An Exchange with Nick Wagner
Posted by ATBW at August 3, 2007 3:04 PM and is filed under Africa,In the News,Politics,media,Art,Racism 
Hi Kym,
First I must admit that yes, unfortunately, this is a message concerning Resident Evil. I'm sure you're more than overwhelmed at the moment with the uproar caused by your post, and I apologize for adding to that. But I do have some thoughts I'd like to share with you, as I can see from your writing that you're a thoughtful and intelligent person. And I am very curious as to what your reaction to my ideas might be.
When I first saw the trailer (I'm a video game enthusiast (i.e: a nerd), so I'm on top of these things) I had a pretty similar reaction to you. I thought, "Oh boy, this looks really bad." But I'm familiar with the series and the ongoing story in it, so I thought about the trailer in regards to that story. You see, in the Resident Evil series, there's a huge corporation called Umbrella. They're some kind of bio-engineering/pharmaceutical corporation. Through the course of the first game, we find out that Umbrella was responsible for developing a virus that was meant to enhance humans by making them stronger and less susceptible to injury, etc. But of course, it turns out that this virus causes people to become zombies. Perhaps not the most original storytelling in the world, but it did make for a scary videogame with a great atmosphere of deception and corporate malfeasance, with the true victims being the unfortunate inhabitants of backwater Raccoon City, where the story was set.
As the series progresses, we find out more about Umbrella Corp., and all the affronts to humanity they've been guilty of in their Ultimate Quest for More Money. Now, in Resident Evil 5 (from what I can glean from the trailer) it appears that Umbrella has set up shop in Africa, or perhaps Port-au-Prince, as some rumors indicate. My guess is that Umbrella is there testing "medicine" on the local population. Medicine that no doubt turns people into bloodthirsty mindless zombies.
So we've got this huge multinational pharmaceutical corporation bent on pushing new drugs through development by testing in developing nations. Now at this point I'm reminded of a few movies from recent years that deal with similar phenomena, for example The Constant Gardner. (Now I have mixed feelings on the racial implications of that movie—particularly that it seems a white man must play savior to the Africans; what are your thoughts on this?) There seems to be a kind of awareness beginning to bud in our world concerning these large pharmaceutical companies and their seeming disregard for human decency in the pursuit of financial gains. And often these gains come most immediately at the expense of the poorest countries of the world.
I lived in Tanzania for five months and am aware first-hand of the lack of basic medicines and medical care that is common in developing nations today. I am also aware of how easy it would be for some morally lax company to pretend to be offering relief, but instead take advantage of the disadvantaged populations.
Might it be that Resident Evil 5 is actually exposing this phenomenon? I know that videogames have dubious credentials when it comes to "art" and that they often simply reuse themes common in pop culture at the time. But perhaps this game is reusing a current theme that, in my opinion, could use a little more play time in the public's eye. The theme that large corporations have very little interest in human lives and are willing to take advantage of whoever happens to be least expensive to take advantage of.
It may have been a better idea to use a black protagonist in the game (and in fact, if past games are any indication, there will be one or two major "good guy" characters from the local population) but they also wanted to reuse a hero from one of the earlier games to tie the story together for the players.
So those are my thoughts. I truly hope you don't mind me sharing them with you. Open dialog is important, and it's very unfortunate that you had to close the comments sections from the post on your website, but I completely understand the need to do so.
If you don't mind, I would very much appreciate at least a short response so that I know you've received this message. But please feel free to share with me your reactions to my musings.
Sincerely,
Nick Wagner
__________________________________________________________________
Nick,
Thanks for your thoughtful and informative message. It's interesting how persistent you gamers are... apparently I am being stalked all over cyberspace and as of a few minutes ago, I am unable to log on to AskThisBlackWoman or blacklooks because so many folks have overloaded the sites.
Before I respond to your e-mail, I just want to point out some issues of concern that have come up after I posted about RE5. 1. The original article wasn't even by me. I responded to Bonnie Ruberg's piece in the Village Voice and interestingly, she has not received the same hateful and violent responses that I have. She's white.
