Ask a friendslist - am I being especially insensitive/dense?

[lizziec]

Last night I saw the most recent Wulffmorgenthaler and it amused me. As it was related to women's health somewhat and I found it amsuing I posted it to vaginapagina here late last night and went off to bed. I woke up this morning to a whole bunch of comments (how I read them) basically attacking me for posting something racist and being priviledged because I didn't notice any racial undertones. Now I feel awful. I didn't even notice that the female character was coloured in any way. Does this make me racist or something in some way?

Advice/thoughts? As I said, I feel really awful and I'm looking for some reassurance or something. I'm starting to wonder if I'm missing a huge sensitive part of my brain... :/

(If you've already replied on IRC, don't feel you have to reply again ;))

Comments

[red-pill.livejournal.com]

i dont think it makes a huge diffrence if the womans black or white. mabby it dose, either way, i dont blame you for missing it. dont let them get to you. *hugs

[red-pill.livejournal.com]

ive just had a look, and im included to agree with pornqueenie. some people have posted stuff like "omg, its doomie" but most people seem to be takeing the stance that its just a cartoon. in any case, it seems to be devisive, but alot more poeople are sticking up for you then bad mouthing you, it seems

so, in short, dont worry :)

[pornqueenie.livejournal.com]

Oh honey, no no no...

There are a few people on there, who have had bad experiences that see that on jump on it to relieve their own frustrations....

MOST people on there are like you, in a "WTF Its a cartoon" response..
Please don't let the others make you feel upset/racist... Absolutely nothing wrong with that cartoon at all, its not to everyones tastes, and your post showed that, but you didnt thrust it upon people, they chose to read and took it the wrong way, if anything they are uptight making such an issue out of it

*hugs and kisses*
Relax about it honey, dont get your self wound up over it (haha wound up, coil) sorry

xx

[morti.livejournal.com]

I'm with you on this. You're posting it as someone who doesn't see race at all which is great, far more racist in my mind to kick up a stink and go "Oh, she's black so...".

I think you've got the right idea, as Jen said you shouldn't let them get to you and I think the edit you posted on the community was very nice, explained your situation while being sensitive to the more-racist-than-you-but-not-outright-racists who have replied.

I appreciate that the forced sterilisation thing is horrible but there's no suggestion of that in the comic and no real reason to be making a fuss about it in response.

[nert.livejournal.com]

The fact you didn't notice is more or less the proof you're not racist, whilst the majority of the comments I could stomach reading were full of hate-mongering elitist rubbish.

[ingridgirl.livejournal.com]

Uh... i dont see any racist connotations.... would it be racist if it were a white woman?! :S

After reading the comments....

[ingridgirl.livejournal.com]

Bah just ignore it! Theres only really one person being silly about it. Perhaps we are just more liberal thinkers by not registering the race of the characters, to me they are just people and surely thats a good thing.
I didnt know about the sterilisation of black women either.

I agree with the person that says its meant to be having ago at non-empathetic doctors!

[mostlysilent.livejournal.com]

I wouldnt have even said she was black/coloured/blaaaah upon first glance... everyone on vaginawahgina's just overthinking it and being twats \o/ Kinda reminds me of english lit classes back at school actually, overthinking and hunting for hidden meanings when really, it was just a sweet poem...

Also *snuggles*

[evergreenjan.livejournal.com]

I thought that I would give an opinion from the older generation. (Ooops, is that an ageist remark? Should I be sent to prison for it? Lol.) That probably gives you a clue on my take on it. It's crazy - this is a cartoon not a photograph of an event and people should take it as such. Nobody over there got up in arms because it showed white male doctors as incompetent. An IUD is hardly 'permanent sterilisation' anyway! It's remarks like (some of) those comments that keep racism alive and makes it the problem it is today! The negative commenters should all grow up!
Well that's what I think anyway!

[no1typo.livejournal.com]

My dear dear Lizzie,
If men are from mars and women are from Venus where on earth does that critical woman come from. Her comments seem to me to show how vacuous it is to make comments about someone when you know nothing about them.

anyone who knew you could never describe you as privileged. Certainly in the area in which you grew up living in a council house , coming from a single parent family, and wearing 2nd hand clothes not to mention the rest of the shit I subjected you to did not make you privileged. Though I guess having Non Illegitamti carborundum as a family motto might have been a privilege.

People who see that as racist have a very sad and narrow view of life. Most black women I know prefer their chips on their plate rather than on their shoulders.

[kimble.livejournal.com]

Americans. They'd notice that Dave Lister wasn't white...

[barakta]

It's Americans. They see race at every turn because in America it's a different level of issue.

For example, UK Red Dwarf doesn't export well to America, cos they see Lister and think "black man" "scabby" and OMG! Racism! We don't see that, we see 'scouser' and a caricature which isn' really racially wossnamed. Americans also had this HUGE issue with 'the Cat' being black, which was actually played by Danny John Jules because 'Frankie the mother cat' was a black cat, so it made sense to have 'the Cat' played by a black man. Americans would have read all sorts of racism into this which was not intended.

My final question to vaginawhinas would be "how do you know I am not black?" This is the Internet, we don't know what race anyone is unless they mention it, or more usually make a HUGE deal out of it.

So no, you are not unreasonable, I didn't notice the race of the woman even after you mentioned it, it took a few double takes. Sod em for being so fucking uptight.

[myheartsonempty.livejournal.com]

racist?! really?! those women need to get a grip! you are not racist for thinking that cartoon was funny and then posting it. the comedy of it had nothing to do with the woman being a darker skin tone than the doctor. they are looking WAY too deep into it.