White Supremacists Urge Thor Boycott Over Casting of Black Actor As Norse God
Guardian (London), December 15, 2010
When it was announced that Idris Elba was cast as Heimdall in Kenneth Branagh’s Thor, there was a certain segment of the online population that went nuts. See, Heimdall–a relatively minor character in the Thor comics–had been traditionally portrayed as white, as had all the gods of Asgard. Even small changes like costume differences or hair color can send comic book fans spiraling into a rage, so the change of race made some people apparently shit their pants.
Turns out they’re not alone. The Council of Conservative Citizens, classified as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, is riled up as well. {snip}
{snip}
The Boycott Thor site also has an article that exposes the blackness of The Black Panther, and is horrified that T’Challa is portrayed as a genius. I really can’t tell if this is a joke or not; I couldn’t find out to whom the site is registered, and their Facebook fan page seems fairly legit (and has 150 fans). The Council of Conservative Citizens is undoubtedly real.
I’ve always felt there was a disturbing current of racism and homophobia that lies just under the surface of fandom, but it’s hard to sometimes tell whether it’s racial politics or semi-aspergian resistance to change {snip}.
{snip}
When it was announced that Idris Elba was cast as Heimdall in Kenneth Branagh’s Thor, there was a certain segment of the online population that went nuts. See, Heimdall–a relatively minor character in the Thor comics–had been traditionally portrayed as white, as had all the gods of Asgard. Even small changes like costume differences or hair color can send comic book fans spiraling into a rage, so the change of race made some people apparently shit their pants.
Turns out they’re not alone. The Council of Conservative Citizens, classified as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, is riled up as well. {snip}
{snip}
The Boycott Thor site also has an article that exposes the blackness of The Black Panther, and is horrified that T’Challa is portrayed as a genius. I really can’t tell if this is a joke or not; I couldn’t find out to whom the site is registered, and their Facebook fan page seems fairly legit (and has 150 fans). The Council of Conservative Citizens is undoubtedly real.
I’ve always felt there was a disturbing current of racism and homophobia that lies just under the surface of fandom, but it’s hard to sometimes tell whether it’s racial politics or semi-aspergian resistance to change {snip}.
{snip}
