This Isn't Magic: An Alternate Look at the Timeline
I have returned from the funeral and from seeing my family, and all is as well as it can be under the circumstances.
Racefail 2009 is now in its sixtieth sixty-second day.
(Edited to add: a Before Time section has been added to this post to address the different potential points from which RF09 can be tracked. Those who provided assistance in commenting regarding these edits are credited & their assistance appreciated.)
Let's take a review, here at the two-month point. But, as there are many good summaries of what happened during RaceFail itself that deal in who said what to whom, as well as rydra_wong's medal-worthy archivist skills, I present something a little different.
RaceFail 2009: An Alternate Look at the Timeline
(props to vito_excalibur for this: read it, as there is undated material)
The Before Time: Regarding Edits & Recalendaring
In reviewing the concerns expressed by daedala, icecreamempress, and fire_fly, I have realized that my timeline should be corrected to reflect an earlier start time. icecreamempress expressed an eye-opener on why dating RF09 from the second post is problematic.
For purposes of this timeline, I've settled on Bear's first post as Day One. ( Jay Lake's post of 1/8/2009 is also noted as another potential start date.)
Sixty-two is not a nice round number, but it's more accurate, and I strive for accuracy. Thank you to those whose input assisted me in making these corrections.
Day 1:
Elizabeth Bear posts "whatever you're doing, you're probably wrong", her thoughts on writing the other.
Day 2:
In response to Bear, deepad makes her post I Didn't Dream of Dragons.
yeloson announces the ReMyth Project, inspired in part by deepad's post. (fire_fly drew these two events to my attention and helped inform my understanding of the timeline: thank you.)
Day 3:
Elizabeth Bear posts "real magic can never be made by offering up someone else's liver", the response to Avalon's Willow in which the initial writer/editor bullshit started attracted a large amount of attention.
This seems largely accepted as might appear at first glance to be, but is not, the date on which RaceFail 2009 begins.
Day 21:
zvi_likes_tv begins dreaming of Chromatic Realities, an electronic press "where we control the vertical, we control the horizontal, and it's ALL IN GLORIOUS COLOR." (Thanks to skywardprodigal for the addition.)
Day 30:
This By Us begins filling the stairwell of their dance center with quotations, poetry, and essays regarding race.
Day 32:
Verb Noire, a small press created to increase opportunity for those who write stories in which characters of color and queer characters are at the center of the action, becomes a reality.
Day 34:
The WOC & Allies Blog Carnival posts its first edition. (Thanks, tenninch, for the info.)
Day 38:
This By Us (THIS) adds photographs to the walls of their stairwell.
Day 43:
ciderpress announces the call for submissions for the first Asian Women's Blog Carnival.
THIS continues their posting onto the third floor of the dance center. Their university defaulted on a promise to replace the pictures of white dancers with a more representative display that recognized the contributions of POC to the history of dance; as it has been two years and the white dancers were still up, THIS did it themselves. They do so while responding peacefully to small acts of vandalism against their project.
Day 45:
THIS receives its first official response, on its fifteenth day.
Day 50:
coffeeandink requests the assistance of others in compiling recommendations of genre fiction by POC. The compiled list takes up ten pages of comments. (Thanks to tacithydra for bringing this one to the table.)
Day 51:
THIS takes the second floor. They include "at the seam of skin and scales".
Day 52:
troubleinchina recommends Team Fandom on Kiva.org, in response to coffeeandink's previous suggestion.
Day 53:
kate_nepveu begins discussing in earnest the idea of providing assistance to fans of color who want to attend Wiscon.
THIS takes the main floor.
(Personal note:A quotation of mine is included in a much...more prominent fashion...than I expected. I was quite honored.)
Day 54:
fight_derailing is formed and begins compiling a roundup of reading lists.
THIS receives a second official response, expressing concerns about the effect of their project on the paint in the dance center and the safety of the students.
