Being A Star Wars Fan While Black: The Dark (And Toxically Racist, Sexist) Side Of Fandom

fans-on-fandom:

But over the years, as a Black man, I have also discovered just how brazenly toxic some Star Wars fanatics can truly be. It was a sobering reality that once again reared its ugly head when Star Wars actress Kelly Marie Tran deleted all posts on her Instagram account after reportedly being bombarded for months by racist and misogynistic social media comments, often times targeting her Vietnamese-American heritage. The bubbly newcomer, who starred as the all-heart Rose Tico in 2017’s The Last Jedi, did however leave one telling message: “Afraid, but doing it anyway.”

The bold harassment has spilled over to Twitter. A troll calling himself Supreme Leader Jerry posted a Gif of a young Anakin Skywalker on his pod racer straight from the deservedly maligned Episode 1: The Phantom Menace mouthing the words, “It’s working, It’s working!”

When Last Jedi director Rian Johnson jumped in to take up for Tran (“You know the difference between not liking a movie and hatefully harassing a woman so bad she had to get off social media. And you know which of those two we’re talking about here”), the response from some Star Wars die hards was troubling. “Critique and showing dislike against something is ‘trolling’? Good tactic. Whatever makes you sleep at night,” responded a fan. Nice.

subsequentibis:

scientist character: is kissed

scientist character: hmm.. this requires further experimentation

me, shoving handfuls of popcorn in my mouth: FUCK YEAH IT DOES YOU NERD

charlesoberonn:

Rian Johnson: Which is why I made Rey’s parents nobodies because I like the idea of somebody coming from nothing and becoming a hero despite having no heroic past.

Finn:

benperor-ren:

Kylo antis who want to mock fans for being mentally ill and relating to Kylo: STFU please.

kyleraynxr:

@rush-keating I agree. Skill one earns through practice supersedes talent but it would be nice to just…feel good about my art, you know?

I like your art if that helps.

jethroq:

Right wing in 2015: The government is going to turn empty WalMarts into detention centers dyring Jade Helm

Right wingt in 2018: the government turning WalMarts into detention centers is a good thing, actually

An Autistic Pride Picnic I Can Actually Attend

nyxtheautisticbean:

Well, it’s this Sunday which is a bit short notice but still…

Link

What: The first Edinburgh Autistic Pride Picnic.

Why: To celebrate autistic identity and the autistic community.

When: Sunday 17th June, midday-6pm. Drop in any time, and leave whenever you like. Official Autistic Pride Day is the 18th of June every year, but we decided to celebrate on the weekend before.

Where: Prince Albert Victor Sundial, the Meadows (the big stone monument near the trees at the west side of the Meadows). Follow this link for detailed travel directions.

What to bring: foods and drinks to share, stimtoys, picnic blankets, smiles, sunshines, coats (just in case).

Who: This event is organised by AMASE, but it’s just an informal gathering in a park. Feel free to invite your autistic friends, non-autistic friends, friendly dogs and grannies.

How many people will be there? It is always hard to tell with these things. Perhaps around 30-60 lovely people, but that is just a guess, and they won’t all be there at once. We’re told that last year’s London Autistic Pride Day Picnic peaked at 42 people, and their Facebook event showed about twice as many as ours planning on coming. At least one small friendly dog will be in attendance.