Rotundlr

shwetanarayan:

spastasmagoria:

fuckyeaharthuriana:

pumpkinmeloncholy:

djjarak:

Before I say a word, know that I’m not a racist. I simply think that changing the ethnicity of classic characters just to prove how not racist you are is a cheap thing for production companies to do. I mean, Lancelot was not an African. Not in one story or piece of art was he depicted as anything but an English born white man. Do you have any idea how rare Africans were in England in those days? Only just recently has the first skeletal remains of a black man been found and from the condition of them, he was most likely a slave and not treated very well. I know Lancelot isn’t real. Unlike Mulan, he really is from a fairy tale… but c’mon. I know I may sound like I’m taking this stuff too seriously, but why bother getting into a TV series if you’re not going to let yourself really get into it.

Isn’t it hilarious when you think about the fact that Lancelot didn’t exist? You know who else didn’t exist? Basically every character in this series! Do you know what else didn’t exist? Magic…magic totally didn’t exist. And people couldn’t turn into dragons. And there are no such things as wraiths. There’s a lot about this show that could be complaining about, but you’ve chosen to complain about the fact that Lancelot isn’t white.
Dear self-proclaimed non-racist, if in a fantasy series, with magic and dragons and entire universes existing through portals in hats, you find it more unrealistic/unbelievable that Lancelot is played by a person of colour, what do you think that makes you?
I don’t see as many complaints when history’s completely white-washed and characters who should be people of colour aren’t played by people of colour. I don’t see anyone complaining because Jesus is usually depicted by a blonde-haired blue-eyed white dude even though there was no way in hell he was white. Just because Lancelot’s always been depicted as someone white doesn’t mean it should stay that way, (especially when you consider the fact that people of colour are severely underrepresented in entertainment). The story of King Arthur is a legend that has been interpreted many different ways through many different lenses and in fact, there are a few black characters who do appear in the legends. There are even artistic depictions of at least one knight as a black man:

[Art by Pavel Tatarnikov]
There might not have been very many Africans in England and Wales, but contrary to popular belief, black people didn’t suddenly appear on earth as downtrodden slaves. There were significant numbers of black Africans who went to Europe during the 15 century onward. Also, ever heard of Moors? They ruled parts of the Iberian Peninsula for 700 years (from 8th-15th centuries). North Africa was very prosperous and advanced in comparison to England during the middle ages. There are plenty of depictions and mentions of wealthy blacks in actual European history. There are also depictions of people of colour in popular stories (Shakespeare’s Othello for instance).
Simply because there was a skeleton of one black man found in England that indicates that he was likely poor, doesn’t mean every black person in England (during whatever time period you’re invoking to support your ill-formed ideas) was poor. There is historical evidence of wealthy people of colour from various time periods in England and even though European history tends to be depicted as completely white in general—it wasn’t. That sort of thinking doesn’t even make any sense when you consider that there were Africans in ancient Rome. It doesn’t make any sense when you consider that there was plenty of trade happening between European countries and African countries for centuries—honestly, these continents are not that far apart at all (Strait of Gibraltar).
In addition, slavery as we think of it did not exist until the trans atlantic slave trade, and though there were systems of slavery in various parts of the world—including England, they weren’t race-based.
Next time you launch a complaint like this, perhaps you should spend a little time actually googling for historical reference? I mean, not that it matters since as we’ve established, Lancelot didn’t exist and there are people who turn into wolves and dragons on this show. I’m sure your delicate sensibilities will be just fine.

Thank you for this commentary. (And Palamedes, Safir and Segwarides were PoC in arthurian legends).

Re-reblogged for epic commentary of goodness and history-ness.

“Before I say a word, know that I’m not a racist.” — There’s that magical thinking again. OP, how about “Once you say all these words, how about people judge you based on them, and if you don’t like that, say less racist and ignorant words”?

Epic smackdown is epic and accurate.

spastasmagoria:

fuckyeaharthuriana:

pumpkinmeloncholy:

djjarak:

Before I say a word, know that I’m not a racist. I simply think that changing the ethnicity of classic characters just to prove how not racist you are is a cheap thing for production companies to do. I mean, Lancelot was not an African. Not in one story or piece of art was he depicted as anything but an English born white man. Do you have any idea how rare Africans were in England in those days? Only just recently has the first skeletal remains of a black man been found and from the condition of them, he was most likely a slave and not treated very well. I know Lancelot isn’t real. Unlike Mulan, he really is from a fairy tale… but c’mon. I know I may sound like I’m taking this stuff too seriously, but why bother getting into a TV series if you’re not going to let yourself really get into it.

Isn’t it hilarious when you think about the fact that Lancelot didn’t exist? You know who else didn’t exist? Basically every character in this series! Do you know what else didn’t exist? Magic…magic totally didn’t exist. And people couldn’t turn into dragons. And there are no such things as wraiths. There’s a lot about this show that could be complaining about, but you’ve chosen to complain about the fact that Lancelot isn’t white.

Dear self-proclaimed non-racist, if in a fantasy series, with magic and dragons and entire universes existing through portals in hats, you find it more unrealistic/unbelievable that Lancelot is played by a person of colour, what do you think that makes you?

I don’t see as many complaints when history’s completely white-washed and characters who should be people of colour aren’t played by people of colour. I don’t see anyone complaining because Jesus is usually depicted by a blonde-haired blue-eyed white dude even though there was no way in hell he was white. Just because Lancelot’s always been depicted as someone white doesn’t mean it should stay that way, (especially when you consider the fact that people of colour are severely underrepresented in entertainment). The story of King Arthur is a legend that has been interpreted many different ways through many different lenses and in fact, there are a few black characters who do appear in the legends. There are even artistic depictions of at least one knight as a black man:

[Art by Pavel Tatarnikov]

There might not have been very many Africans in England and Wales, but contrary to popular belief, black people didn’t suddenly appear on earth as downtrodden slaves. There were significant numbers of black Africans who went to Europe during the 15 century onward. Also, ever heard of Moors? They ruled parts of the Iberian Peninsula for 700 years (from 8th-15th centuries). North Africa was very prosperous and advanced in comparison to England during the middle ages. There are plenty of depictions and mentions of wealthy blacks in actual European history. There are also depictions of people of colour in popular stories (Shakespeare’s Othello for instance).

Simply because there was a skeleton of one black man found in England that indicates that he was likely poor, doesn’t mean every black person in England (during whatever time period you’re invoking to support your ill-formed ideas) was poor. There is historical evidence of wealthy people of colour from various time periods in England and even though European history tends to be depicted as completely white in general—it wasn’t. That sort of thinking doesn’t even make any sense when you consider that there were Africans in ancient Rome. It doesn’t make any sense when you consider that there was plenty of trade happening between European countries and African countries for centuries—honestly, these continents are not that far apart at all (Strait of Gibraltar).

In addition, slavery as we think of it did not exist until the trans atlantic slave trade, and though there were systems of slavery in various parts of the world—including England, they weren’t race-based.

Next time you launch a complaint like this, perhaps you should spend a little time actually googling for historical reference? I mean, not that it matters since as we’ve established, Lancelot didn’t exist and there are people who turn into wolves and dragons on this show. I’m sure your delicate sensibilities will be just fine.

Thank you for this commentary. (And Palamedes, Safir and Segwarides were PoC in arthurian legends).

Re-reblogged for epic commentary of goodness and history-ness.

“Before I say a word, know that I’m not a racist.” — There’s that magical thinking again. OP, how about “Once you say all these words, how about people judge you based on them, and if you don’t like that, say less racist and ignorant words”?