#dw fandom antiblackness

[rjalker]

fandom worships white men so much everyone will latch onto a rich white guy and come up with fifty thousand reasons why he was definitely the single person in that white supremacist rich kid club who was definitely not racist. Because these people can't stop worshipping white men for five seconds and are desperate to latch onto the first conventionally attractive white man they can find. So now we're going to have to suffer through hundreds of posts worshipping Ricky September and coming up with a million and one explanations and backstories and headcanons pretending that he was definitely not racist because uhhhhhhh *checks notes* he's a white man and white people who haven't bothered unpacking enough racism think he's hot and think being hot means you're automatically a good person.

You people can just not latch onto the first white man you see. I promise you'll survive.

And if you're one of the people doing this, you need to stop and think about why you're so desperate to excuse and exonerate a rich white man living in a society literally designed to foster white supremacy so you can make him your new favorite blorbo.

[rjalker]

or we could not worship the only white man in the episode when he's literally from an entire planet dedicated to white supremacy. it's not anti-colonial to worship white men just because you think they're hot and they're friendly to white people.

The fact that so many people in the fandom have now decided this man is their new favorite blorbo who should have gotten to be a companion, when it's extremely likely that he was just as racist as everyone else is just. Well it's literal racism. It's literally just mindlessly worshipping white men.

This man read their history books. He had nothing to criticize about the system. He was absolutley just as racist and white supremacist as the rest of them. Just because you think he's hot and inherently better than the "bitch" who was given an oppotunity to be racist because he's a white man doesn't mean it's not a huge show of racism on the part of the fandom to worship this man and pretend he's the best new character on the show.

How about stand for the anti-colonial slugs and kneel for the artificial intelligence who said kill the rich white supremacists and then followed through on it. Instead of being upset that killing the rich white supremacists includes killing a white man you all think is hot and therefore morally superior.

[rjalker]

Yes people it is in fact literally white supremacy and patriarchy that have convinced you it's a good idea to desperately latch onto and retcon Ricky Saturday into The Real Victim of White Supremacy™ and make up hundreds of excuses and fake backstories to prove he's not actually racist.

He is a probably billionaire cis white man on a planet literally dedicated to upholding white supremacy. There is no retconning and headcanoning the racism out so you can pretend he's your innocent blorbo who deserved better and the fact that you're all so desperate to try is literally just showing that you still worship white men above all else and think they can do no wrong as long as you think they're hot.

[leikeliscomet]

(Reposting from twitter)

My POV as a Black fan that thinks Dot and Bubble's racism commentary is trash

Rewatched Dot and Bubble and I'm gonna break down from my POV as a Black fan why this episode didn't work for me & why it's an awful racism commentary. Long arse post incoming:

The whole "You should've noticed the cast was all white except for fifteen ha your bias is showing" doesn't work for a show that's been predominantly white for 60+ years. D&B casting has been the default for most of the show so its not abnormal enough to be a racial litmus test. An example is the Matt Smith era The only reoccurring character of colour in s5 (2+ appearances) is Liz 10. Artie n Angie in s7. 0 in s6. RTD's own era isn't fully safe either. For many eps Martha or Mickey are the *only* Black characters. Most POC are side characters or extras.

White fans should be aware of the predominantly white casting of the show but this late in the game feels cheap. Most of the show has gone through 100% white episodes including fan faves and it was never an issue back then bc it was beneficial. This is so hollow. Representing racists as cartoon caricatures SEVERLY underestimates the danger of white supremacy irl. White supremacy is system designed and constructed and rebranded over centuries. It is not accidental. People aren't racist bc they don't know they're racist because they *do* They know the system that oppresses POC, Black people especially, benefits them socially and financially and that is why they participate. Its not stupidity it's intention. That should've been the Finetime core not Lindy goofing around bc the arrows are gone or some shit.

Human Nature showed us racist young people that exercised this power bc they knew this. They may be children but they are still dangerous bc of their views. Martha knew this. The silly tech obsessed gen z angle erases this danger and that of actual gen z white supremacy

Instead of the camp goofy tone we could've gotten a serious focused episode. The slugs and millenial/gen z social media silly distracts from what could've been the main theme of colonisation instead of saving it for 10 mins of exposition at the end & scattering microaggressions. Saving Fifteen's racism scene for a goofy episode was a horrid idea. Spending 30 mins on representing racism as silliness then giving a dramatic dangerous score is the definition of tonal whiplash. Representing his oppressor as a blonde bimbo again does not take this seriously. Fifteen went to 1960s BRITAIN & got through it unscathed. Finetime is a fictional futuristic land but the racism of 1960s Britain was real. If anytime was right it could've been Devil's Chord. Distancing yourself from a panto villain is easy but addressing your history is hard.