2. My post was about the images in the game, and how those images could possibly be interpreted as racist. Ironically, the most racist part to this whole controversy has been the comments by RE5's defenders.
It's up in the air whether or no RE5 and its images of Black people could be interpreted as racially problematic. It's all about perspective. And the reason I posted about it, and the reason my blog ATBW exists, is to engage in dialogue about issues of race. I can be quite sarcastic at times, and some folks don't get me, but the intent is to challenge, provoke, and engage, so that we might be able to change some things in this world. And to wake folks up a bit.
There is a long history of Black people on the African continent and in the diaspora being portrayed as inhuman, savage, etc. So, for those of us who are conscious of racism and the history of white supremacy, the mere image...a picture, a snippet, a two-minute trailer, invokes serious concern and anxiety about the way in which Black people continue to be portrayed.
Now...I confess ignorance about the storyline of RE5, but your e-mail was quite illuminating. Thank you. I also don't know much about gaming or video games, but I do know a tremendous amount about the images of Black people and how those images impact the way in which we are perceived in the real world. RE5 is not the first racially controversial video game, and I'm sure it will not be the last. However, your analysis of Big Pharmaceutical and its behavior in Africa is on point and it's something that I have written about before.
I too have traveled extensively throughout Africa and have seen the medical neglect Africans suffer. I have also seen the parasitic endeavors and medical experiments inflicted upon Africans by Big Pharmaceutical. And, there is a legacy of medical experiments inflicted upon Black people in the US as well. If you are correct, and RE5 is a critique upon pharmaceutical experiments in Africa, then yes, it would be important to note that RE5 is exposing this phenomenon. But, I have serious doubts about whether or not this is entirely true and even more importantly, whether or not most RE5 gamers would be able to "get it". Especially given the hostility of the comments hurled at me for merely questioning if the images in RE5 were problematic.
You must also understand that I was responding to the imagery, the killing of Black people, rather than critiquing the storyline. But...I'm glad you have critiqued the storyline and I find your analysis to be very smart. With your permission, I would like to post your analysis. It's the most intelligent and conscientious thing a gamer in support of RE5 has written.
Thanks again.
—kp
__________________________________________________________________
Kym,
I'd be honored for you to post my thoughts! Thank you so much for the response. I was hoping the negative backlash wasn't so overwhelming as to make it impossible to sort the constructive from the hateful.
And I know as well as anyone else that my fellow gamers can be irrational, hateful, unthinking or ignorant. Of course, I hesitate to even apply the label "gamer" to myself, because naturally who play videogames have very diverse backgrounds, educations, and attitudes, and so the connotations brought to mind by the term are so often incorrect. But I am truly sorry that there has been such a negative, and hateful, response.
I think that perhaps some people are defending the game because they know (or want to believe), on some level, that the game isn't meant to be "about" shooting black people (because they're familiar with the story and the characters) and so want to defend the game, but perhaps lack the ability to analyze the game within its social context deeply enough to really understand *why* it's not about shooting black people and what, instead, it *is* about. I know that sentence became a bit unwieldy, but my afternoon coffee is wearing off!
The phrase "parasitic endeavors" is particularly apt in application to the fictional Umbrella Corp., because in the story they literally create parasites that are meant to enhance humans. It's certainly over the top, but it leaves no doubt as to the moral and ethical bankruptcy of this particular corporation, which I think is essential in getting the point across to the wide audience of video games. In all of the Resident Evil series, the biggest victims have been the regular people whose minds and bodies have been destroyed by Umbrella long before the game begins.
But you're absolutely correct, the imagery of the trailer is startling, and without that context is quite reprehensible. Since I know the story, I could view the trailer with that in mind. But then as soon as the action started I thought to myself, "What am I watching?!!" It represents a great error of judgment that no one at Capcom thought to give a little more context or explanation to the action.
