http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2014/06/06/laverne-cox-and-the-state-of-trans-representation-in-pop-culture
I wanted to not just address gender inequality and discrimination in films, but as well the representation (or lack thereof) of other genders, mainly those that fall under the trans umbrella. The representation is underwhelming, but I also believe that it is beginning to slowly rise.
Hopefully, it will rise quicker and one day, there will not only be representation of positive transgendered people, or people who are under that umbrella, in films but in daily life as well. Currently, I would say Laverne Cox is quickly becoming prominent and that's very important. From the article, "A GLAAD study found that in the last 10 years, more than half of trans characters depicted on television were portrayed in a negative light, and even more were problematic in some sense."
When I searched for an article or something to post this time, I wanted to focus on transgendered representation, but it was unsurprisingly difficult to find much that looked good. And many of the articles had to do with how they are villainized in media. The article is a bit long but I think it does talk and explain well about this issue. As they say in the article too, although I will not quoting directly, it is also very important that a transgendered person be played by, yes, a transgendered person. Representation on screen is one thing, representation behind the stage is even more important.
- Amanda
I think it would be lovely to see more trans characters and more trans actors. I am a very strong believer in the fact that representation is essential when it comes to progress, even if some of the actors arent trans themself. However, trans characters being played exclusively by cis actors can be problematic as it excludes people from their own community behind the scenes, and that is very damaging to the well-being of trans actors and actresses.
ReplyDelete~Alex Duncan
I think of old times where men would play the parts of women in the opera (I think its opera, or something). Seriously though, that parallels this- where, non-trans people are playing the parts of transsexuals. And sadly, yes, representations of minorities on screen have all been "white-washed" or stereotyped. Come to think of it, I used to always feel self conscious around people that weren't white, or weren't straight like myself- I felt embarrassed because I thought that maybe they'd think I was prejudiced just because I was white or straight.
ReplyDelete--Josephine Hicks
One thing that I think prevents individuals from being able to totally accept trans-individuals as just as human and just as normal as cisgendered-individuals is trans-individuals are usually cast in the part of transgender roles. I'm not saying that Laverne Cox's role on Orange is the New Black isn't a real step forward for the trans-rights movement, but I think it would be cool if, for instance, we can place transgender women in the role of a women on TV. I think we need to make sure that people see that Laverne Cox, for instance, is just as much of a woman as her female co-stars of the show. However, I know that change often happens slowly and that years of prejudice and stigma cannot be wiped away in just a year, but maybe by the end of our lifetimes we will see some real change. I think that representing trans-individuals in Hollywood would be a huge step forward to help us accomplish this. People, especially children, are largely affected by what they see on TV. Films help us create our ideas of what it means to be a man or a woman, so broadening this definition of 'masculinity' of 'femininity' to include more than just genitals might be able to be done through TV.
ReplyDelete- Sarah Reasoner
Laverne Cox is VERY important as not only an advocate but as an actress that is transgender and able to play the trans women part to meet that requirement is very helpful in spreading visibility. This is a conversation that I've had many times before, though. The idea that a trans character needs to be represented by a trans actor is a bit... unnecessary. In other context, a gay character being represented by a gay actor isn't needed, either. My reasoning is simple: the person is acting, portraying a character that they aren't. Matt Bomer (a gay man) has played numerous straight characters (or his characters' relationships are only portrayed as being hetero in nature). And he has also played a gay man in The Normal Heart. Bottom line, it's acting. Advocacy for the representation of different identifies is important and when having a queer character, it's important that the director makes the person portraying that character to portray that identity accurately and fairly.
ReplyDelete-Elijah Zagorski