Robotic Blacksplotation 2.0

I am not gonna put a certain actor out there like that. I know my blog is small but there are so few black actors out there that I am not taking any chances especially with one I like. I will say that this actor was up for a role in the very early stages of this Transformers sequel and that they recognized that the character was an ugly black stereotype. I was at a project this actor did and the actor told this story to the audience about how Michael Bay had decided that he was done with being “Politically correct” and that people needed to get over themselves. While the part that the actor was up for did not make it into the cut of the movie it seems the attitude of Mr. Bay did.

"Jive-talking twin Transformers raise race issues

By SANDY COHEN

LOS ANGELES (AP) — "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" introduces some 40 new mechanized characters of all shapes, sizes and even sexes — but it's a pair of jive-talking 'bots that critics are singling out as more than just harmless comic relief.


Skids and Mudflap, twin robots disguised as compact Chevys, constantly brawl and bicker in rap-inspired street slang. They're forced to acknowledge that they can't read. One has a gold tooth.

As good guys, they fight alongside the Autobots and are intended to provide comic relief. But the traits they're ascribed raise the specter of stereotypes most notably seen when Jar Jar Binks, the clumsy, broken-English speaking alien from "Star Wars: Episode I — The Phantom Menace," was criticized as a racial caricature.

Wall Street Journal film critic Joe Morgenstern described Binks in 1999 as a "Rastafarian Stepin Fetchit," a reference to a black character from the 1920s and '30s that exploited negative stereotypes for comic effect. Extending that metaphor to the "Transformers" sequel was AP Movie Critic Christy Lemire, who calls Skids and Mudflap "Jar Jar Binks in car form."

And Manohla Dargis, film critic for The New York Times, takes it a step further, writing that the "Transformers" characters were given "conspicuously cartoonish, so-called black voices that indicate that minstrelsy remains as much in fashion in Hollywood as when, well, Jar Jar Binks was set loose by George Lucas."

Director Michael Bay insists that the bumbling 'bots are just good clean fun.

"We're just putting more personality in," Bay said. "I don't know if it's stereotypes — they are robots, by the way. These are the voice actors. This is kind of the direction they were taking the characters and we went with it."

TV actor Reno Wilson, who is black, voices Mudflap. Tom Kenny, the white actor behind SpongeBob SquarePants, voices Skids. Neither immediately responded to interview requests for this story.

Bay said the twins' parts "were kind of written but not really written, so the voice actors is when we started to really kind of come up with their characters."

"I purely did it for kids," the director said. "Young kids love these robots, because it makes it more accessible to them."

Screenwriters Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman said they followed Bay's lead in creating the twins. Still, the characters serve no real purpose in the story, and when the action gets serious, they disappear entirely, notes Tasha Robinson, associate entertainment editor at The Onion.

"They don't really have any positive effect on the film," she said. "They only exist to talk in bad ebonics, beat each other up and talk about how stupid each other is."

Hollywood has a track record of using negative stereotypes of black characters for comic relief, said Todd Boyd, a professor of popular culture at the University of Southern California's School of Cinematic Arts, who has not seen the "Transformers" sequel.

"There's a history of people getting laughs at the expense of African-Americans and African-American culture," Boyd said. "These images are not completely divorced from history even though it's a new movie and even though they're robots and not humans."

American cinema also has a tendency to deal with race indirectly, said Allyson Nadia Field, an assistant professor of cinema and media studies at the University of California, Los Angeles.

"There's a persistent dehumanization of African-Americans throughout Hollywood that displaces issues of race onto non-human entities," said Field, who also hasn't seen the film. "It's not about skin color or robot color. It's about how their actions and language are coded racially."

If these characters weren't animated and instead played by real black actors, "then you might have to admit that it's racist," Robinson said. "But stick it into a robot's mouth, and it's just a robot, it's OK."

But if they're alien robots, she continued, "why do they talk like bad black stereotypes?"

Bay brushes off any whiff of controversy.

"Listen, you're going to have your naysayers on anything," he said. "It's like is everything going to be melba toast? It takes all forms and shapes and sizes."

Copyright © 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved."

