Stereotypes are bad, but...

Before you say, "There's never a GOOD time for stereotypes!" Relax and take a deep breath. In no way will this post justify the use of stereotypes or whether there is a time or space for such. In this imperfect and many times, flawed world we live in, it is a human trait that we often try to find the good from bad events and circumstances. So I mean to state in this post about Dreaded Stereotypes.

One: Kung-fu movies!
I can't begin to tell how many I've watched over time. I only know I have been watching martial art films since childhood. However haphazard the story, how dry the attempted humor, the slapstick that begs in such a tactile plot, I can honestly say I became interested in Chinese culture because of these films.

Two: Gangster movies
You already know what I'm about to say, right? I love The Godfather film! I read the book in junior high. Wiseguys was one of  my favorite TV shows. And then I was sucked in my mob films of the 1940s, and later, the 1930s - which are often grittier, not as sleek, as well as sexier and more violent than its cousin a decade later! I did become interested in Italian culture because of it. That's sad, but, it did open up a world of exploring a different culture than mine.

Three: Black criminal movies & Blaxploitation films of the 70s
Being an American who happens to be Black and Caribbean-descent, you would think these movies would definitely tick me off. But, no. I understand now the cultural and historical significance with these 'exploitative' titles. But when I didn't know, I thought them cheesy and over-the-top, campy in every sense of the world. But... They showed that Blacks could be powerful, can be vindictive, dangerous, complex, as any White character.

Four: Westerns with Native Americans
Now, this is also a hot-button. Hollywood has not not continues to be unkind to persons of color, and especially, to the First Nation people. Since both parents were Western fans, then I had to watch them. And I liked them! Even though I knew those 'Indians' in the films were White actors in Redface, seeing even a Native American on-screen was exciting for me. I always missed the Native American actor whenever they left the scene. Now I watch as many films, documentaries, and shows with Native actors as much as I can. I read the history that History Classes refused to teach: one with the First Americans in it.

So there you have it! I may continue this theme in another post. In no way am I saying that stereotypes serve a purpose. I am simply stating that despite watching derivative, one-dimensional, stereotypical, and even outright racist archetypes, as a storyteller, what these ignorant portrayals revealed to me was: I had my work cut out! I wanted to know MORE about these characters!

So I created my own characters.
So I drew my own characters.
So I read the stories from authors of those groups.
So I asked friends and peers questions about aspects of their cultures that they took for granted.

And yes. I got weird looks. And yes. Some did not give me an answer. So I sought my own answers. I asked other people and I watched and read their stories. In some wonderful moments, someone even told me their stories.

Because, look at it this way, if I want to see multiculturalism and diversity, like what happens in the real world, despite proponents who are against diversity in pop culture and believe multiculturalism is a trendy catchphrase for the political correctness camp... No buddy. This is the planet Earth. We have different people here in this nation and everywhere else. One cannot escape what always existed since the beginnings of human history.

And if a person doesn't want to see that, fine, but I live in the real world and I need to explore it both physically and in the stories that are being told.

Dear readers, can you comment on other stereotypes you've read and watched? What was your reaction and answer to consuming such aspects in a medium?

Let me know in the comments below and thank you.

Writing in Ethnicity - Art of Plugging Away

Now, because I'm working on this new short story, have I abandoned the dog historical drama?
Perish the thought!

I've spent the better part of over two years working on this story, and much of my life from 6th grade summer school trying to figure out how to write it!

Now that I have 13 filled journals and a stockpile of empty ones, as well as time and money put into purchasing a reference LIBRARY alone for this novel, there is NO WAY.

Just this week, an employee of mine asked, while we lunched together, if with this story, what kind of dog breeds I use for the different ethnic groups, and I remember a young friend asked a similar question.

The young friend feared that I, even using non-human characters, would settle into stereotypes.
Because societal viewpoints are constantly on my mind as a creative type, I often want to go against the grain.

I don't appreciate when others take the easy way. I strive to make stories that I know I would read, that I would prefer watching.

I assured my young friend then, and my employee this week, that I use not only breeds indigenous to a region/country/nation, but I work on creating an individual first.

Also, because it's New York, have numerous mix-bred dogs (I just love mutts! Both cats and dogs!).

Consequentially, history reveals that organized crime had people of many ethnicities working together for the common bad! Though the Italian mob is more widely known, serialized, idolized, satirized and mythologized, it was NOT the established mob of the U.S.

This distinction actually went to the Irish, who, when the exodus of Southern Italians came to American shores, ran up against a brick wall: the Irish, in earlier years, harassed, oppressed, and racially held back, had established themselves in parts of American society where other Americans, who were called 'Nativists' then, couldn't touch: in politics, the police, and an in-grained infrastructure within the underworld.

By the '30s, the ethnic groups who were controlling most of organized crime weren't just the Irish and the Italians. There were the Jews, the Germans, the Polish, and the Blacks!
There is much of what I assumed, that has fallen apart since I began this story anew. I hope to see it through and let it open eyes as it has opened mine.