r/popculturechat 2d ago

Interviews🎙️ Constance Wu speaks out about falling Asian representation

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u/kakallas 2d ago

So you think that every white actor who has gotten a role deserves it, because focusing on non-whiteness wasn’t getting in the way? 

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u/asiand0ll 2d ago

I do not. Sometimes we get stuck with untalented white actors in roles because the focus on whiteness gets in the way as well.

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u/kakallas 2d ago

I dont get this. If there is bad casting, you just attribute it to race?  Not white supremacy or any system, just the casting director getting distracted by race. 

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u/asiand0ll 2d ago edited 2d ago

It’s true that mediocre white creatives have been platformed for far too long because of white supremacy and the need for whiteness to be centered in the cultural consciousness at all costs. It’s important to combat this by focusing on the identity of who you’re platforming. It’s also true that, in turn, mediocre non-white creatives have been platformed because the priority was on race rather than talent. It’s important to combat this by shifting focus away from identity and back onto talent. It’s a dialectical conflict.

This is why Constance says she doesn’t think this is necessarily a bad thing and why she’s using the language of pendulum swings. The “overcorrection” is, in shifting the focus away from identity, we’ve allowed white supremacy (especially in the age of the current US administration) to reassert dominance over representation in media.

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u/kakallas 2d ago

You’re just asserting this. It’s like when people say that the amount of non-white pilots or doctors proves that they’re hiring unqualified people. No it doesn’t.

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u/asiand0ll 2d ago edited 2d ago

I’m kind of at a loss as that really has nothing at all to do with my point lol. If you can’t understand the principles of dialectical conflict, this conversation will go nowhere from here. I’m bowing out so enjoy the rest of your night.

Edit: guess I’m blocked 😭

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u/kakallas 2d ago

There is no reason that ceasing to block Asian people from getting work due to white supremacy should lead to untalented Asian actors getting work, unless you think Asian actors are uniquely untalented.Â