

I think the key distinction is that while a group may have the 'high ground' as far as issues which have direct bearing on their human rights, individual human beings are just that-- human beings.