The scene itself is incredibly performed so I'll give Ncuti his flowers but what he used this skill for could've been so much more. Having his FIRST SCENE begging to save a racist is disgusting. It isn't Black people's responsibility to show compassion to people that want us dead. Yes the Doctor helps the baddies bc they care. But they're aren't ignorant to prejudice. The liberal anti racism of who is so jarring and why I still think Thin Ice is performative. When white people are angry at injustice it's radical. When it's Black people we're aggressive.

Respectability politics is a tool of white supremacy. That if one pleads and is nice enough they can earn liberation. What would white fans think of Fifteen if he DIDN'T beg Lindy? If your allyship with Black people depends on showing kindness to racists you are NOT an ally.

Next up is Ricky. It was established ALL Finetime citizens have white supremacist views yet Ricky September stans refuse to see him in any negative light. Just like Joan Redfern white dw fans refuse to see racism if a character is likeable. If nice guy Ricky's a racist, then anyone no matter the niceness can be racist too and that's a pill white fans aren't ready to swallow. If racism is systemic and not about individual character, then what's keeping them safe? What happens when YOU are under the microscope.

THIS is why we NEED Black writers in Doctor Who. The nuances, depth and complexity of the Black experience can only be told at it's best by Black creatives and not guessed, assumed or spoken over by white fans and white writers. It's okay to put ego aside and say you don't get it.

"Im white but I loved the Doctor's reaction" "I'm white and i thought the racism commentary was great" "I'm white but i-" Yet again, we have to sit through another round of white and non Black fans of colour dictating Black representation for us. I'm so fucking tired man. AGAIN IM YELLING FROM MY HILLTOP TO WATCH SHOWS BY BLACK WRITERS. Almost EVERY single theme in Dot and Bubble and frankly most of the show has been done WAY better in other media. RTD is not the authority on Black stories. We are. Always have been and always will.

Tl;dr Dot and Bubble is an unserious and tacky racism commentary. It's core message is drowned by more RTD Who camp. Don't tell me this episode was good at representating my own experience. It wasn't. S15 having Black writers isn't a need it's a must. Goodbye.

Reblog this version pls

[akajustmerry]

this is going to sound so SILLY but the reason I haven't answered any asks like "wdy think about yasmine's casting in DW" etc is cos like.... WELL, AS Y'ALL KNOW, it's been my dream since I was like 14 to be showrunner of that show and the idea I KNEW I was ALWAYS going to do was like "the Doctor travels with Donna's daughter and they get to reconnect with Donna through connecting her daughter" there's other precious details, but anyway I literally have a notebook mapping out EXACTLY how I wanted to do this idea and I know it's fucking stupid and obviously its been in fanfics too etc but I'm like actually devastated that rtd is doing it because that was a whole companion arch I mapped out and now he's just gonna do it in a SPECIAL. and idk yeah I guess it's validating in a way but I already have so many issues with rtd being showrunner again (least of all the existential stomach ache of "what's the point of me even reaching to be showrunner if they just gonna give it to these white men AGAIN rather than chance someone new") and to see this idea that I've dreamed of doing for years being done by him too? it's like salt on a wound. Also, again as a Black person I'm just like where are the Black writers in your writers room, RTD? I'm not giving you any praise for casting unless you show me you actually care about Black voices!!! I'm really salty about it. I really hate the antiblackness of rtd-who and the way it's constantly pinkwashed by the fandom. this just feels like a cosmic slap in the face atm. again I know it's silly in the scheme of things but that's how I feel.

[rjalker]

except literally every regeneration is a soft reboot, and this has never been needed before. It's literally just more of Russel T Davies antiblack racism, but everyone wants to pretend that's not a factor at all.

None of this was necessary. It literally only happened because Russel T Davies is still just as racist as he was the first time he was showrunner.

If you are not going to aknowledge the racism, your analysis of this show is legitimately worthless.

NO BECAUSE IT MAKES SO MUCH SENSE FROM A NARRATIVE PERSPECTIVE LISTEN.

