racial/american bias in Stargate Atlantis?

[tielan]

It's recently come to my notice that the manner in which 'native races' are portrayed on Stargate is, if not racist, then certainly strongly jingoistic.

This is going to focus on the broader perception of races and how they get portrayed in the show - mostly Atlantis, although SG-1 will be in there, too.

Basically, it seems that the native races of Pegasus are either technologically inept (primitive) or 'the bad guys'.

We have societies like the Athosians, who are still in the 'hunter-gatherer' stage of civilisation, who are on the side of the Atlantis expedition but primitive; and at the other end of the scale, we have societies like the Gennii, who are close to the 'information revolution' stage of civilisation, but are at best wary allies, and at worst, frank enemies.

Then there are the Satedans, who must have had a pretty technologically advanced civilisation before the Wraith took them out - Ronon's weaponry speaks to that - but who don't even get a mention on the 'we could pick over their bones and see if they developed something we haven't' scale. Hell, I don't think anyone's mentioned even asking Ronon if they can take apart his weapons to see how they tick.

Granted, Ronon's likely to look at them and say flatly, 'No,' but the man came from a world that nearly fought back against the Wraith! Just because he doesn't speak much doesn't mean he's a savage. He's probably no more of a savage than any man who comes home from his work, sits down in his lounge chair and can't be prevailed on for more than a grunt or a dozen before dinner, let alone bed.

The episode that's supposed to deal with Ronon's background will be interesting: if only because it took them about 30 episodes to even revisit Teyla's background with the Athosians, and they were relegated to a side plot, a funeral, and some very lovely singing by Rachel Luttrell that had almost no relevance to the plot.

The race issue is another thing that's slowly been coming upon me.

SG1 - Teal'c is the 'native guide' - black, primitive people.
SGA - Teyla is the 'native guide' - mixed race, primitive people.
SGA - Aiden is the 'yes, man' - black
SGA - Ronon is the 'grunt and muscle' - with a polynesian background (? I think - but even if not, the point with Teal'c, Teyla and Aiden still stands)

You know, I'm waiting for the episode where they come across an Asiatic civilisation that's either run like the Japanese samurai or full of Asian crime gangs.

It's a bit worrying, not that there are characters who are relegated to the background and they're non-white(other characters are background, too: Janet, Carson, Zelenka, etc), but that the non-white characters seem to be inevitably relegated to the background in the Stargate universe.

To some degree, I'm sure it's symptomatic of TV shows: white people want to watch white people. Still, I find it disturbing that the nominated 'leaders' of the primitive peoples - and therefore their representatives - are almost always non-white. (Plus, the leaders of the 'white people with civilisation' are evil if their cultures aren't.)

Finally, I'm curious about the fact that the 'jumper driver seat is on the left. Not all civilisations drive on the right-hand side of the road. It's like the assumption that people in the Northern Hemisphere have that birds fly south for the winter, and that things get warmer the further south you go.

Atlantis does not necessarily have to be in the northern hemisphere of its planet. I mean, it very well may be - I haven't studied the shots of the planet all that well. But, coming from the other half of the planet (where Christmas is in summer and we build our houses facing north for the best sun) I think it would be cool to have all the people from up north completely turned around by the fact that the sun's path lies northwards and not south, while the people from the southern hemisphere are all "what are you guys going on about?" While secretly snickering behind their hands.

The idea of a culture that influenced Earth (instead of American-Earth influencing it) is intriguing: but it would have been nice to see some of the standards turned upside down - perceptions changed and rearranged - to make people think.

And if you can sandwich some perception adjustment in between entertainment, I don't think that's entirely a bad thing.

Comments

[ahab99.livejournal.com]

Actually, I've had different experiences with the terms. "People of color" is often used as an all-inclusive term, and I know people who regularly use the term "brown" to refer to their own ethnicity (to distinguish them from "white" or "black"). Also, I had a professor who preferred to say "pink" rather than "white," since "white" skin isn't actually properly white. Other color terms for ethnicity used to be used (red and yellow, for example), but I can't say that I hear them in use anymore.

[misty4me.livejournal.com]

Maybe it has to do with venue. I live in a medium sized American city, mildly conservative. Minority urban, white suburban via white-flight. We actually live in the city, are exposed to more of the minority population, and a white population that wants to be in a diverse environment. I also happen to work in a fortune 500 company, one that goes overboard for policial correctness and I have yet to hear anyone refer to themselves as anything other than white, black, Hispanic, etc. No one would think of referring to themselves as brown or a person of color in casual conversation. At any rate, having worked in a number of large corporations and small ones over the years, the term person of color is largely considered a business/political term and not used when folks are just standing around the water cooler.

I cold see that being different in other environs, especially some place like a university, where folks have a totally different take on things.

[ahab99.livejournal.com]

Could be. Actually, the last time one of my friends used the term "brown" we had a whole conversation about it, because I remarked upon how I (as a white person) didn't feel comfortable using the term "brown." But she was like - "well, you use white and black, right?" It was her preferred term for referring to some of the people who weren't in either of those groups (including at least south asians, but my impression was that it was broader than that), when all-inclusive terms like people of color weren't useful. I started using people of color after a seminar with a professor who works closely within a lot of the minority communities and who told us that it was the preferred term at the moment...