Untitled

Racefail 2013

Ok I want to talk about Racefail

about the iniquities of Caucasian het cismales

the hypocrisy of feminism on sale

the incompleteness of white liberal triumph tales

See in 2009 a secret civil war was waged online

science fiction fans of color were accused of the crime

of demanding loudly the right to define

they were called orcs, they were called nithings

for demanding to be depicted as more than mere things

more than backdrops to white saviour pornography

white teenage power fantasies in Pleasantville NYC

goddess wannabe nice white ladies

the human stain of white straight manpain

Elizabeth Bear

the Nielsen Haydens

Will Shetterly

A classic game of bad, worse and worst cop

they think they built the enlightenment shop

well they and their entitlement can just drop

Neil Gaiman the nice quiet decent white man

what a clever 90s marketing scam

Roz Kaveney Islamophobe lady and loyal sycophant

Amanda Palmer wears the crown of punching down

And fuck you Abi Sutherland

your velvet glove around the iron hand

You want to sort out dysfunctional families

but what about the dysfunction your friends perpetuate in our fandom community?

From the Celtic Revival to the Balkan revival

selling the gypsy dream

while Eurofascists beat up Roma babies

neoliberal missionaries destroy our families

while Zoe Jakes pretends to be Kali

Amanda Marcotte bitches about Liz Phair getting ripped off by Alanis

She does the same to Brownfemipower and women of color feminists

Yeah Jessica Valenti invented internet feminism

right, like Bono invented rock ‘n roll idealism

You say middle class browns and blacks are just as bad

How would you know

have you even read a newspaper from our lands?

Because this is how kyriarchy works

when religion is condemned as evil

Islam and minorities will be labelled as savage unreason

when all men are called rapists

men of color will be dehumanized as inhuman

when whiteness is supremacist,

white feminism will be in the double bind

of providing cover to white imperial crimes

when traditional femininity is derogated,

women of color are silenced as their beauty is appropriated

So this is what Patrick and Teresa Nielsen Hayden taught me

you can get away with anything with the right pedigree

you don’t even have to be rich and famous

as long as you have the right connections

toss around publishing contracts like funfair candy

because when it’s a tough economy

all that matters is your goddamn belly

Try stopping this signal