The People of Colour In SF/F Blog Carnival announces "Interrogating the Text, De-Colonizing the Mind: An Intra-PoC Dialogue", a special Carnival edition inspired by the events of RF09. Submissions are still being accepted through March 27, 2009. (Thanks to fire_fly and to Legible Susan for this addition.)
Day 55:
Verb Noire begins accepting donations at 4:11 PM.
telesilla begins discussion of a fandom & fanfic auction to support verb_noire. (This project requires ongoing support.)
Day 56:
rydra_wong confirms in a post at 2:09 PM that Verb Noire has met its initial fundraising goal of $1700. Verb Noire confirms their attendance at Worldcon and begins discussing panel options.
The Vector editors post about why people should care about RF09. They explicitly state that their magazine "welcomes submissions from fans and critics of colour, and/or about sf and fantasy work by writers of colour; and the same goes for the Strange Horizons reviews department and submissions of reviews."
Day 57:
Editor ericmarin clarifies the guidelines for Lone Star Stories in order to make explicit his desire to publish voices from underrepresented groups.
racism_101 is founded.
(Please note the commentary regarding this community in comments to this entry.)
yeloson announces a project organizing authors to read their ReMyths at Worldcon.
This By Us posts an open letter regarding THIS' protest actions in their dance center, as well as continuing their project in the restrooms of the building.
Verb Noire posts its first call for submissions. zvi_likes_tv notes that VN is doing chromatic realities for real.
Day 58:
kate_nepveu announces the Wiscon Fans of Color Assistance program.
Faculty and university staff outside the dance program begin taking official notice of THIS.
Jeff Vandermeer announces that his future projects, including Leviathan 5, will explicitly state that they welcome fiction by minorities.
Verb Noire hits 250% of their initial fundraising goal. Shortly thereafter, they update their goal from $1700 to $10,000.
Day 59:
yhlee begins posting a series centered around Learning to Teach for Social Justice.
con_or_bust is created to serve as the fandom auction for the FOC Assistance program.
Day 60:
The Wiscon concomm issues a statement regarding people of color at Wiscon.
12films_poc is begun as a companion project to 50books_poc. (Thanks to liviapenn for the hat tip.)
Day 61:
THIS is the subject of a town hall meeting at its host university. (More information yet to come.)
Verb Noire is coming to Wiscon.
The WOC & Allies Blog Carnival posts its second edition. (Thanks to friend of the Pope tenninch for the WOC&ABC tips.)
Day 62 (At the Time of This Posting Edit):
To date, Verb Noire has raised $6400 and change $7,136.
Approximately $1000 worth of assistance has been requested from the Wiscon POC Assistance Program. 17 22 auctions have been posted for preview at con_or_bust and more offers are upcoming.
Team Fandom at Kiva.org has made 96 loans totalling $2600 100 loans totaling $2,875.
More people than ever are participating at ibarw, at 50books_poc, are learning at racism_101 and strategizing at fight_derailing.
While it's not a product of this discussion, rosefox notes that exp_horizons, the LJ comm for the Expanded Horizons anthology (which arose from concerns about representation in SF/F and has faced racist criticism from highly placed editorial authority for the audacity of existing), has experienced an uptick in activity due to RaceFail. The long-standing POC In SF/F Carnival is attracting more readers. It appears from datestamps that RF09 may be what got the previously-founded WOC & Allies Blog Carnival, which had previously had trouble attracting sufficient submissions, off the ground.
***
It's not magic. Magic is easy and does the work for you.
I still aver that we should avoid thinking of RF09, or any incident where the privileged learn about their privilege due to the denigration, pain and very real suffering of the marginalized erupting in ways too blatant for them to ignore, as somehow having worked out "for the best". It's never "for the best" when people learn from other people getting shit on.
But look at what grew out of this pile of the same old shit. And so quickly.
Orc on, y'all.
***
Know of other achievements, accomplishments, or actions that belong on this list? Tell me what I have missed, please, because I am certain that there is a shitload of other stuff that belongs here. Again, a heartfelt thanks to those who have read, linked, commented and most importantly provided edits, corrections and concerns.