Thank you for engaging with me, and thank you for remaining open to feedback even in the face of so much vitriol directed your way. Please feel free to post anything from either of these letters, editing as you see fit.
Cheers,
Nick
First I must admit that yes, unfortunately, this is a message concerning Resident Evil. I'm sure you're more than overwhelmed at the moment with the uproar caused by your post, and I apologize for adding to that. But I do have some thoughts I'd like to share with you, as I can see from your writing that you're a thoughtful and intelligent person. And I am very curious as to what your reaction to my ideas might be.
When I first saw the trailer (I'm a video game enthusiast (i.e: a nerd), so I'm on top of these things) I had a pretty similar reaction to you. I thought, "Oh boy, this looks really bad." But I'm familiar with the series and the ongoing story in it, so I thought about the trailer in regards to that story. You see, in the Resident Evil series, there's a huge corporation called Umbrella. They're some kind of bio-engineering/pharmaceutical corporation. Through the course of the first game, we find out that Umbrella was responsible for developing a virus that was meant to enhance humans by making them stronger and less susceptible to injury, etc. But of course, it turns out that this virus causes people to become zombies. Perhaps not the most original storytelling in the world, but it did make for a scary videogame with a great atmosphere of deception and corporate malfeasance, with the true victims being the unfortunate inhabitants of backwater Raccoon City, where the story was set.
As the series progresses, we find out more about Umbrella Corp., and all the affronts to humanity they've been guilty of in their Ultimate Quest for More Money. Now, in Resident Evil 5 (from what I can glean from the trailer) it appears that Umbrella has set up shop in Africa, or perhaps Port-au-Prince, as some rumors indicate. My guess is that Umbrella is there testing "medicine" on the local population. Medicine that no doubt turns people into bloodthirsty mindless zombies.
So we've got this huge multinational pharmaceutical corporation bent on pushing new drugs through development by testing in developing nations. Now at this point I'm reminded of a few movies from recent years that deal with similar phenomena, for example The Constant Gardner. (Now I have mixed feelings on the racial implications of that movie—particularly that it seems a white man must play savior to the Africans; what are your thoughts on this?) There seems to be a kind of awareness beginning to bud in our world concerning these large pharmaceutical companies and their seeming disregard for human decency in the pursuit of financial gains. And often these gains come most immediately at the expense of the poorest countries of the world.
I lived in Tanzania for five months and am aware first-hand of the lack of basic medicines and medical care that is common in developing nations today. I am also aware of how easy it would be for some morally lax company to pretend to be offering relief, but instead take advantage of the disadvantaged populations.
Might it be that Resident Evil 5 is actually exposing this phenomenon? I know that videogames have dubious credentials when it comes to "art" and that they often simply reuse themes common in pop culture at the time. But perhaps this game is reusing a current theme that, in my opinion, could use a little more play time in the public's eye. The theme that large corporations have very little interest in human lives and are willing to take advantage of whoever happens to be least expensive to take advantage of.
It may have been a better idea to use a black protagonist in the game (and in fact, if past games are any indication, there will be one or two major "good guy" characters from the local population) but they also wanted to reuse a hero from one of the earlier games to tie the story together for the players.
So those are my thoughts. I truly hope you don't mind me sharing them with you. Open dialog is important, and it's very unfortunate that you had to close the comments sections from the post on your website, but I completely understand the need to do so.
If you don't mind, I would very much appreciate at least a short response so that I know you've received this message. But please feel free to share with me your reactions to my musings.
Sincerely,
Nick Wagner
__________________________________________________________________
Nick,
Thanks for your thoughtful and informative message. It's interesting how persistent you gamers are... apparently I am being stalked all over cyberspace and as of a few minutes ago, I am unable to log on to AskThisBlackWoman or blacklooks because so many folks have overloaded the sites.
Before I respond to your e-mail, I just want to point out some issues of concern that have come up after I posted about RE5. 1. The original article wasn't even by me. I responded to Bonnie Ruberg's piece in the Village Voice and interestingly, she has not received the same hateful and violent responses that I have. She's white.
