[Femme Fatale]

http://nerdcaliber.com/?p=7433

This article not only hurt me but made me upset as well. It should not matter one millisecond what race you are while you are cosplaying. Cosplaying is fun. You should be given props for what you did, not to be put down for it because of the color of your skin.

[Nikku]

It has very little to do with cosplay and all to do with racism. The cosplay is just a cover for it. The comments are rather clear by what they mean when you say it aloud. They just don't wanta see a "darkie" getting into something that They like. so rather then just blurt out "get out" they'll be 12 year old girls and nitpick at the outfit as if to shame them.

That being said i am that kind of perfectionist who spent hours working on my outfit...judging my friends on who can play what then they blurted out "well, he's a 5'2 fat asian kid" My only response was "go to hell i'm not cutting my shins off!

[MasterHavik]

I'm still doing Phoenix Wright. Screw whatever other fool says otherwise.

This post has been edited by MasterHavik: 28 February 2012 - 07:42 PM

[Millions_Knives]

ehh just kicking up dust
not worth my time

[Dark Spellmaster]

It's interesting to see reactions on this. I would have to agree with Million's that it does kick up dust. However it's something that shouldn't just be ignored either. Hopefully we'll become more and more open with time. I think a lot has to do with:
1. Net being annon.
2. People having been raised with tendencies from family and long time issues.
3. Moron's expecting perfect cosplay that can't exisit.

[XenoBlade]

Eh, racism is eveywhere. Who cares what randoms think. Im gonna cosplay who I want. if someone wants to say it from the safety of the comp, its whatever. If they grow balls and say it to my face, we'll see what happens.

[Naoya Toudou]

Darn Straight Xeno. Hello ive seen some pretty cute and well made cosplays from girls who were african-American and of other races. and besides 9/10 of characters are of japanese decent, so who is anyone to judge when it comes to race? This is something of a double edge sword where we cant ignore it but its the best thing to do sometimes. especially when its people on the web. its ok to feel hurt, but remember this one rule of cosplay that i personally follow. do it for yourself

[basili1250]

So long as there are people, there will be people who bring down others

Because they're scared of doing the things others can do.

Screw em

[MsLovelyCookie]

Skin tone shouldn't matter there is not much we can do to our skin since most of the money goes to get the cosplay done.

[vika838]

Dark Spellmaster, on 28 February 2012 - 11:14 AM, said:

It's interesting to see reactions on this. I would have to agree with Million's that it does kick up dust. However it's something that shouldn't just be ignored either. Hopefully we'll become more and more open with time. I think a lot has to do with:
1. Net being annon.
2. People having been raised with tendencies from family and long time issues.
3. Moron's expecting perfect cosplay that can't exisit.

I agree. Everyone's a critic, and the anonymity of the internet lets bigots feel like it's perfectly acceptable to put others down for anything that makes you different (race, age, size, etc.) You could have the world's greatest cosplay and people will still find something hurtful to say. I did a masq performance, and got some pretty scathing online comments, not about my performance, but that I was "too fat" for my outfit. It fit me perfectly, and I'd taken great care in it's construction, but I'm not petite so it didn't matter. It's not the same thing as racism, but I wish people could refrain from indulging themselves in any of the ism's just because they're anonymous.

This post has been edited by vika838: 28 February 2012 - 02:44 PM

[MasterHavik]

Black Phoenix Wright all day every day of the week son.

http://toot71192.dev...llery/#/d3gzlly

Besides...who can handle that? You guys might remember this girl from last year.

[linlindesu]

One of these years, I will cosplay the best disney princess ever
And I am whiter than a sheet.

