Why are people bothered by diversity?
In middle school, my friend showed me an animated series called “Voltron: Legendary Defender.” We were sitting on the couch in her house, sipping Diet Cokes and eating crackers when a queer-coded scene involving two of the male leads came on the screen. They were looking at each other. The lighting was a romantic pinkish-purple. As we watched, she asked, “Why does everything need to be gay nowadays?”
The way representation is questioned is deceptive. Inquiries like “Why does race matter? or “Shouldn’t a talented actor get the role, regardless of race?” ignore the nuances involving the representation of marginalized communities. We must consider the importance of diversity in Hollywood and talent when casting actors for roles.
If you’re asking me if talent matters more than appearance, I’d say talent trumps looks. But to boil race down to mere appearance ignores the fact that different races also have different experiences in life. Certain characters have stories that are directly impacted by their racial or ethnic identities. Take the character of Mulan, for example. It’s obvious that Mulan is a Chinese girl living in China in the original animated Disney film. The setting of “Mulan” informs much of the plot as well as the appearance and behavior of the characters. To replace Mulan with a white actress would be disingenuous to the role. A Chinese actress could empathize with the character and understand her mannerisms better than an actress who isn’t.
This is the key difference between a person of color playing a character who’s white versus a white person playing a character who’s a person of color. Typically, white characters’ stories aren’t impacted by their race. People don’t treat them differently, their families don’t have unique customs or dynamics, and race is hardly relevant to the character’s development. That’s not the case with characters who are originally established as people of color. Moreover, the inclusion of people of color in Hollywood improves diversity in Hollywood, which allows actors of color to gain greater success in the industry. It paves the way for future generations of actors to enjoy job opportunities in the field.
Additionally, representation matters to audiences. It’s an easy way for audiences to connect with characters, which improves self-esteem and normalizes diversity for real people. There’s been a lot of debate about whether having more LGBTQ+ characters in television is a good or bad thing. This discourse has been riddled with claims that it’s inappropriate for television to show LGBTQ+ relationships. This rhetoric is wrong because it assumes that people who aren’t heterosexual are deviant. It’s no more inappropriate for a homosexual couple to be shown on screen than it is for a heterosexual couple. In fact, I’d argue that many of the heterosexual couples I’ve seen on television are far more toxic than their LGBTQ+ counterparts. More than that, these characters normalize the existence of other sexualities, which allows people to better recognize themselves on screen and rid themselves of any shame they feel regarding their identities. This is true of any representation of any marginalized identity – seeing yourself represented in media is hugely affirming. It proves that there’s nothing wrong with you.
In my personal experience, good representation of South Asians was difficult to come by. We were always portrayed as socially awkward brainiacs with smelly food and strict parents. It wasn’t until the show “Never Have I Ever” that I saw a character with my cultural background that was relatively normal. This helped my self-esteem immensely by showing that South Asian people can be valued in American culture too. The word representation is thrown around a lot these days, and a lot of people are offended at the concept. However, to view representation as frivolous is a privilege in and of itself – it means your identities are portrayed often and well. People with a problem with diversity would do well to remember that and share the spotlight.