Let’s Talk About Diversity…

The entries I posted last weekend got me thinking – about media diversity of all types, and about myself – and I realized it was time for a “check your privilege” moment.  

 

I recognize the social power of stories, especially on TV.  I’m always on the lookout for strong, dynamic female characters, and I know how beneficial visibility can be for members of any minority group.  As a white, able-bodied American from a good socio-economic background, I clearly won a lot of societal jackpots.  Still, I know I’m hyperaware of portrayals of women, in a way that my brothers aren’t.  I know how aggravating it can be to have a woman relegated to girlfriend status, and I notice how often “strong woman” translates to “conventionally attractive woman with many traditionally-masculine traits/attitudes.”  I don’t generally see female characters who look like me – women with my body type, obviously, women who don’t like makeup, women with a penchant for nerdy T-shirts and jeans that fit comfortably.

 

It wasn’t until recently, when I started deploring the dearth of asexual characters out there, that I really began to yearn for representation.  It’s one thing to want female characters I can root for, or celebrate diverse casts in the abstract; it’s quite another to realize “I don’t see any characters who are like me.”  There’s something so cathartic about seeing Poppy from Huge.  Even though she has a minor role and won’t be cracking any lists of my favorite characters, knowing that she’s there is so powerful.  I didn’t quite know how much I needed her character until I saw her.

 

After writing about Taystee and Poussey, I struck by my own relative viewer-privilege.  Even though I’m always more likely to tune into a show with a diverse ensemble, and I keep an eye on how shows treat their minority characters, I have major blind spots.  Before I started craving openly asexual characters, I see that I took my otherwise fairly easy-to-find representation for granted.  I don’t have to search for white, able-bodied American women on TV.  They’re just there.  In vast swathes of the TV I watch (save the “American” part when it comes to British shows,) they’re just there.  I’m sure they always will be.  Even now, though, there are still shows without any regular characters of color, queer characters, or characters with disabilities, and many that do don’t feature them as protagonists.  Regarding Poussey and Taystee, I’m sure there are women who crave compelling black female characters like I do asexuals, and it sucks that representation isn’t readily available for them.  As much as I like this pair, how much more wonderful must they be to someone who’s really aching for their presence on TV!

 

Also, while Poussey is easily my favorite on Orange is the New Black, I’m honestly not sure if I would have sought out a show solely about her, Taystee, Crazy Eyes, Sophia, and Miss Claudette.  It’s absurd to think, because I love these awesome women’s stories.  But it occurs to me that I may seek out diverse ensembles and grumble when the minority characters are portrayed lazily or unfairly, but I don’t make an effort to find shows expressly about minority characters.  I’ve only watched a few shows with a mostly-LGBTQ ensemble or a disabled protagonist (although I know the pool for the latter is shockingly limited, and the practice of hiring able-bodied actors to play disabled characters is far too rampant,) and I’ve never followed a show that doesn’t have any white characters as regulars.  I don’t know why; it’s not as if I’m hurting for white, able-bodied American representation elsewhere, so why do I not gravitate toward these shows?  There’s no reason for it, and it’s not something that I want to be true of me.