Gravity
I have been thinking a lot about the Gravity controversy* these past couple of days, and I want to get some things out. I believe that the BlackJerry ad was in poor taste, racist, and offensive. I am not entirely pleased, however, with the Brandeis community's reaction to it.
I understand that the ad was intended to be satirical, though I still do not understand what exactly was being satirized. Whatever the intention, the piece failed. It is not funny and doesn't make any kind of social commentary, as one expects in satire. That is a major difference between the ad and something like "Chapelle's Show," which defenders of Gravity have compared it to. The other difference is the source of the humor. Others may disagree with me on this, but I think Dave Chapelle, as a black man, is in a position to use racial humor in a way that the editors of Gravity cannot. Gravity is staffed almost entirely by white men, and it is clear that they did not recognize the perspective from which they were writing this piece. They did not realize that as white men they live a life of racial privilege, that something that may be funny to them from their position of privilege might seriously hurt someone who has had to deal everyday with the white supremacist nature of American society. They were blind to that--maybe because they were tossing out ideas among friends, maybe because there is this odd idea among Brandeis publications that controversial equals good. I don't think there was any kind of malicious intent and I don't think the writers and publishers of Gravity are "racists" in the most obvious sense of the word, but that doesn't mean the ad wasn't.
I think the white privilege of the editors of Gravity blinded them to the experience of the black community on campus. There are less than 100 undergraduate black students on campus. Did anyone consider their reaction? Did any of the editors of Brandeis consider the difficulties black students face on this campus everyday? I was so embarrassed as a Brandeis student when I read Gravity this week. How can we be taken seriously as a university if blatantly racist material is printed in student-funded publications? I am so tired of these "incidents" that seem to happen every year. I am a firm believer in the value of diversity in education. How can Brandeis be expected to draw more black students and other minorities if we have a reputation of racism and a long history of "incidents" like this?
A friend of mine accused me of playing into politically correct bullshit as I debated these points last night. I strongly dislike the term "politically correct," because it has become such a dirty phrase. It is an insult wielded by the right wing to shut down arguments against the oppression of minorities, women, and other non-socially normative group. And yes, maybe my language has been shaped by my Brandeis education, full of terms I learned in AAAS and WGS classes. But that doesn't mean I'm playing into the status quo, because being "politically correct" isn't the status quo in this country. Racist humor--that plays into the status quo. There was nothing rebellious or defiant about the BlackJerry ad.
I was thrilled to hear that the ICC and BSO were organizing against Gravity. I am also happy to see that white students are also participating in this fight, that they recognize that racism is detrimental to our community as a whole, regardless of one's race. All systems of oppression, be they racism, sexism, heterosexism, or classism are intertwined. I don't know if everyone organizing believes this, but I hope that some do. That said, I am worried about the reaction. I don't necessarily believe Gravity should be dechartered over this. Maybe I am biased--I know JR and Ben and the rest of the Gravity staff and I know that they are good guys. I think that given the chance they can learn from this and make the magazine more racially sensitive (and hopefully funnier). I am afraid that by dechartering Gravity, we will just be shutting down a potential dialogue in an attempt to find a quick cure. I don't like the idea of the "emergency resolution" passed by the Student Union at 4 am. I am afraid that too many people are jumping on this bandwagon without really considering the issue. I am also concerned that this will set an unfortunate precedent. frontpackrugger made an excellent point on the facebook group about this issue, mentioning that The Blowfish had an article on "banning fat trannies." No one other than TransBrandeis attempted any kind of protest in response to that article (a commentary on the many obstacles consistently faced by the transgender community). Should the Blowfish had been dechartered? How about the Hoot after it printed "I hate you thugs" last year? It's something I am very conflicted about.
So yeah, that's it. I hope we get somewhere with this, I am really getting tired of these "incidents."
