RaceFail09: The Saddening

Maybe I'll get to expand with some theory later, but right now, I just keep reading nojojojo's most recent post.

But what I've lately come to realize is that the absence of writers, editors, and characters of color in this genre is not benign neglect. It is a purposeful and very malignant thing. This is hostile, unsafe territory for me, and a disturbingly large number of people think that's just hunky dory. There are people in this genre who are perfectly happy with the way it's been, and who do not want it to change. Those people have fought hard in this debate to maintain the status quo. And they have lately proven that they're willing to use more than words in the fight. Some anti-racists I respect have been threatened with physical harm and verbal abuse; they've been outed, lied to, served with cease & desist letters, and threatened with lawsuits. They've had minions sicced on them, and sockpuppets harass them, and bits of their private lives -- some real, some conjured out of the aether -- used against them as weapons.

If you haven't read anything about RaceFail, read this post. All of it.

The truly bright light to come out of this is verb_noire, a small press dedicated to publishing SF/F stories by and about people of color. Specifically, "To celebrate the works of talented, underrepresented authors and deliver them to a readership that demands more." They plan to open for submissions next week, and in the meantime, they're accepting donations to help their startup fees.