Episode 19: Cosplayers of Color

It’s pretty well accepted in contemporary geek culture that “representation matters.” At least, it’s accepted by everyone except for the evil corners of the internet that we don’t really care about. And thankfully, because of this, recent years in geek culture have seen the addition of many diverse characters that have become cosplay favorites at fan conventions. But what happens if you want to cosplay a character who is not of your own race? What does it mean to cosplay a white character as a person of color? And, conversely, what does it mean to cosplay as a non-white character if you are white? How do out gut reactions about these issues fit into cultural studies and what does this mean for diversity? Mav welcomes his former student Ayana Underwood to join he and Wayne in a discussion of racial diversity in the cosplay community. Citations and Links: * This episode’s Call for Comments * “Representation in Cosplay: Batman” by Will James * “White woman in blackface at Comic-Con causes stir among activists of color” by Timothy Rawles * “Teen Titans’ Starfire is an orange alien. Racist “fans” don’t want a black woman playing her” by Alex Abad-Santos * Orientalism by Edward Said * The Superhero Costume: Identity and Disguise in Fact and Fiction by Barabara Brownie & Danny Graydon * Thank you to Maximilian’s thoughtForm Music for our theme * Follow Ayana on Instagram: @comixbawse * Follow Mav on Twitter: @chrismaverick * Follow Mav’s Personal Blog: http://chrismaverick.com * Follow Wayne’s Personal Blog: http://wayne-wise.com * Follow us on Twitter: @voxpopcast * Follow us on Facebook: http://facebook.com/voxpopcast * Make sure you subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher or wherever podcasts are found and please leave us a review  

Om Podcasten

Vox Populorum is a blog and podcast devoted to pop culture criticism. We believe that the best way to understand culture is to discuss it. But we also believe that it's a lot more fun to have these conversations throwing back a couple beers at the bar rather than in a classroom. Please join our weekly round table of media critics, academics, creators, artists, professors, students and fans for an engaging discussion about movies, novels, comic books, television, video games, music or whatever else we happen to think of! Nec audiendi qui solent dicere, Vox populi, vox Dei, quum tumultuositas vulgi semper insaniae proxima sit.