In 2005 RTD takes over Doctor Who after 16 years off the air. But rather than bringing back the character with the same characterization, RTD gives the Doctor PTSD a la the Time War. This fundamentally changes how the character is written. The Doctor is not the same. Even after Moffat undoes the Time War he continues writing the Doctor in a similar manner.

Fast forward to 2022 when RTD takes over the show again. The Doctor has been running. The character continually ignores their feelings and never talks about their past or the people they traveled with. Companions have been asking the same questions about the Doctor’s behavior. For 17 years.

Rather than continue on with that same characterization, RTD decides to shift the character in a monumental way.

15 has had time to heal. The bi-regeneration is confusing but 15 says he is the way he is because 14 stopped and healed.

15 isn’t just a new incarnation, he’s a new expression of the Doctor. And the best part is, RTD already said that in so many words! He called Ncuti the new new Doctor. THIS IS WHAT HE MEANT.

[skzloona]

Finished my pseudo essay on how racist and antiblack the dw fandom has been of late. I'll clean it up and post it here tomorrow or something. Hopefully someone will read it and realize to be a little bit more respectful. Just a little. My brain is so tired.

[rjalker]

[ID: A two panel black and white meme, first showing a gymnist casually walking across a foam mat before holding their hands out to the sides, labeled, "Aknowledging that Ricky September is a white supremacist just like the rest of the billionaires on Planet White Supremacy".

The second panel is labeled, "Deciding to uphold white supremacist patriarchy by insisting that he ~deserved better~ and was actually secretly the real victim the whole time", with curly lines about deserves better for emphasis, and shows another gymnist performing an exaggeratedly convoluted act over bars, ropes from the ceiling, a pommel horse, and lastly flying over a burning car. End ID.]

[leikeliscomet]

You think Martha deserved better because you think her being attracted to Ten is some moral failing she needed to correct I think Martha deserved better bc the misogynoir in S3 in the show and fandom was so rampant that Freema Agyeman, other Black and mixed actors and fans are dealing with the repercussions over a decade later we're not the same

[rjalker]

yeah it's almost like David Tennant shouldn't have been brought back at all and Jodie Whitaker's Doctor should have been allowed to regenerate into Ncuti Gatwas the way literally every single other Doctor ever has.

It's almost like making an exception and dragging back everyone's favorite white man actor to steal the show as soon as the Doctor is played by a woman or a Black man is in fact misogynistic and racist.

I don’t know if this is controversial or a hot take in any way but I found that the 14th doctor surviving actually helped me appreciate 15 more, because as much as I love Ncuti and 15 already, if we had to say goodbye to 14, my mourning him would have overshadowed my enjoyment and appreciation of 15

[rjalker]

maybe tomorrow I'll make a pie chart showing the number of posts talking about the theme of antiblack racism in the episode vs the number of posts gushing about the white man who was absolutely just as racist as the rest of them but because he's a white man who's conventionally attractive, White Fandom just has to find a million and one excuses to exonerate him and pretend he was the only one on Planet White Supremacy who wasn't racist because they think he's hot so that means he was a good person. Because they don't want to admit that people they find attractive can be racist and that especially cis white men who are the sons of billionaires who are literally living on Planet White Supremacy....are racist.

[rjalker]

I fixed it.

[ID: A meme showing two old white men. The first is saluting the camera, the second is kneeling in prayer. Text has been added that reads, "In this house we stand for the anti-colonialist slugs, and kneel for the Dot who personally helped them kill the white supremacists." Next to the saluting white man is a cropped screenshot from the Doctor Who episode "Dot and Bubble", showing large, slug-like creatures with orange bodies and dark armour plating on their backs. Next to the kneeling man is an MS Paint drawn spherical robot drone made of dark grey metal, with a camera lens in the center with a red light. Blue-green blood is splashed across the top and dripping down off one side. End ID.]

insert the pigeon meme: Is it anti-colonialist to worship conventionally attractive rich white men and exonerate them of all wrongdoing and insist they're the real victim of white supremacy?

[rjalker]

so now that everyone's happy to admit you didn't even notice that everyone was white or even that the episode was about racism until you literally had to be told that online, and that you thought the "twist" ending came out of nowhere, is everyone going to take this as a sign that they need to actually listen to people of color when they talk about racism in media that you didn't notice?

Because the designers for this episode were pulling out all the stops to emphasize the fact that everyone on that planet is white. Everything about the colors, and lighting, and makeup was there to emphasize how white everyone is. The racism was present the entire time.