2. My post was about the images in the game, and how those images could possibly be interpreted as racist. Ironically, the most racist part to this whole controversy has been the comments by RE5's defenders.
It's up in the air whether or no RE5 and its images of Black people could be interpreted as racially problematic. It's all about perspective. And the reason I posted about it, and the reason my blog ATBW exists, is to engage in dialogue about issues of race. I can be quite sarcastic at times, and some folks don't get me, but the intent is to challenge, provoke, and engage, so that we might be able to change some things in this world. And to wake folks up a bit.
There is a long history of Black people on the African continent and in the diaspora being portrayed as inhuman, savage, etc. So, for those of us who are conscious of racism and the history of white supremacy, the mere image...a picture, a snippet, a two-minute trailer, invokes serious concern and anxiety about the way in which Black people continue to be portrayed.
Now...I confess ignorance about the storyline of RE5, but your e-mail was quite illuminating. Thank you. I also don't know much about gaming or video games, but I do know a tremendous amount about the images of Black people and how those images impact the way in which we are perceived in the real world. RE5 is not the first racially controversial video game, and I'm sure it will not be the last. However, your analysis of Big Pharmaceutical and its behavior in Africa is on point and it's something that I have written about before.
I too have traveled extensively throughout Africa and have seen the medical neglect Africans suffer. I have also seen the parasitic endeavors and medical experiments inflicted upon Africans by Big Pharmaceutical. And, there is a legacy of medical experiments inflicted upon Black people in the US as well. If you are correct, and RE5 is a critique upon pharmaceutical experiments in Africa, then yes, it would be important to note that RE5 is exposing this phenomenon. But, I have serious doubts about whether or not this is entirely true and even more importantly, whether or not most RE5 gamers would be able to "get it". Especially given the hostility of the comments hurled at me for merely questioning if the images in RE5 were problematic.
You must also understand that I was responding to the imagery, the killing of Black people, rather than critiquing the storyline. But...I'm glad you have critiqued the storyline and I find your analysis to be very smart. With your permission, I would like to post your analysis. It's the most intelligent and conscientious thing a gamer in support of RE5 has written.
Thanks again.
—kp
__________________________________________________________________
Kym,
I'd be honored for you to post my thoughts! Thank you so much for the response. I was hoping the negative backlash wasn't so overwhelming as to make it impossible to sort the constructive from the hateful.
And I know as well as anyone else that my fellow gamers can be irrational, hateful, unthinking or ignorant. Of course, I hesitate to even apply the label "gamer" to myself, because naturally who play videogames have very diverse backgrounds, educations, and attitudes, and so the connotations brought to mind by the term are so often incorrect. But I am truly sorry that there has been such a negative, and hateful, response.
I think that perhaps some people are defending the game because they know (or want to believe), on some level, that the game isn't meant to be "about" shooting black people (because they're familiar with the story and the characters) and so want to defend the game, but perhaps lack the ability to analyze the game within its social context deeply enough to really understand *why* it's not about shooting black people and what, instead, it *is* about. I know that sentence became a bit unwieldy, but my afternoon coffee is wearing off!
The phrase "parasitic endeavors" is particularly apt in application to the fictional Umbrella Corp., because in the story they literally create parasites that are meant to enhance humans. It's certainly over the top, but it leaves no doubt as to the moral and ethical bankruptcy of this particular corporation, which I think is essential in getting the point across to the wide audience of video games. In all of the Resident Evil series, the biggest victims have been the regular people whose minds and bodies have been destroyed by Umbrella long before the game begins.
But you're absolutely correct, the imagery of the trailer is startling, and without that context is quite reprehensible. Since I know the story, I could view the trailer with that in mind. But then as soon as the action started I thought to myself, "What am I watching?!!" It represents a great error of judgment that no one at Capcom thought to give a little more context or explanation to the action.
