Racists call for boycott to protest diverse cast of 'Star Wars VI: The Force Awakens'

British actor John Boyega will have a key role in Star Wars Vii.

IN A GALAXY, far, far away, racism doesn't exist.

But in the far reaches of the Milky Way in the edge of one of the spatial arms, that tiny blue and white planet orbiting a medium star, racism is alive and well and threatening to destroy all of humankind.

The release of the trailer promoting the seventh and latest rendition of the Star Wars franchise, Star Wars: The Force Awakens has awaken another kind of evil force in a group of so-called Star War fans calling for a boycott of the new movie because it features people of color in leading roles.

While reading this post, we have to remind ourselves that the objectors represent a tiny fraction of the Euro/Americans and their actions do not reflect the beliefs of the vast majority of the good Euro/Americans, many of whom I count as friends.

Having said that - damn - I am constantly amazed how ignorant some people are!

The trolls have launched a Twitter hashtag #BoycottStarWarsVII." Their action is so preposterous that it has to be a huge practical joke, right? Nevertheless, they've found others who think like them and the hashtag has gone viral. Here are examples of their  extreme paranoia:

Apparently, they're angry that a black stormtrooper is shown in the trailer and is one of the main protagonists, that a black woman has a major role and a Latino is one of the daring fighter pilots. I'm surprised that they aren't bothered because a woman appears to be the central character instead of a white male.

During a panel in San Diego's ComicCon earlier this year, the director JJ Abrams was asked if there were any Asians in the movie. Abrams cleverly answered that he wished that if he could, he'd cast the whole movie with Asians, which elicited audience laughter. 

"We wanted the movie to look the way the world looks," he continued. "And I think it is important that people see themselves represented in film. I think it is not a small thing. So I completely understand and think your question is hugely important. And it was a big consideration."

Thus far, though, only one Asian, British actress Christina Chong, is confirmed to have been cast in a minor role. We'll just have to wait and see. I hope I'm wrong but Abrams - like so many who should know better - might be among those who view the world primarily in black in white.

Christina Chong

Star Wars: Episode VII stars Adam Driver, John Boyega, Daisy Ridley, Lupita Nyong'o, as well as familiar faces like Mark Hammil, Harrison Ford, and Carrie Fisher; the latter three whiter than white but their roles aren't the leads that they were when they were younger.

The angry whites (sorry, we have to assume they are white) must have forgotten that the color line has already been broken in the Star Wars universe: 

• Cloud City administrator Lando Calrissian, played by Billy Dee Williams in The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.
• Queen Padmé Amidala’s royal security force was led by Captain Quarsh Panaka, played by Hugh Quarshie in The Phantom Menace.
• Samuel L Jackson played Jedi Master Mace Windu.
• Jango Fett, a bounty hunter who became the genetic template for the Grand Army of the Republic, played by Temuera Morrison in in Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones.
• The young bounty hunter Boba Fett was played by Daniel Logan in Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones.

And lest we forget, the great James Earl Jones provided the ominous voice for the infamous Darth Vader.

Despite Abrams efforts and the above-mentioned actors to diversify the Star Wars franchise, they comprise only a tiny fraction of the casts reflecting the general lack of diversity in Hollywood features.

One saving grace that has come out of this boycott nonsense is the reaction of Star Wars fans mocking the boycotters.

But why does this silliness matter? The haters that are spurring the boycott are just the top of the iceberg of pent-up fear that white males may be losing their position of power and privilege that they've had since this country was founded.

We have candidates for president saying racist things about immigrants and we have a faux news network fomenting the ignorant into action, i.e. the recent rash of arson attacks on Planned Parenthood clinics and houses of worship.

The entitlement and privilege enjoyed by white males for so long and carved into every institution in this country is teetering because of the changing demographics of America. There will be those cretins who will do anything to maintain the status quo.

Citizens United, the GOP presidential candidates, the Koch Bros. and #BoycottStarWarsVII  are all symptoms of one of the greatest threats facing the future of America - the white backlash.

There is more to the racist reaction to the new Stars Wars cast than pop culture puffery, behind it is something darker and more sinister - it's the Evil Empire's last gasp.

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One last look at Comic-Con 2015: Asian Americans rising

BY NOW, Comic-Con 2015 has been written about, analyzed and reviewed countless times. But there was something of significance happening at Comic-Con 2015 that has received little notice by mainstream media. 

Once an innocent gathering of nerds united by comic books, science fiction and fantasy, the convention has become an important venue where all of the big studios promote their upcoming TV series and movies. 

Amidst the ridiculously long lines, scores of celebrities and hundreds of cosplaying fans, Asian Americans were quietly being assertive. How Asian.

It began with the release of the trailer for Into the Badlands, a Chinese storyline transported to the America. Not only did it combine two elements popular with geekdom: a dystopian setting and fantastic martial arts, it introduced Daniel Wu in its lead role. Wu will be the first Asian American action hero since Bruce Lee (we're not counting Kung Fu).