Minority Reports

They thought it was over and done with, but racial ignorance and proof that the election of Barack Obama means that we have entered a “post racial” society is a myth continue to raise their head in the most unlikely of places. My four color fantasy place, the land of comic books.


Dwayne McDuffie is a writer, director, producer and personal hero of mine. He is living my dream as a comic book writer. He was also the co-founder of the Milestone comic book company which focused on original characters who were largely characters of color. One of his characters was even picked up for a Kids WB cartoon series “Static Shock”.


For the last two years Dwayne has been the writer of one of DC comics flagship book Justice League of America. The JLA is the group that on the average of twice a month save the world, the universe, even sometimes the whole of creation. Most of your DC A listers including but not limited to Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, and Green Lantern (all of whom either have movies out or in the making). Justice League has been interpreted into a not picked up live action Tv show, and several cartoons including Super Friends. All of this to say that in the world of comic geeks and DC the Justice League is a big deal and DC does not just pick a name out of a hat at random to write there big time books.


So on one of the comics sights Newsarama, Dwayne posted a preview of his upcoming final issue. Some of the comments made left me speechless.


“…how many blacks did McDuffie manage to sneak onto the team this time–five? (I bet DC editorial gave him the same order as Burger King in that lawsuit–to “lighten things up around here.”)”


“Why don’t they call this the “Minority League”? ”


“I don’t think anyone will support an original black “mainstream” character. I know I won’t.”


"Couldn't they get Static, Black Lightning, or one of his daughters instead of Dr. Light on the cover of BET League of America? Ha!"


And my personal favorite…….


“Maybe they should establish a separate league for all the negro superheroes. I’m not saying kick them ALL off. One would be okay. (Doesn’t Hollywood have some kind of law that says every movie has to have at least one black in it?) I just think they’re going overboard with all this diversity stuff. I mean, how many comics do minorities read anyway?”


Yeah that last one bothers me more than any of the other comments ( and that whole All Negro superhero comment comes close I mean really NEGRO??????)


It is very difficlult for me to understand that when one of the most popular comic book properties right now is the X-Men franchise, a continuing story about a group of people that have spent the entire lives being discriminated against for no reason other than they were born different that this kind of ignorant and racism can raise it’s head.


So for the record all you sheet wearing geeks, much like anything else geekdom comes in all colors and creeds. Yes minorities read and yes they read comics. And yes we like to see people like ourselves in those books.


Oh and no there is no “rule” that you must include one black in a movie, blacks, browns, yellows, pinks, etc are all part of this country and all have stories to tell. It is not like there is not a need after all, most of the incarnations of the JLA have been a little all white.

Water boarding chickens come home to roost

Since my dip into what I call adult blogging (I consider my previous attempts at blogging practice runs and not really informational) one thing I have discovered especially with my Afro Spear brethren is that everyone has that one thing, that one subject that grinds their ass only the daily basis. The thing they have news alerts for and have become in my opinion experts at.

For Wayne over at Electronic Village that subject is tasers. For those not sure what that is tasers are the non lethal weapons several police departments have been using the last few years which have resulted in quite a few deaths of brown people on the streets of America. Yeah I know I just said non lethal but clearly there are still a few flaws that need to be worked out and thank heavens all these brown folks are walking the streets waiting to be test subjects….but I digress.

Today Wayne posted a blog about a judge who allowed tasering to be used on a suspect who declined to submit to a DNA test. Well actually to be fair he declined to submit to a second DNA test. You see the first sample of DNA which was obtained with his consent got sent to the wrong lab and was improperly handled and tainted and such. So a second sample was required since someone on the side of Law and Order had messed up . Well the suspect, a Mr. Ryan S. Smith, said thanks but no thanks to that swab to nowhere. For which after stern protest and a statement of he would stay locked up before submitting to the test, the police sat the handcuffed Mr. Smith on the floor and tasered him in the shoulder until he had a change of heart.

Yesterday Judge Sara Sheldon Sparrazza ruled that It is legally permissible for police to zap a suspect with a Taser to obtain a DNA sample, as long as it’s not done “maliciously, or to an excessive extent, or with resulting injury”. So the DNA sample obtained through “enhanced interrogation techniques” is legal and admissible in court.