Thank you for engaging with me, and thank you for remaining open to feedback even in the face of so much vitriol directed your way. Please feel free to post anything from either of these letters, editing as you see fit.
Cheers,
Nick
"You must also understand that I was responding to the imagery, the killing of Black people, rather than critiquing the storyline."
So when the black people were spaniards in Resident Evil 4, it didn't matter? Black people aren't special, they're people like everyone else, and deserve to be turned into mindless monsters just as much as whites or latinos.
At least you get what Resident Evil is about now.
Reply to this
Please understand that these Zombies are already dead. These zombies are controlled by an evil corporation and the white man you see killing them all is only killing zombies. The real evil in this game is not the white man killing the zombies but the evil doers making all these innocent people into zombies. If anything the main character is trying to stop this from happening so really he is trying to help them.
I understand that you do not understand very much about Resident Evil and video games but really I challenge you to do research into it. I just don't understand how you can demonize anything you know next to nothing about. If you want help doing research on video games I'm sure many people at gamepolitics would be very happy to assist you.
We are very sorry about the racist individuals that continue to post garbage there. Its pretty sickening to the regular visitors. They tend to pop up every now and then whenever a issue like this arrives. I'm not a mod or admin at gamepolitics but I can safely say that no one in the community supports racism and we don't wish to be enemies.
As for some of the harsh comments I don't exactly think we could settle that. I mean if I posted something completely ignorant that demonized something you cared about and supported I'm sure many people here would insult me in the same way. But I don't.
Gamers are really misunderstood and I really wish you could familiarize yourself with us. We really do just want to get along but its hard to when people so often spread lies about us. Lies like video games were the cause of Columbine or the Virginia Tech massacre. These lies really upset us and when someone not only claims we are racist but throws that lie at us we tend to get a bit rabid.
I am personally sorry I've insulted you but please understand that we know for a fact Capcom is not promoting racism as we've played all the resident evil games and them trying to implement racism would just be a terrible move. They just like changing the location of where the zombie outbreak will take place and they fully justify it with the story.
I'm sure if you took some time and talked to the regulars over at GamePolitics and in particular the main man Dennis, you'll find us to be pretty cool guys and gals. We can get pretty rabid at times(obviously) but if you knew what we had to put up with as a group you may find it a bit easier to forgive us. I really just think this was a misunderstanding and I'm pretty sure we would like to settle it.
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Kym I'm sorry about the hateful commments your article garnered. However, there's something you have to understand; we "gamers" as we're called, are incredibly used to being stereotyped, and having ignorant people attack our games for "questionable" content. The problem is that most of these people who make accusations about games have absolutely no clue what they are talking about, and merely assume things. If you don't mind me saying, you certainly came off as one of these ignorant folks. In fact, your initial article wasn't just questioning the material in the game, but actually making accusations that it was racist. Plus, your statement about the game being targeted at children certainly didn't help the situation. Many people ignorantly assume that videogames are made for and targeted at children, when in fact many are targeted at adults(especially in the case of RE5). In short, we gamers are used to dealing with blatant ignorance about us as well as video games, and your article came off as merely more of the same.
Reply to this
Kym I'm sorry about the hateful commments your article garnered. However, there's something you have to understand; we "gamers" as we're called, are incredibly used to being stereotyped, and having ignorant people attack our games for "questionable" content. The problem is that most of these people who make accusations about games have absolutely no clue what they are talking about, and merely assume things. If you don't mind me saying, you certainly came off as one of these ignorant folks. In fact, your initial article wasn't just questioning the material in the game, but actually making accusations that it was racist. Plus, your statement about the game being targeted at children certainly didn't help the situation. Many people ignorantly assume that videogames are made for and targeted at children, when in fact many are targeted at adults(especially in the case of RE5). In short, we gamers are used to dealing with blatant ignorance about us as well as video games, and your article came off as merely more of the same.