*For all you non-Brandeisians or Brandeis students who have been living in a cave: Gravity is a humor magazine at Brandeis. In their most recent issue, they included a mock ad for "BlackJerry," a slave who could be bought for 3/5 the price of a wireless device.
I understand that the ad was intended to be satirical, though I still do not understand what exactly was being satirized. Whatever the intention, the piece failed. It is not funny and doesn't make any kind of social commentary, as one expects in satire. That is a major difference between the ad and something like "Chapelle's Show," which defenders of Gravity have compared it to. The other difference is the source of the humor. Others may disagree with me on this, but I think Dave Chapelle, as a black man, is in a position to use racial humor in a way that the editors of Gravity cannot. Gravity is staffed almost entirely by white men, and it is clear that they did not recognize the perspective from which they were writing this piece. They did not realize that as white men they live a life of racial privilege, that something that may be funny to them from their position of privilege might seriously hurt someone who has had to deal everyday with the white supremacist nature of American society. They were blind to that--maybe because they were tossing out ideas among friends, maybe because there is this odd idea among Brandeis publications that controversial equals good. I don't think there was any kind of malicious intent and I don't think the writers and publishers of Gravity are "racists" in the most obvious sense of the word, but that doesn't mean the ad wasn't.
I think the white privilege of the editors of Gravity blinded them to the experience of the black community on campus. There are less than 100 undergraduate black students on campus. Did anyone consider their reaction? Did any of the editors of Brandeis consider the difficulties black students face on this campus everyday? I was so embarrassed as a Brandeis student when I read Gravity this week. How can we be taken seriously as a university if blatantly racist material is printed in student-funded publications? I am so tired of these "incidents" that seem to happen every year. I am a firm believer in the value of diversity in education. How can Brandeis be expected to draw more black students and other minorities if we have a reputation of racism and a long history of "incidents" like this?
A friend of mine accused me of playing into politically correct bullshit as I debated these points last night. I strongly dislike the term "politically correct," because it has become such a dirty phrase. It is an insult wielded by the right wing to shut down arguments against the oppression of minorities, women, and other non-socially normative group. And yes, maybe my language has been shaped by my Brandeis education, full of terms I learned in AAAS and WGS classes. But that doesn't mean I'm playing into the status quo, because being "politically correct" isn't the status quo in this country. Racist humor--that plays into the status quo. There was nothing rebellious or defiant about the BlackJerry ad.
I was thrilled to hear that the ICC and BSO were organizing against Gravity. I am also happy to see that white students are also participating in this fight, that they recognize that racism is detrimental to our community as a whole, regardless of one's race. All systems of oppression, be they racism, sexism, heterosexism, or classism are intertwined. I don't know if everyone organizing believes this, but I hope that some do. That said, I am worried about the reaction. I don't necessarily believe Gravity should be dechartered over this. Maybe I am biased--I know JR and Ben and the rest of the Gravity staff and I know that they are good guys. I think that given the chance they can learn from this and make the magazine more racially sensitive (and hopefully funnier). I am afraid that by dechartering Gravity, we will just be shutting down a potential dialogue in an attempt to find a quick cure. I don't like the idea of the "emergency resolution" passed by the Student Union at 4 am. I am afraid that too many people are jumping on this bandwagon without really considering the issue. I am also concerned that this will set an unfortunate precedent. frontpackrugger made an excellent point on the facebook group about this issue, mentioning that The Blowfish had an article on "banning fat trannies." No one other than TransBrandeis attempted any kind of protest in response to that article (a commentary on the many obstacles consistently faced by the transgender community). Should the Blowfish had been dechartered? How about the Hoot after it printed "I hate you thugs" last year? It's something I am very conflicted about.
So yeah, that's it. I hope we get somewhere with this, I am really getting tired of these "incidents."
*For all you non-Brandeisians or Brandeis students who have been living in a cave: Gravity is a humor magazine at Brandeis. In their most recent issue, they included a mock ad for "BlackJerry," a slave who could be bought for 3/5 the price of a wireless device.