There you have it folks. We are now allowed to legally torture suspects in custody until they give us the answers we want and we don’t even require the “ticking time bomb” scenario that is being sold to enhance interrogate suspected terrorist.

God Bless America!!!!

Full story here.

Truth you can believe in.....

Whoever thought Janeane Garofalo would ever make my race radar. but there she was on Countdown with Keith Olbermann calling it as she say it, or more importantly as it was...

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Ashley Todd.....The new Susan Smith

There is a joke that runs among black men of all shapes, sizes, descriptions, and locations. It is not a funny ha ha joke it is one of those funny ironic truthful jokes. The joke is “Well you know you fit the description!”

What is the description you ask? Here let me tell you … I was (some violent crime committed against me) by a black man. He was (various height) and (various weight) and he was wearing a hoody and a starter jacket.

Back in 1998 Susan Smith killed her kids, drowned them in the family car and screamed Black man did it! Charles Stuart in 1989 killed his pregnant wife and screamed Black man did it! Now we have Ashley Todd carved up her own face and cried Black man did it, and he did it for another black man.

Let me just say this story was fishy from jump, again I think it was one of those cultural things where you just need to know how folks think. No black man who has just robbed a white woman in the United States of America is going to stick around to see her safely to her car. No black man who has done anything to a white woman in this country is going to stick around. It is not in our DNA.

Since very early on from the time both blacks and whites walked this land together, there has been a fear that black men will try to take ,touch, fondle, rape, look at their beautiful white women. This clearly set up a system of power that white women had over black men back in the day. There was no he said she said it was do what missy said or she may scream rape and then you and the boys (you know those boys) will be separated.

So from a very early age in this country black men were taught the poor white women had over them. As time went on and cultural rules became laxed we grew out of some of these things in public, but still to this day when the white woman screams Black man did it, whatever it may be, it is time for all black men, no matter their shape, size, and description to get in the house and under the bed, cause you are fitting the description.

Since I have started this blog it seems that every other post has had a racially bases to it. I have never considered myself that person, but clearly the politics of the day has set my inner Black Panther afire. Ten more days huh??!!!

So here is my question for debate, how do we every move on when this stuff keeps happening? When the playing field is not even and we are not all subject to the same rules?

Today's Favorite Photo .......

.....not because of the photo, but because I like to know who just got their hood and robes back from the cleaners!

"I apologize to anyone who was offended because that was not my intent," said club President Diane Fedele. "It was poor judgment on my part. It was strictly an attempt to point out the outrageousness of Obama's statement that he doesn't look like all those other presidents on the dollar bills." The caption reads: "Obama talks about all those presidents that got their names on bills. If elected, what bill would he be on ????? Food Stamps, what else!"

The Audicity of My Hope!

Today on October 14th some polls show Barack Obama ahead in the polls by 14 points. I will admit to you all I am a little scared. I am actually allowing myself to think that we might win this. Since the "selection" of 2000 that gave us George "W" Bush there has been a little part of me that had lost all hope that we the american people would ever get a fair shake, that the playing field would ever be equal.

14 points.

The ecenomy tanked three weeks ago (well the ecenomy tanked a lot longer ago than that but for the sake of argument) a people started hurting. McCain appears to still have no plan and Barack has stood head and shoulders (literally) above his competition. this financial dark cloud has certinally had a silver lining.

14 points.

The race has shown an ugly truth that still exist in America. A truth that some white Americans didn't want to know existed. Racism is a lot more alive in this country than they wanted to know or admit. Even without the use of the word NIGGER, the spirit of the 1960's has seemed to make a retun apperance and it is getting harder and harder to ignore. turns out I was not being so sensitive after all.

14 points

Has it taken the dawning plus eight years of a new Millennium to put this country onto the track of what America is really what it is suppose to be about. The great American melting pot, the land of opportunity, the place where you can in fact be anything you want to be?