Reply to this
You know if you would have written your opinion on the article as well as you responded in this letter people might not have attacked you as quickly (though I will admit one must always expect flamers on the internet), but with responses made by you a few points down about how all zombies should be white, one can only come to the conclusion that you are nothing more than a militant black screaming racism where there is none.
It is also sad that you immediately threw the racism card about a game before any research was done, and no that crappy article that you linked to was not research, personally I found that article nothing more than a piece done in the hopes that if the person cried racism and supposedly uncovered such in a video game than their career would be furthered. The article had no basis, no research done, and little merit.
If you really wish to help the “way in which Black People continue to be portrayed” than you need to set yourself up as what you believe the standard should be. Not throw the race card in something you have no knowledge in ( or even progress the throwing of that race card), don’t make comments such as zombies should only be white ( a statement by the way that many will say shows your own racism towards a group), and don’t point out that miss white girl isn’t getting hounded as much (especially since your link to the original article was embedded under the name Resident Evil, which if I hadn’t read most of the comments would have never seen as I assumed you were linking to either the game site or a review about the game, something I didn’t need to see as I already know what the game story line is; by the way I did leave a comment on the articles page about its lack of merit and use).
In closing (and yes I know its hard to do especially when you believe and injustice is being done), research something, don’t just take one article made by an unknown journalist as proof of wrong doing, and when a hot topic is involved such as racism don’t even take a group such as CNN's word about it. Do your own looking and find out what you can, maybe even ask a gamer (i.e. a person with more knowledge about that field) what they think about the game (field/item) and get their opinion before coming to a conclusion.
Also I would like to apologize for some gamers’ words, we sometimes write something in anger and post it before actually doing our own research and thought process about the issue.
As a side note gamepolitics.com is where you are probably getting most of your hits, I would suggest if you haven’t yet looking there too, I will warn you though flamers/trolls exists on that board.
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Hi Kym,
I'm sorry there's been so many ugly responses to this thing. I must say when I read your first post about the trailer, your interpretation of it seemed to assume the worst. It was also very difficult to gauge how tongue-in-cheek it was meant to be.
Our world is a strange place. A person could be born on an isolated desert island, not familiar with the concept of racism. Because that person is not familar with racism and not culturally sensitive to it, things they do that are totally innocent and aren't about color could be interpreted the same way as some interpret this trailer.
The concept of not being racist is not about being pure and free of such thoughts. You have to be trained in sensitivity to such issues now. It seems kind of odd, but it's like you have to acknowledge racism and go out of the way to avoid to to not be racist, not just be free of any such thoughts.
I would think it would make more sense if not being a racist was about purity of mind instead of prerequisites. I think the difference between the two is what this debate is truly about.
Reply to this
You seem to be a lot more well-spoken here. Which is a shame, because this is the post which is going to be reflected in everyone's mind:
-------
Yes… I am more comfortable with the zombies being white. In fact, ALL zombies should be white from this day forth.
-------
The impression I get from that is someone who's racist. Without tracking back to your personal blog here, most people won't see that you can think rationally a respond intelligently. All they'll see is someone making broad, sweeping generalizations about their particular sub-group in society, demonizing them in much the same way you fear black people being demonized, then saying that it's alright to kill whitey.
After every school shooting for the last decade and a half, everyone who happens to have played a video game or two has been eyed warily. The first question on the media's mind these days is not whether the child, teenager, or young adult had a traumatic life or a disturbed mind... Instead, the question is whether or not he played Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. I don't find it strange that you'd be lashed out at by a less-mature subset of the gamer community.
Reply to this
Hello Kym, it's me again. I don't know if you have read my comments on the articles you previously posted, but please do to understand the viewpoint of me and other gamers .(http://www.blacklooks.org/2007/08/where_lies_the_resident_evil.html#comment-63043)
I know that your original article was a reply to Bonnie Ruberg, but it is what you wrote in response to her that has made so many people angry.
In response to you getting hateful responses and not her, I'm once again dissappointed to see you bring up race: "...she has not received the same hateful and violent responses that I have. She's white." Why can't it be that the abuse you have gotten is due to what you have said and not your colour?
