Hollywood has a problem. Films coming out over the last decade feel less enchanting than they used to. Everyone thinks that they know why, and those who follow critics like The Critical Drinker, Just a Robot, or Endymion TV seem to know the answer.
Anti-woke slop content puts the blame on one thing: Forced Diversity. Hollywood is shoving Black, gay and trans characters down our throat, changing history to satisfying a woke agenda, and glorifying obesity, right?
Well....no. Obviously not.
In this massive video essay, I look at popular pieces of media, from the ever changing world of the MCU to Shakespeare, to figure out if Forced Diversity actually exists.
And, by the end of it, REDEFINE what Forced Diversity means.
Special thanks to (in order of reading)
@LadyEmilyPresents
@KylaTea
@thecrimsonender
@jazzyolivervo
@ActualFandom
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@SaiScribbles
Sources:
https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2017/03/the-hate-u-give-angie-thomas-review/521079/
https://www.ursulakleguin.com/adaptation-tales-of-earthsea
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/09/11/arts/assassins-creed-shadows-yasuke-samurai-japan.html
https://link.springer.com/epdf/10.1007/s10508-023-02628-0?sharing_token=yzrNpKeXWkP5B_nESa513fe4RwlQNchNByi7wbcMAY4vIN9RyNMtm5fRFO4lBqF2N9nkRAtyR8oPjVa-BFvF3fgYSeU3CP77Sfh39SMaTWMUy9r9ahBU7yySmpBbpjQcD6WWNJ1c04o5Y-ZkflIHTBDRyY-bi2Mi1skk0STyAcE%3D
https://www.africanews.com/2023/04/20/egyptian-lawyer-sues-netflix-for-depicting-cleopatra-as-black-woman//
https://sinagrace.tumblr.com/post/185915075613/as-pride-month-comes-to-a-close-its-time-i-spoke
Chapter:
0:00 Forced Diversity Does Not Exist
4:17 People Have Complained About Diversity for Centuries
6:20 The Patterns of Forced Diversity Accusations
8:15 Diversity in Comics
10:31 She-Hulk and the Reaction to It
14:22 Picking and Choosing What To Get Angry About (Agatha All Along, Riri Williams)
18:26 Comicsgate and Their Obsession with Riri Williams
27:23 Go Woke, Go Broke?
34:12 Blaxploitation
40:16 Writing for Diversity’s Sake (Earthsea, YA Books)
52:28 Things Fall Apart and Deconstructing Colonialist Narratives
59:53 Tokenism (Candyman)
1:06:58 Are Trans People Historically Accurate?
1:14:21 Let’s Talk About Assassin’s Creed Shadows and Yasuke
1:26:51 Let’s Talk About Queen Cleopatra
1:37:16 Replacement Theory and Turning Our Kids Gay (Iceman, Marvel Comics)
1:54:10 Body Diversity and Fat Shaming (She-Ra, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles)
2:03:29 The Real Enemy Behind “Forced Diversity” (Disney)
2:13:08 Forced Diversity DOES Exist