14 points

Yes there have been casualties along the way, those who had set themselves up as heroes of the Black community. Seems they had a seperate agenda that would only work if we were kept bogged down in excuses and situations where they got asked their opinion. Guess I will be shopping for some new heroes.

14 points

I know the actual election is still aways off. three weeks and one more election is like Christmas Eve to a twelve year old. It seems an eternity away. But where that little part of me said no, it is now saying HOPE!

Those who ignore the past are condemned to repeat it...

Lets ask the experts (Part 1)

As many of you know, of late the McCain/Palin rallies have seemed to turn into out and out hate fest. Whipping the audience into a frenzy with the question “Who is Barack Obama?” followed by talking points that rev the crowd up in a fervor, which has led to folks yelling “Terrorist” and “kill him”.

Today John Lewis came out with a warning that things were looking all too familiar to him. Since his early 20’s John Lewis was taking political stances, from the march on Washington to House of Representatives, this southern native has witnesses America thru 3 very important parts of its history. Born in Nashville Tennessee in the early 40’s he was there for the beginning of the southern civil rights movement, he worked and fought in the fight for civil rights in the 60’s , and he continued on to see the after effects of the struggle even to this day.

So when someone who has literally witnessed first hand, the divide this country has been thru when it comes to race, one would think we would all listen. John Lewis has compared the McCain/Palin attacks in their rallies of late to the campaign tactics of George Wallace, a former Governor of Alabama who ran fro President 7 times. It was during one of these races that George Wallace created such an atmosphere of hate and segregation that it resulted in a church bombing killing 4 little girls in Alabama.

John McCain is apparently outraged at the comparison and feels it is a character attack from the democrats. The Republican Party has requested that the Obama camp issue a statement denouncing the claims of Rep. Lewis. I am sure most of you have seen McCain’s attempt to tone down his supporters, who came in to the rally already turned up so high, that the booed him when he tried to speak fairly over Obama.

As I post this in the various places I post I am sure I will receive (as I have the past few) comments stating that these things are not racially motivated. So before you get ready to hit respond let me ask the question to all my non readers of color. Excluding using the “N” word please tell me when it is ok for Black people to think that something is racist? I mean I know that racism is geared toward us, we live with it every day, we toil thru it when it happens to us. It clearly this does not seem to qualify us to call it out when it happens. So you tell me what the criteria is? Or better yet, tell Representative John Lewis, the 68 year old black man born in the heart of a segregated America.

Who the Fuck is “That One”?

As many of you did this evening I settled in for the second Presidential debate/first town hall meeting. Everything was going along fine. There was the usual points/counter points being made and As Obama was looking young energetic and knowledgeable, McCain seems at times to be teetering (literally) across the stage while trying to engage the audience.

The conversation turned to Energy and McCain in his old time folksy jokeresqe speech began to discuss who voted for a failed energy bill. He then referred to his opponent, a fellow senator as “That One”!

Screech Freeze Put on the Breaks! What did he say? Who the fuck is “That One”! Let me tell you a little something about me. I was raised by my grandmother, back in the days when you could whoop/beat your kids within an inch of their life for displaying behavior you deemed inappropriate. My grandmother was also the main person in me learning to read. Which in turn lead to my love of speaking and writing and all other things literate. She would have never ever (I have proof) allowed me to refer to anyone as “That One”. She would deem it rude and disrespectful and she having grown up in West Virginia racist. She would have in fact slapped the taste out of my mouth!

That One huh???!!! I mean someone explain to me how in this race where we have skittered along the cusp of racism on so many little levels. We have made it thru the Obama the terrorist, Rev. Wright hating America, and Michelle being proud of her country for the first time, terms of elitism, calls that Obama is uppity, lipstick on a pig, what on God’s green earth would allow anything in you to refer to your opponent as “That One.”

Well that is it, I am done! I gave some money to Obama 08 but now I am going out door to door. I am searching the net for blogs supporting McCain and those undecided and I am doing everything possible to make sure that this (possible) racist as far away from the White house as possible.

Also before he ran out of the Town Hall (his strong suit) he refused to shake Obama’s hand when they all met in the middle of the room.

Point OBAMA!!!!!!