Update on 4/28/2009: more fail, more wins
Racefail 2009 is now in its sixtieth sixty-second day.
(Edited to add: a Before Time section has been added to this post to address the different potential points from which RF09 can be tracked. Those who provided assistance in commenting regarding these edits are credited & their assistance appreciated.)
Let's take a review, here at the two-month point. But, as there are many good summaries of what happened during RaceFail itself that deal in who said what to whom, as well as rydra_wong's medal-worthy archivist skills, I present something a little different.
RaceFail 2009: An Alternate Look at the Timeline
(props to vito_excalibur for this: read it, as there is undated material)
The Before Time: Regarding Edits & Recalendaring
In reviewing the concerns expressed by daedala, icecreamempress, and fire_fly, I have realized that my timeline should be corrected to reflect an earlier start time. icecreamempress expressed an eye-opener on why dating RF09 from the second post is problematic.
For purposes of this timeline, I've settled on Bear's first post as Day One. ( Jay Lake's post of 1/8/2009 is also noted as another potential start date.)
Sixty-two is not a nice round number, but it's more accurate, and I strive for accuracy. Thank you to those whose input assisted me in making these corrections.
Day 1:
Elizabeth Bear posts "whatever you're doing, you're probably wrong", her thoughts on writing the other.
Day 2:
In response to Bear, deepad makes her post I Didn't Dream of Dragons.
yeloson announces the ReMyth Project, inspired in part by deepad's post. (fire_fly drew these two events to my attention and helped inform my understanding of the timeline: thank you.)
Day 3:
Elizabeth Bear posts "real magic can never be made by offering up someone else's liver", the response to Avalon's Willow in which the initial writer/editor bullshit started attracted a large amount of attention.
This seems largely accepted as might appear at first glance to be, but is not, the date on which RaceFail 2009 begins.
Day 21:
zvi_likes_tv begins dreaming of Chromatic Realities, an electronic press "where we control the vertical, we control the horizontal, and it's ALL IN GLORIOUS COLOR." (Thanks to skywardprodigal for the addition.)
Day 30:
This By Us begins filling the stairwell of their dance center with quotations, poetry, and essays regarding race.
Day 32:
Verb Noire, a small press created to increase opportunity for those who write stories in which characters of color and queer characters are at the center of the action, becomes a reality.
Day 34:
The WOC & Allies Blog Carnival posts its first edition. (Thanks, tenninch, for the info.)
Day 38:
This By Us (THIS) adds photographs to the walls of their stairwell.
Day 43:
ciderpress announces the call for submissions for the first Asian Women's Blog Carnival.
THIS continues their posting onto the third floor of the dance center. Their university defaulted on a promise to replace the pictures of white dancers with a more representative display that recognized the contributions of POC to the history of dance; as it has been two years and the white dancers were still up, THIS did it themselves. They do so while responding peacefully to small acts of vandalism against their project.
Day 45:
THIS receives its first official response, on its fifteenth day.
Day 50:
coffeeandink requests the assistance of others in compiling recommendations of genre fiction by POC. The compiled list takes up ten pages of comments. (Thanks to tacithydra for bringing this one to the table.)
Day 51:
THIS takes the second floor. They include "at the seam of skin and scales".
Day 52:
troubleinchina recommends Team Fandom on Kiva.org, in response to coffeeandink's previous suggestion.
Day 53:
kate_nepveu begins discussing in earnest the idea of providing assistance to fans of color who want to attend Wiscon.
THIS takes the main floor.
(Personal note:A quotation of mine is included in a much...more prominent fashion...than I expected. I was quite honored.)
Day 54:
fight_derailing is formed and begins compiling a roundup of reading lists.
THIS receives a second official response, expressing concerns about the effect of their project on the paint in the dance center and the safety of the students.
The People of Colour In SF/F Blog Carnival announces "Interrogating the Text, De-Colonizing the Mind: An Intra-PoC Dialogue", a special Carnival edition inspired by the events of RF09. Submissions are still being accepted through March 27, 2009. (Thanks to fire_fly and to Legible Susan for this addition.)