I've looked and what Bonnie has said in her blog, and what you have written in response and there are clear differences in how they are written:
1. Bonnie's entry starts off by first introducing Resident Evil and what it's about and stating that for the previous games you fought mainly white zombies. She also gives background into the character that you play as, and the fact that he has appeared in previous games.
You however, don't do this. You start off saying: "The new Resident Evil video game depicts a white man in what appears to be Africa killing Black people." No mention about what the games are about and the fact that they are inhuman zombies. You also immediately label the protagonist as a "White man" without saying that he has been a main character in previous game and that he has a motive for taking down these zombies. I'm going to say that the protagonist isn't shooting Black people, and technically I'd be correct, because he isn't. I bet that if there is a friendly Black person in the location Chris is in, Chris will not shoot him/her. Also, if there is a zombie that isn't Black, Chris would more that likely shoot him/her, which makes it much more accurate to say that Chris is shooting zombies, not Black people.
One thing that any gamer that knows anything about Resident Evil will notice, is that Bonnie has done her homework about the series, and that you haven't; that could be the first reason people choose to attack you for your comments.
2. "My post was about the images in the game, and how those images could possibly be interpreted as racist."
Where in your original post have you said the key words: images, interpretation or racist? Nowhere. You don't even hint that that is what you are talking about. I can't even see how your supposed sarcasm could even make you post something like that, and mean what you said above. It just seems to me that you are trying to dig yourself out of a hole with this one; can't you just own up?
"Ironically, the most racist part to this whole controversy has been the comments by RE5's defenders."
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Part 2
"Ironically, the most racist part to this whole controversy has been the comments by RE5's defenders."
This is true, if you count every response you got to your article. But if you leave only the coherent, well thought-out posts, then I'd say the most racist part to this has been you, and your reply saying that all zombies should be white, which is way out of line for someone who claims to be against racism to say, whether you were sarcastic in that comment or not, I don't know but you left nothing to suggest that you were, and many people will, and have taken it the wrong way, if you were being sarcastic. Another reason people may have verbally attacked you. Besides, if all zombies had to be white, then where would Michael Jackson's Thriller be?
"It's up in the air whether or no RE5 and its images of Black people could be interpreted as racially problematic."
Exactly. So why not state that in your article and ask for discussion insead of posting what you did? What you said left nothing open for discussion, and quite frankly, just came off (to me at least) as a bitter opinion on 2 minutes of a gameplay trailer.
"So, for those of us who are conscious of racism and the history of white supremacy, the mere image...a picture, a snippet, a two-minute trailer, invokes serious concern and anxiety about the way in which Black people continue to be portrayed."
Being an educated Black person, I'd like to say I'm aware of racism, and it's history. But this trailer does NOT spark serious concern or anxiety about the way Black people are portrayed, the opposite would hold true for me; if Capcom continued to make Resident Evil games without any Black enemies without any decent reason, then I'd be concerned as I'd feel we aren't being portrayed as equal to other races.
In short, what does this trailer make me think about the portrayal of Black people? It makes me think that we are being portrayed as the same as any other race, and seeing as other races in the series have sufferered from outbreaks, that makes sense. Why can't we be the zombies for once?
Thanks for taking the time to read my comments, Stephen.
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Despite his best intentions, Nick has totally missed the point (and I'm a bit surprised that Kim did not point this out). He seems to be arguing that the RE5 game makers are making a point (i.e., that the pharmaceutical industry is carrying out evil experiments), and are therefore justified in using whatever imagery is "suitable" for illustrating the point (or, alternatively, that the imagery is secondary and should not even be considered when critiquing the game. Only the "plot" should be considered).
If the gamemakers want to show that terrible experiments have been done in Africa or elsewhere by faceless corporations, the point is worth making and can be made in a variety of ways (perhaps the white soldier can be killing the scientists doing the experiments - they must also be zombies to be so heartless).
