I particularly resonated with Alcoff's piece on speaking for others. There is a large conversation to be had on whether speaking on other's positionality helps or harms others, and it's an incredibly nuanced topic that has to be reassessed on a case-by-case basis. In her piece, she asserts that there is nuance to be had, but we should be careful so as not to take over the narrative from the people we are speaking on, or for. When speaking for others, we can "serve either to authorize or disauthorize one's speech," (Alcoff, 7). When speaking on issues for others, it's incredibly useful to ensure all information being provided is factual. For example, the Black Lives Matter movement. Where conservative-leaning "news" sources such as Fox News assert that "defunding the police is a move toward authoritarian social control cloaked in the language of identity politics," (Fox News, 2020). However, from its starts in 2016, one of its founders, Patrice Cullors has asserted that "[Black Lives Matter] is a tool to reimagine a world where black people are free to exist, free to live..." (TED, 2016). Fox News asserts that the Black Lives Matter movement is actually about promoting authoritarianism, socialism, that racism was solved with the abolishment of slavery, and that systemic racism is a myth. From the words of a white man on a television network that rarely uplifts actual black voices or even bothers to invite guests on who are in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, they are presenting their own narrative, speaking on behalf of the black community. This is a highly public platform, the video I refer to now standing at approximately 8 million views. However, this undermines the message that these organizers and founders have been proclaiming for years: that it is about protecting black lives and providing an even playing field to those with white privilege. It is not about switching the roles, and certainly isn't about a massive conspiracy to change our government's foundation: it is to dismantle the systemic racism that America was built on. "News" channels like Fox build into a stereotype about a movement, so much that their audience doesn't believe the words coming out of actual black people's mouths. Because a public figure they looked up to asserted that racism no longer exists, the black person who says they've experienced racism is lying, or it was a "one-off" incident that doesn't impact the black community in America at large.
Immediately as I started reading this piece, I thought about an incident within my BFA Acting program here at the University of Minnesota. In our second year of training, we are split up as a company and cast in one of two productions to present in the fall semester. One of which was Ever in the Glades by Laura Shellhardt. The play centers around a group of teens in the Everglades who fight to escape the adults and their prejudices. The play includes a note that it was written and developed by multiple people of color, as it was essentially written for the original cast of actors; though it can and should be played by people of any ethnicity, and so long as the cast is not made up of one racial group, it may be produced. The playwright herself is white, and gave her blessing upon seeing my company's casting in it. However, of that cast, 80% were white. The cast and director, upon reading the script, then had the hard decision of whether or not they should be doing that play. Ever in the Glades highly featured usages of AAVE, and casual rhetoric that is associated with people of color in America. As an outside observer, it was immediately clear that we were witnessing cultural appropriation. Hearing a 6'2" blonde white man saying that "those white men came to take you away" truly encapsulates the experience of listening to the play read aloud by people it was not developed for. Ultimately, that half of our company decided not to go through with the show, and now have no fall production. However, it felt incredibly relevant that the playwright may have written that play for and with people of color, but failed to recognize the harm that could occur when she directly approved the casting of white actors with language that is appropriative for them to use. It ties in to the idea of approval to speak for others; while it may be appropriate for people of color in America to use, it was not approved by the people who wrote it with her. Would the Latinx and Black people she developed this play with have approved my company's casting in this play? That's not my call to make, but the fact stands that Shellhardt herself cannot make that decision alone. While they are her intellectual property, it erases the influence that the POC of that cast provided.
1. Alcoff, Linda. "The Problem of Speaking for Others." Feminist Nightmares: Women At Odds, New York University Press, 2020, pp. 285-309, https://doi.org/10.187574/9780814784945-016.
2. Fox News. "Tucker: Black Lives Matter is now a political party." YouTube, 8 Jun. 2020, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l7aQ02YX7qo
3. TED. "An interview with the founders of Black Lives Matter | Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors, Opal Tometi." YouTube, 20 Dec. 2016, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbicAmaXYtM
4. Shellhardt, Laura. Ever in the Glades. Dramatic Publishing, 2015.
Hi Caiti! Wow, your example provides a perfect and quite powerful example of speaking for others and when it can be right or wrong. Although you and your cast had no intention of participating in cultural appropriation, it only made sense for an individual who understands and has experienced what the story is encapsulating to play the role. I believe that you guys most definitely made the right decision in understanding that it may not have been your place to put on this show knowing that you were telling another person/ group's story.
ReplyDeleteAn example from my personal life that I made an immediate connection to relates to the first half of your blog post. As George Floyd protests were unfolding and the BLM movement was expanding, it was difficult to decide how to react on social media. Especially as someone who is white, and could never understand the prejudice that black individuals face. Some individuals decided to advocate for the BLM movement on social media and show their support, while others did not. This could have come from either feeling out of place while telling the story of others, or just not supporting the movement in general. I absolutely wanted to show my support, and help in any way I could without making it about me. So, I would repost resources, places to donate and participated in peaceful protests.
I truly enjoyed your post. My first thought after reading this through was that you have an incredibly good grasp on what Alcoff was trying to get through to us; I thought it was particularly useful how you brought in a multitude of sources in order to build a fluid post on the topic of speaking for others. In your second paragraph, you bring in your own personal experience regarding permission to speak for others. This was an interesting read as well and made me curious as to the impetus and/or reason the original author had for writing the play in that way. I thought it was interesting and moreso, a conscious decision for the original author to include the notes she did. So, how do you balance the author's notes, the playwright's blessing, and your own artistic expression. You answer some of this in your analysis and conclusion that Shellhardt alone can't make that decision, which I certainly agree with. However, I am curious if there is a counterargument *some* may make that this would be an artistic expression that brings the issue at hand into the forefront and therefore, your company has the ability to go forward with it.
ReplyDeleteI think there are many issues that tie into the dilemma presented. I think it also hits on the idea that we as individuals can express our own agency when dealing with ethical and moral decisions. Albeit the playwriter giving her blessing, your company had expressed agency in making the decision they did. Overall, I thought your post was incredibly insightful.