Day 55:
Verb Noire begins accepting donations at 4:11 PM.
telesilla begins discussion of a fandom & fanfic auction to support verb_noire. (This project requires ongoing support.)
Day 56:
rydra_wong confirms in a post at 2:09 PM that Verb Noire has met its initial fundraising goal of $1700. Verb Noire confirms their attendance at Worldcon and begins discussing panel options.
The Vector editors post about why people should care about RF09. They explicitly state that their magazine "welcomes submissions from fans and critics of colour, and/or about sf and fantasy work by writers of colour; and the same goes for the Strange Horizons reviews department and submissions of reviews."
Day 57:
Editor ericmarin clarifies the guidelines for Lone Star Stories in order to make explicit his desire to publish voices from underrepresented groups.
racism_101 is founded.
(Please note the commentary regarding this community in comments to this entry.)
yeloson announces a project organizing authors to read their ReMyths at Worldcon.
This By Us posts an open letter regarding THIS' protest actions in their dance center, as well as continuing their project in the restrooms of the building.
Verb Noire posts its first call for submissions. zvi_likes_tv notes that VN is doing chromatic realities for real.
Day 58:
kate_nepveu announces the Wiscon Fans of Color Assistance program.
Faculty and university staff outside the dance program begin taking official notice of THIS.
Jeff Vandermeer announces that his future projects, including Leviathan 5, will explicitly state that they welcome fiction by minorities.
Verb Noire hits 250% of their initial fundraising goal. Shortly thereafter, they update their goal from $1700 to $10,000.
Day 59:
yhlee begins posting a series centered around Learning to Teach for Social Justice.
con_or_bust is created to serve as the fandom auction for the FOC Assistance program.
Day 60:
The Wiscon concomm issues a statement regarding people of color at Wiscon.
12films_poc is begun as a companion project to 50books_poc. (Thanks to liviapenn for the hat tip.)
Day 61:
THIS is the subject of a town hall meeting at its host university. (More information yet to come.)
Verb Noire is coming to Wiscon.
The WOC & Allies Blog Carnival posts its second edition. (Thanks to friend of the Pope tenninch for the WOC&ABC tips.)
Day 62 (At the Time of This Posting Edit):
To date, Verb Noire has raised $6400 and change $7,136.
Approximately $1000 worth of assistance has been requested from the Wiscon POC Assistance Program. 17 22 auctions have been posted for preview at con_or_bust and more offers are upcoming.
Team Fandom at Kiva.org has made 96 loans totalling $2600 100 loans totaling $2,875.
More people than ever are participating at ibarw, at 50books_poc, are learning at racism_101 and strategizing at fight_derailing.
While it's not a product of this discussion, rosefox notes that exp_horizons, the LJ comm for the Expanded Horizons anthology (which arose from concerns about representation in SF/F and has faced racist criticism from highly placed editorial authority for the audacity of existing), has experienced an uptick in activity due to RaceFail. The long-standing POC In SF/F Carnival is attracting more readers. It appears from datestamps that RF09 may be what got the previously-founded WOC & Allies Blog Carnival, which had previously had trouble attracting sufficient submissions, off the ground.
***
It's not magic. Magic is easy and does the work for you.
I still aver that we should avoid thinking of RF09, or any incident where the privileged learn about their privilege due to the denigration, pain and very real suffering of the marginalized erupting in ways too blatant for them to ignore, as somehow having worked out "for the best". It's never "for the best" when people learn from other people getting shit on.
But look at what grew out of this pile of the same old shit. And so quickly.
Orc on, y'all.
***
Know of other achievements, accomplishments, or actions that belong on this list? Tell me what I have missed, please, because I am certain that there is a shitload of other stuff that belongs here. Again, a heartfelt thanks to those who have read, linked, commented and most importantly provided edits, corrections and concerns.
Update on 4/28/2009: more fail, more wins