rolling "Is This Racist?" thread

Wasn't her reasoning that in her fictional society, pearls were useless whereas coal was useful, so 'coal' was a good thing? Yeaaaaaaaah. Not a stretch at all.

the author couldn't metaphor herself out of a bulletproof mercedes with a grocery bag in it

lol

Wasn't her reasoning that in her fictional society, pearls were useless whereas coal was useful, so 'coal' was a good thing?

you mean just like in our present society?

like the future world is so lousy with pearls that they become a term of derision

"I am sick and tired of these motherfuckin' pearls in this motherfuckin' dystopia!"

a pearl is something that forms from being irritated iirc

barbara bush will always be the first pearl

http://content6.flixster.com/rtactor/40/34/40344_pro.jpg

http://www.reddstewart.com/minnie_pearl.jpg

this book is eventualy going to be a best-seller isn't it

Wow. http://weirdtalesmagazine.com/2012/08/20/a-message-from-the-publisher/

I would like to tell our community that Weird Tales will NOT be running an excerpt from Victoria Foyt's novel in our upcoming issue.

Marvin Kaye is our editor and has full control over fiction published in the magazine and website, and he agrees with me on this.

Marvin was approached by Victoria Foyt, and was asked to review her novel. He was told that she was being slammed online by people who had not read it.

I have not read the novel, but have gone over its online presence today. I have no need to read it. I saw the blackface video and read the excerpts the author and publisher chose to make available. I must conclude that the use of the powerful symbols of white people forced to wear blackface to escape the sun, white women lusting after black "beast men," the "pearls" and "coals," etc., is goddamned ridiculous and offensive. It seems like the work of someone who does not understand the power of what she is playing with.

Marvin says if you read the whole book, she explains her use of this imagery, and it ends up as a plea for tolerance. I say, so what. And that is the position of Weird Tales - and upon reviewing the video and other materials, Marvin is in full agreement.

I deeply apologize to all who were offended by our association with this book. I am offended by it. I fully respect those who have been writing negative things about us today. You are correct.

I have removed Marvin's endorsement because he no longer stands by it. Marvin is traveling and will make his own statement shortly.

wow is right

Somebody's livid at somebody, that's for sure.

gotta admit my first impulse is to subscribe

i still dont understand why anyone cares about this? is this like the book world V-Nasty?

Nobody idiot says something racist, internet explodes

except at the moment isn't it more like, respected science fiction magazine plans to publish racist idiot, science fiction world explodes?

uh yeah

they didnt though

he wrote a huge missive about why they werent gonna publish an except from some self released book

yeah but that was after everyone already exploded

Marvin was approached by Victoria Foyt, and was asked to review her novel.

like i should write angry letters about every unsolicited demo i get?

All of this would be just another internet firestorm about somebody being an idiot — except that Weird Tales Magazine, one of the most venerable speculative fiction magazines in the world, decided to reprint the first chapter of Saving the Pearls in its next issue. And Weird Tales editor Marvin Kaye, who took over the magazine from the Hugo Award-winning team of Ann VanderMeer and Stephen Segal last year, wrote a blog post defending the book:

oh i see

haha yeah those blue things are links to other websites sometimes w/ more information

i read this thing like four times

http://weirdtalesmagazine.com/2012/08/20/a-message-from-the-publisher/

and didnt get the backstory

oh the io9 post detailing the original controversy is in phil d's post upthread

I hope you are in a receptive mood. Thanks very much for placing within me the bomb that never stops exploding. Though the benefits have been intangible and in fact I feel that this terrifying mechanism has generally made my life intolerable, I shall never ask you to reverse the situation.

Nobody idiot says something racist, internet explodes

― Fareed Zaireeka (Whiney G. Weingarten), Tuesday, August 21, 2012 12:25 AM (6 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Eh I think she's actually been published at least as many times as you have and is married to one (1) more famous film director than you are, so "nobody" is being a bit thick here as well.

the use of "goddamned" in that editor's note cracks me up for some reason

me too actually, very cranky

has Marvin Kaye's followup statement appeared yet

My white math teacher says "fo sho" a lot.

He really likes Dave Chapelle

He has an enormous shoulder chip

http://www.xojane.com/it-happened-to-me/asian-woman-dating-asian-men-jenny-an

Former co-worker tags all of his instagrams taken of his fiancee with #amazingasian. Creeps me out a little, but to each their own.

That article has no point.

really just wanna lol at the author

xojane is no elite daily anyway

wtf with that article

*at (not with)

think that the point of the article is that the author is confused, conflicted and self-loathing, but doesn't really care. not much of a point, i grant you...

yeah, is it trying to normalize asian-american self-loathing? ugh

lol @ the author

on one hand it reads like the ravings of a depressed person, a cry for help. on the other hand she's trying to spin her racism as 'merely feminism', ugh ugh

great red panda punchline
http://www.xojane.com/files/JennyAn3.jpg

her back-pedaling is also lol

http://twitter.com/jenny_an

'junot diaz-inspired performance art'

that was the most annoying part of her dumb "piece," when she namechecked junot diaz. i was like, i'm preeeeeetty sure this is not what junot diaz was talking about when he said we have to acknowledge the white spremacist within us.

anyway she's an idiot; asian american dudes doged a bullet

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AbULBAjstBA