How Anti-Racism Stifles BIPOC Artist’s Creative Expression
A collection of my thoughts and personal experiences
Hey Substack!
This is a topic I’ve been itching to talk about because it keeps popping up over and over again in my career. I’d love to hear your thoughts on it and if you’ve experienced this too. I’m not shaming anyone in this blog post, I just wanted to bring awareness to a widespread issue. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the read!
First and foremost, I want to acknowledge the importance of anti-racism and how it is vital in creating a safe and equal environment for BIPOC people. This blog post is more of a collection of my thoughts and feelings on the subject as a mixed race creative and how I personally have seen anti-racism backfire and go against the very thing it is trying to do.
In both the animation and illustration industries, I have seen an overly sensitive approach to anti-racism that I find limits our creative expression as BIPOC artists. For example, while illustrating a recent project, I was confronted with an illustration note that made me feel uneasy. The project is about black children growing their own garden and learning what it means to be consistent, determined and overcome hardships. My original concept portrayed two black siblings who were very excited because they grew a giant watermelon in their garden. They were humorously sprawled atop the massive watermelon, cheering at the literal fruit of their labor. I absolutely loved the ending - watermelon is my favorite fruit and I felt like it made the most sense artistically as well because the design is interesting and watermelons can grow very large.
I was excited about this ending so I submitted it to the team. However, I was met with a note that urged to change the watermelon to a different fruit because it risked “portraying a negative stereotype of black people”. This didn’t sit right with me so I further investigated the history of black people and watermelons. I already knew that, historically, there were racist stereotypes of black people liking watermelon, as well as vile minstrel shows reinforcing this stereotype, but why was there a stereotype in the first place?
What I didn’t know or learn in school is that the watermelon was actually the fruit of liberation for the newly freed slaves. They grew them to celebrate their freedom. The racists didn’t like a symbol of black joy becoming widespread so they weaponized it, stripping it of its original meaning and replacing it with an ugly image of black people; making the fruit something to be ashamed and embarrassed of. This really upset me. If the watermelon was originally intended to be a fruit to represent the liberation of black people, then why are we instead upholding and giving power to the racist, negative stereotype? By suggesting to avoid watermelon in my illustration, it sends the message that black people are still bound to the negative stereotypes surrounding watermelons and shouldn’t attempt to reclaim its original meaning. It’s nothing more than a painful memory that should be avoided now. People debate this but I truly feel I should be able to enjoy watermelon and have the freedom to portray it authentically in my work alongside my black characters.
In essence, avoiding stereotypes in fear of causing controversy inadvertently reinforces them and places BIPOC individuals in a position where we must tread carefully in telling our authentic stories. Instead of shying away from stereotypes, I advocate recognizing them for what they are and using them in positive ways. It is crucial to champion the authentic, creative expression of BIPOC artists, refusing to be shackled by outdated and racist stereotypes. I like watermelon, and I’ll surely depict future characters enjoying these things without succumbing to pressure to avoid stereotypes in my work. I believe showing them in a positive light is the solution to creating truly equal spaces for BIPOC artists and would make our ancestors proud!
Mo
Who gave you the note? I find people can take their positions as watchdogs a little too seriously and claim to tell black people about what’s offensive. Or it may be as simple as knowing they’re not in a position to turn around the context of a deeply embedded image. That’s a much tougher conversation.
Really great read, Mo. I can't help wondering, did your idea get accepted in the end? 🧡 Nell.