But images of a white soldier killing black people has nothing to do with the supposed message that Nick describes. Furthermore, providing hours of such images only serves to shift the focus of the game for everyone not willing to "dig deeper" into the "plot" (i.e., nearly all non-gamers, young children playing the game, etc.).
The point is that some images are inappropriate no matter what the underlying message. Arguing that RE5 is a social commentary or a call to activism against big pharma is a weak attempt at trying to justify the continued portrayal of blacks as savage.
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"some images are inappropriate no matter what the underlying message."
This seems very problematic to me. Wouldn't this disallow movies portraying the horrors of the holocaust or of slavery? The images are horrible, so anything using those images to illustrate just how terrible such things are should be banned?
There is a difference between horrible and horrifying. Movies depicting the Holocaust or slavery in early America should most certainly be horrifying in order to be effective. That doesn't make the movies themselves horrible. It makes the events they're depicting horrible.
As someone else pointed out, it's too early to tell exactly what the message of RE5 is, but this kind of comment applies not only to this particular video game, but to the ability of any art or speech to ever use horrifying imagery to convey the horror of a situation. And I have a problem with that.
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"The point is that some images are inappropriate no matter what the underlying message. Arguing that RE5 is a social commentary or a call to activism against big pharma is a weak attempt at trying to justify the continued portrayal of blacks as savage."
Yes true true, but this is about the portayal of zombies being savages. You are missing the point. Why can't black people turn into zombies and only white people can, in a fictional story?
And it's way too early to start talking about the underlying messages in this game because we haven't played it yet. Also Kym, I can see why you screamed bloody murder after seeing the trailer. You were not informed or failed to inform yourself about this subject and that alone is proof of weak journalism. I for one am not sad about the racial slurs you have been getting, because frankly it was you who inticed this whole ordeal by making racist remarks and by generalising a whole 'community'.
I hope you will not make this mistake again.
greetings,
Keith
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"I responded to Bonnie Ruberg's piece in the Village Voice and interestingly, she has not received the same hateful and violent responses that I have. She's white."
Its because you came off like you were attacking it, Bonnie didn't. Consider it a difference of writing styles. But from what I can see in the way you present things, your probably just going to point at me and call me a racist because I'm white.
On a side note, the reason why people responded with hostility to your previous posts is because gamers are getting sick of being picked on. We have countless people fighting against video games because they think we are violent low lives, then to have you come out of nowhere and attack RE5 like you did was like a kick in the gut.
Despite your attack, that doesn't make what some people said to you right, the one response posted in your follow up blog was out of line and unacceptable. But what can you do, there are idiots everywhere.
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"Yes… I am more comfortable with the zombies being white. In fact, ALL zombies should be white from this day forth."
WTF is up with that???? You are saying that and you don't admit that you are a racist????
That's fucking racist.
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Let me give you some advice. Stop trying to crap out of this hole that your racism dug and admit that you screwed up. Post a retraction saying, "I made a uneducated, opinionated, and pompuse post and I'm sorry. Please forgive me for acting like the racist I seek to flush out."
Try that for once. If you truly want to be a great reporter/blogger/writer, you need to learn when to say "I was wrong, and I'm sorry."
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Why is it only the Americans who've pointed this out?
I've not read anything from black Parisians, nor anything South Londoners, or South Africa, or from Aboriginal Australia.
Could it be that some people search for racism everywhere?
I've never read on any of these so-called "black" or anti-racism sites when racism in games comes up (and it does frequently) people jumping to the aid of the Arabs, when in nearly every single game they're portrayed as sinister, hairy, enemy fodder to be killed.
There's nothing about how whenever you hear a German voice, that character is ALWAYS a Nazi.
There's nothing about how every coward and or traitor in games will have a French accent.
In my mind that's more ignorant and hypocritical and racist than anything else I've read on these boards.
You're not about racism, you're about you.
You're being selfish and arrogant trying to put your simple world view onto all others and condemning them for it.
I would say "typically American" but then again, that's racist.
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