RELATED: We're cheering for the new Asian hero of Into the Badlands

Badlands is a genre-bending actioner with great DNA: Alfred Gough, creator of Smallville and Miles Millar; executive producers Stacey Sher and Michaeld Shamberg from Django Unchained; they are joined by executive producers Stephen Fung and its star Daniel Wu, both of whom have extensive martial arts movie experience. We're not sure how successful Badlands will become but it certainly has a lot going for it.

Asian American actresses Chloe Bennet (Wang) and Ming-Na Wen of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. were on a panel promoting their show. Wen acknowledged her appreciation for being among the Asian American actresses enjoying success in mainstream media but there's plenty of room for improvement. 

“It’s so vitality important to have Asian American representation on a regular basis as opposed to as just a token or as something of a caricature and a stereotype,” she said. “At this day and age, (television) is such a global medium that it requires to have more Asian representation because we populate quite a lot of the globe.”

Olivia Munn takes on the role of Psylocke.

In the X-Men universe, two new characters are being played by Asian Americans: Olivia Munn as katana-wielding Psylocke  and Lana Condor as Jubilee. (See Munn's fighting skills.)

During a Q&A for Star Wars: The Force Awakens, a couple of young Asian Americans asked producer J.J. Abrams if there would be any Asians in the upcoming blockbuster. He responded with a joke, "Go Asians! If I had my way, the cast would be all Asians," (nervous laughter from the audience). What he said sounds a bit patronizing. But he continued: 

“I think you’ll be happy to see when you see this film, there are Asians in this film…. We wanted the movie to look the way the world looks. And I think it is important that people see themselves represented in film. I think it is not a small thing. So I completely understand and think your question is hugely important. And it was a big consideration.”

That statement was met with huge applause, considering the strong Asian American presence in the audience. Other bloggers took him at his word and pumped up the statement to mean Asian actors will have meaningful roles in the new installment in the Star Wars franchise  

How important was Abram's statement remains to be seen: Are the Asians in his movie just redshirts without any lines to say? Do they contribute to the storyline? or are they just spear carriers in the background?

Perhaps the most meaningful discussion of Asian Americans in the entertainment industry occurred in the last day the convention in a workshop entitled  "The Super Asian America Panel." 

Moderated by Racebending.com, this special panel featured actors Chloe Bennet (“Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D”), Dante Basco (“Avatar: The Last Airbender”) and Sumalee Montano (“Beware the Batman”), stunt double Ilram Choi (“The Amazing Spider-Man”) and graphic novelists Amy Chu (“Sensation Comics Featuring Wonder Woman”), Greg Pak (co-creator of Amadeus Cho), and Keith Chow (“Secret Identities”).

As a teaser to the panel's content, one of the most interesting statements was made by actor Basco, who played Rufio in Hook, and grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area. 

Dante Basco

The entire panel was asked, "How does your experience as an Asian American inform your work behind the scenes?"

Basco responded: "Totally. I mean, in the last, I’d say… ten years, it’s totally informed my work. Because what you realize, the longer you’re around in the industry, the longer you see that it’s not… equal. It’s not an equal playing ground. And it’s not to blame, I’m not the kind of person that’s complaining how the industry is.

"It’s just that we gotta keep on creating work that’s gonna be different. The great thing now is that you’re seeing a big Asian American boom happening. We’ve seen it happen before with Latino Americans in the 90s, African Americans in the 70s, and what I’ve urged people to do is to create our own genre for ourselves, for us telling our stories, and not… the crazy thing is, you come to Comic-Con and it’s like, how do you perceive things?

"So Comic-Con is the biggest con in the world celebrating the modern arts, the popular arts. And what you realize is that every artist here, every single artist is inspired so much by Asian artists. Whether it be Japan, anime, all this kind of stuff. This is the only place that I’ve been to in America, as Asians we’ve always wanted to be more white or more black, right?

"The Con world is the only place you’ll see where black, white, Latino, other people are… wanna be Asian. And it’s the… craziest… when you really see it like that, as Asian Americans, you’re like, “Oh shit.” Oops, don’t say that. You’re like, “oh my god.” So we’ve gotta kind of start seeing where we do have leverage, where we are kind of leading the pack, and Comic-Con is one of the places where I would say, you could ask every artist on the floor, and you could say who their inspirations are, half of them are gonna be Asians. Which is amazing."

For the complete transcript of the panel, go to Racebending's website. 

2015-16 is shaping up to be a watershed year for Asian Americans if Comic-Con is any barometer of the shifting demographics of our country. But the entertainment industry is highly fickle. What happens next always depends on how successful these attempts to diversify the ranks of superheroes, fantasy and science fiction. How long-lasting this trend lasts or if it goes beyond being a passing fancy and becoming embedded in America's pop culture is anybody's guess.

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