If you didn't notice, and you were shocked at the "twist" ending and thought it came out of nowhere and was completely unpredictable, this is literally your sign that you need to sit down and listen to people of color when they talk about racism.

If you didn't notice the racism that was present from the start of this episode when the designers were going out of their way to highlight it, what exactly makes you think you're the authority on racism that's not being done on purpose the rest of the time?

If you see people talking about racism in media, and you didn't notice the racism, instead of declaring that these people are wrong and there's no racism at all, remember this episode.

And do the bare minimum of actually listening to people of color and other people who talk about racism. Just because you personally don't notice it doesn't mean it's not there.

Next time you see people criticizing racism in something you enjoy, instead of taking it as a personal insult and insisting these people are wrong, get some humility and shut up and actually listen and be willing to learn.

So many people literally did not even notice the racism when the entire episode is designed to make you notice it.

Take this as a loud blaring neon sign that you need to unpack a whole lot more white supremacy in your brain than you thought you did. And next time you see people criticizing racism in something you like, listen to them and actually take the time to learn. Because if you don't see the racism, it's probably because you're literally too ignorant to notice. And that is a problem you need to fix for yourself.

Stop harassing people of color who criticize racism in media you enjoy. Just because you don't see it doesn't mean it's not there. It shouldn't take an episode written by a white man to get you to start actually listening to people of color, but you better not waste this hopefully eye-opening opportunity to be less racist.

Listen to people who criticize racism in media you enjoy. Stop pretending that because it's not noticeable to you it's not there. You're just proving how ignorant and racist you are when you do that.

[rjalker]

coddling literal white supremacists is not anti-racist action.

Getting upset that people are pointing out that the conventionally attractive white supremacist man is a bad person is not anti-racist action.

Why is your immediate response to leap to the defense of characters who are literally white supremacists and demand that they be given the grace to improve themselves?

Why is it only important for people to be able to improve themselves when it's conventionally attractive white men who are literal white supremacists?

The fact that most people in this fandom have decided to latch onto these white men from Planet White Supremacy and say they deserve better is literally white supremacy and patriarchy in action.

White supremacists should die. We should celebrate when they die. If these characters were meant to be anti racist it would have happened on screen,

Insisting that white supremacist white men need to be given grace to improve themselves at the expense of people of color around them is literally white supremacy and patriarchy in action.

Literally no one is saying ~no one can change for the better~.

We're saying stop fucking dropping everything to defend literal white supremacists.

White Fandom literally cannot wait to leap to the defense of white men even when they're white supremacists.

They're also literally not kids. At all.

“Ricky September and Gothic Paul were just as racist and still deserved to die-“

Alright look. Look. These people are all in a literal bubble. A constant echo chamber that just reinforces their worldview and they consciously choose to push everything else away. Gothic Paul was actively pushing against that and trying to warn and help people. He was, just maybe, even starting to break out. And then there’s Ricky. Ricky just got online to post his songs and then he dropped the bubble. He spent time outside the echo chamber in the real world. He was reading books. Ricky was receptive to new thoughts and ideas and actively seeking them out.

Finetime is a cult. Like a lot of these things, it’s a cult. And most of these people are actively fueling that environment. Ricky and Paul were actively taking steps to break away from the cult. And yeah, they were still privileged white trust fund kids. That doesn’t make them inherently evil and mean that they can’t change. Everyone is capable of change. Part of the tragedy of the episode was that the two people actively trying to change things and learn were killed and the people who chose to reject it lived on. For now.

Let’s be real, that’s gonna be a Donner Party situation.

[rjalker]

[ID: The meme of someone holding up an Uno wild card, which has been edited to read, "White Fandom stop worshipping white men for just one single gods damned episode, or draw 25". The first letters of "White Fandom" are capitalized for emphasis. In the next panel, we see someone sitting at a table, holding a ton of cards, with the person labeled, "White Fandom". End ID.]

[rjalker]

as soon as the person in question is a conventionally attractive white men, then suddenly people start pulling out all the stops of "oooooh anyone can become a better person!!! anyone can improve themselves :)))) we shouldn't judge people for their past :))))))))" when we're talking about a literal white supremacist.

you people literally just support white supremacist patriarchy more than you want to admit.

It is literally not a coincidance that the cis, abled, conventionally attractive white man out of all of the white supremacist characters in this episode is the one people are falling over themselves to defend like their lives depend on it.