Should You Be Blacklisted, Mr Card?

[epistasthai]

Today, as I was reading the Saturday posting of the webcomic, The Young Protectors, by Alex Woolfson, I noticed Alex had a link to a roundtable discussion about the recent uproar over DC Comics hiring Orson Scott Card to do work on Superman. There's a series of comic book roundtable discussions ("Comic Book Roundtable Series" in NYC) and one of them was a discussion on just this issue.
      Titled “The Man of Steel vs. Orson Scott Card”,  or "Should You Be Blacklisted, Mr Card?", the roundtable was held Wednesday 10 April 2013. When I first heard that DC had hired Orson Scott Card to work on Superman, I was horrified. (I even posted in my journal here). Not because Orson Scott Card has a different view on human sexuality than I do. Not because he has different religious beliefs than I do. And certainly not because he holds radically different political views than I do. Everyone has a right to hold their own view on such things, and even though I disagree with him on everything I've just mentioned, I still hold that he's entitled to have these views. No, I was bothered because Orson Scott Card has publically, and very vocally, argued against gay rights issues. He has very publically worked to change public and social policy in accordance with his views. For instance,  in 2009, he became member of the board of directors of the National Organization for Marriage, an organization that opposes same-sex marriage. He has written op-ed pieces where he argues against same-sex marriage, and against homosexuality.
      I’m generally not for blacklisting someone or refusing to hire someone to draw/write based on their personal beliefs. But when the person in question actively campaigns for, and are very public about promoting, views that I find abhorrent – then I find it difficult to see any good reason to hire/use them. And when they are very public members of organizations that discriminate and are dead set against granting civil rights to certain groups of people, then I have to say something.
      The roundtable had some very interesting comments and brought out some surprising points of view. I found it enlightening.

Here’s a link to a write up of the discussion. (Bleeding Cool, a site full of news, gossip, and rumour). If you can’t find it, or whatever, just let me know. (As I said, I found it via a link to it from Alex Woolfson’s webcomic, The Young Protectors).

http://www.bleedingcool.com/2013/04/16/should-you-be-blacklisted-mr-card/

Abject apologies for any misspellings or grammar mistakes or whatever. I’m a bit distracted today ‘cuz my spouse has pneumonia (he’s doing fine. But he wants to be up and doing/eating all the things he’s not supposed to be, haha. Which is good, ‘cuz it means he’s on the mend). Also, in case anyone's interested, both of Alex's webcomics are fun to read - Artifice and The Young Protectors. Artifice is sci-fi/yaoi and now available on Amazon; and The Young Protectors is a yaoi comic about young superheroes, currently free online. They're both fun reads.

Comments

Thank

[fionajude.livejournal.com]

Thank you very much for your two articles, because if it weren't you, I wouldn't have know about it.
Just like you I respect people that disagree with me and my opinion about homosexuality, but I can't tolerate some agressive ways to publicize them.
Actually in France there's a big debate about the same sex marriage that's about to be voted. Some people (especially catholic fundamentalists) took advantage of the debate to promote their hatred towards homosexuality, and as a consequence there's more homophobic violence now. Why can't they let people live their lives as they want without judging them ?

I hope that your husband is doing better now.

Re: Thank

[epistasthai.livejournal.com]

Thanks go to you, for such kind words! When I first read about the DC/Scott Card issue, I wondered why I hadn't seen much about it (I don't keep up with comic book news and I'm not an artist). Still when I did come across it, it made me very angry, and not because it was some author with whom I disagreed. It's like you said, this author is very active and is very public about his involvment and membership in groups that are anti-gay. I don't have a beef when someone is private about their beliefs. But when they use their clout as an author to do something, then I'll be quite vocal in my disagreement.

Thanks for your post with links on France's vote for same-sex marriage. It's so good and it's a start, isn't it? Still, we can't sit still now, but have to keep working. But that's the way it always has been, hasn't it? We must always be working and watching to make a better world.

Thank you for your good wishes - my hubby is getting better, but he just does not like to 'stay still' and he's getting bored, haha. (which is a good sign).

Re: Thank

[fionajude.livejournal.com]

You're absolutely right, this fight for equality is still not over. In France we have to forget about all the hatred told day after day that finally made the homosexuality acceptance worse than it was before that.

I'm glad that your husband is better now.