RaceFail09--My Turn to Speak Up

[dmarley]

I was putting off this post until I had two good hands, but as it happens I'm just going to have to type with one freakin' finger because I am that angry. I can't say all that I want to because I would still be pecking at the keyboard by the time my cast comes off. So, I'll bottom line it:

I will no longer be buying books written or edited by Will Shetterly, Emma Bull, Elizabeth Bear or Kathryn Cramer. I will not be completely boycotting Tor Books, but all other choices being equal I will certainly be less likely to choose to give money to a company so closely associated with Patrick and Teresa Nielsen-Hayden.

If you're familiar with the massive imbroglio that has come to be known as RaceFail09, then you probably know why I feel it's important to post about this. But I also know that several people on my friends list probably aren't, and are no doubt wondering why the heck I'm suddenly refusing to have anything to do with writers I've been reading since the beginning of their careers.

Here's why:

An overview of RaceFail09, pasted here courtesy of snacky. I've added links and footnotes.

white_serpent writes:

Professional SF author Elizabeth Bear (matociquala) wrote a post in her livejournal about "writing the other." [1] This was linked to. Avalon's Willow saw the post, and wrote an open letter in her own blog to Elizabeth Bear [2], saying, in essence, "you're not as good at this as you think you are." Elizabeth Bear responded in her LJ to this open letter, saying, in summary, "you might have a point." [3]

All good so far?

However, many of the regular readers of Elizabeth Bear's journal (among them several professional authors) decided that AW absolutely did not have a point, EB's work was in no way racist, anyone who thought the book played into racist tropes was a racist herself, AW didn't finish the book (and thus had no right to an opinion), AW's technique of reading was inferior, she just didn't understand what she read, etc., etc. (Standard fare of racism wanks). [4] other fans of color entered the debate to try to emphasize that, yes, other people saw the same thing in the book, fans had rights to opinions, etc. Emma Bull (Will Shetterly's wife) made one of the more offensive comments in the original debate. [5] Will Shetterly leapt into the fray, and he hasn't left it since. [6]

Things rapidly spiraled out of control from there. EB decided she wasn't playing anymore. Patrick Nielsen-Hayden made a comment many found offensive. When called on it, he deleted his journal. [7] Teresa was infuriated, and posted insinuating that people on one side of the debate were not arguing in good faith, and saying that she hoped that she never encountered these people... Or else. Further, she insinuated that she knew who many of us were. (But it wasn't a threat! We know this because she said so!) [8]

Basically, many professional science fiction authors have decided that they're absolutely not racist. Also, since fans are so obnoxious, they're not going to write characters of color-- which will show us, HA! [9] Also, we're clearly all sockpuppets and trolls, because we use pseudonyms. [10]

In the meantime, there have been many interesting and thoughtful posts by fans of color. [11]

It's all been infuriating.

Notes

Even as I pecked this out, Elizabeth Bear--despite her statements that she would not be locking or deleting posts--has locked several older posts. I will add links to cached versions where I can find them. My apologies. That was apparently a genuine oversight on Bear's part. She has now unlocked the posts. I jumped the gun assuming bad faith on her part, and I apologize for that.

[1] Whatever you're doing, you're probably wrong by matociquala.

[2] an open letter to Elizabeth Bear by Avalon's Willow

[3] Real magic can never be made by offering up someone else's liver by matociquala. After this post, a lot of people cooled off in regards to Bear, feeling that she'd made a sincere apology and begun to make amends. Unfortunately, she didn't follow up her apology with action, allowing commenters to make further racist remarks in her journal's comments without challenge. This made a lot of fans wonder about her sincerity, fears that turned out to be well-founded. If you compare this post with the recent Cease Fire, it calls into question much of the presumed good faith of her previous apologies and contrition.* She's further edited the new post, but not surprisingly a lot of fans, having been fooled once by her seeming sincerity, aren't buying it.

[4] -race(-class-sex) by truepenny contains many of these sentiments in the comments. See also the comments on the posts in notes [3] and [5].

[5] Emma Bull's thread of fail She is coffeeem. She did offer an apology later, but her recent apologies aren't so much apologies as excuses that she's too old to learn how to not sound like a racist in these new-fangled times.

[6] Endangering somebody is okay when you do it under your real name written up by bof in unfunnybusiness

[7] pnh has since unlocked his journal, but either deleted or kept locked all the posts related to the issue.

[8] The last comment that went up before I flocked the previous post by tnh Screen caps here

[9] My Only Statement On The Cultural Appropriation Imbroglio by davidlevine

[10] RaceFail: Once More, With Misdirection by coffeeandink

[11] rydra_wong has compiled a huge and comprehensive list of links. I've hit most of the highlights in the previous notes. If you want to read further and feel a bit overwhelmed, I would recommend starting with posts by deepad, coffeeandink, zvi_likes_tv, shewhohasahope, brown_betty, vito_excalibur, kynn, ktempest, spiralsheep, nojojojo and Willow's Avalon/Seeking Avalon.

I've been in the SF fannish community for 25 years. For a community that prides itself on progressive thinking, on open-mindedness and acceptance, it's truly appalling that we supposed progressive thinkers have closed our minds to the fact that SF fandom isn't a comfortable or welcoming place for fans of color. We have to change. This has to stop.

So, I'm doing what I can to help. I'm going to stop rewarding this bad behavior. I'm going to post in my journal to let other fans know what the supposed professionals in the field are doing. I'm going to try my best to listen and learn and promote change.

This has to stop. We have to change.

---------

*I have edited this sentence in light of this discussion.

I will be leaving comments enabled, but I won't, for obvious reasons, be able to reply quickly or consistently. This doesn't mean "don't express your concerns"--far from it--but it does mean that I might not be able to be more eloquent than "Oops" and "Sorry" in reply.

Comments

[lady-ganesh.livejournal.com]

I remember distinctly having the impression she said she was lying about more than just that, but the post has been edited and I've read far too much to remember where the direct quoting was. Maybe someoen else will remember better.