But there will always be a**holes on the internet :/

[GITS SAC Motoko]

Someone will always try to bring you down and the real challenge is not letting them get to you. Brush it off and cosplay proud.
What Xeno says really hits the nail on the head though--they say it because they are most likely hundreds of miles away from you and can hide behind their computer. They will never meet you and such and are just trying to be nasty. Take it as a compliment because they took time out of their day to look at your photo. :3

This post has been edited by GITS SAC Motoko: 28 February 2012 - 11:23 PM

[KusanagiRobin]

I saw this on Facebook this afternoon. There's really not much to say that's already been said, except that when I first started out cosplaying I was really self-conscious--I mean, you don't really see black Robin Senas, but I'm also not in the greatest of shape. But my own experience has been great so far. Shape and shade notwithstanding, I've cosplayed everything from L to Temari to R. Dorothy to Link, and most have been kind enough to point out my my burgeoning prop-making skills, not that I should shed my skin and crawl back into whatever cave I came from. And if anyone has been talking behind my back, I must not have been listening, because I was too busy having fun. (btw, say 'hi' if you see a black Byakuya running around this year!)

You would think people would get over it and stop debating dumb plop like this, but as a great man once said, you can't fix stupid.

...On the other hand, my friend and I had a discussion about seeing MORE black people in Japanese pop culture (video games, anime, etc.), so it was interesting that this popped up.

[Voxx]

KusanagiRobin, on 29 February 2012 - 12:56 AM, said:

I saw this on Facebook this afternoon. There's really not much to say that's already been said, except that when I first started out cosplaying I was really self-conscious--I mean, you don't really see black Robin Senas, but I'm also not in the greatest of shape. But my own experience has been great so far. Shape and shade notwithstanding, I've cosplayed everything from L to Temari to R. Dorothy to Link, and most have been kind enough to point out my my burgeoning prop-making skills, not that I should shed my skin and crawl back into whatever cave I came from. And if anyone has been talking behind my back, I must not have been listening, because I was too busy having fun. (btw, say 'hi' if you see a black Byakuya running around this year!)

You would think people would get over it and stop debating dumb plop like this, but as a great man once said, you can't fix stupid.

...On the other hand, my friend and I had a discussion about seeing MORE black people in Japanese pop culture (video games, anime, etc.), so it was interesting that this popped up.

That's exactly what I was thinking. I see a lot more diversity in people that are interested in the J-pop culture than there was years before. Taking it to a larger scale, it seems like "nerdiness" is being more accepted nowadays.

And yeah, I saw that post as well and commented on it. Racism is everywhere and there's people that will criticize anything. This isn't new. Now with that comment that the person made, it wasn't necessarily racist. They were just being an elitist about cosplay. The person who made the article was making a mountain out of a molehill. But to that person who made the comment, they don't realize that cosplay is for fun. There are people who take it seriously and try to be as close to the character as possible and then there's those that change it up and have fun with it. To each their own. There aren't any rules about who people can and cannot cosplay.

[Dark Spellmaster]

I think another reason why were seeing more mixed characters in manga is due to various reasons. One is the fact that younger mangaka are haveing more global relations, IE: People from all over the world coming and working there, transfer teachers and students coming as part of a cultural exchange, Media from all over the world, and oh yeah, the net. Two is the fact that manga is becoming more international and more countries are making deals with creators and studios so I think there's that factor going in. It's making it so that interesting characters can be concived of and accepted, now I'm just waiting for a Korean charcter to be allowed in there and I can honestly say that Japan is facing up to it's racial issues.

[MasterHavik]

Treat cosplay like the World Cup. It's one of the ways to end racism in our world.

[Washu Takahashi]

I can't believe we still live in a society where so many people think like that. The first thing I notice about a cosplay is how accurate the COSTUME is, not the person wearing it. Saying a colored person can't cosplay a white person is like people who see cosplayers with their character's tattoo (for example, any of the sins from fullmetal alchemist), ask if the tattoo is real, then get mad and say the cosplay sucks because the tattoo isn't real It's so stupid...but I like to think that the human race as a whole is getting better and more accepting about this kind of thing...hopefully in the future racism is something they study in history textbooks that children won't be able to fully comprehend.

[MasterHavik]

You got that right.

[Siren_N0el]

People are fickle and childish. just don't give a fck. you are what you are, listening to others be racist about cosplaying or anything is is a waste of time and energy. You are above all that. fck em.

[Kii]

Psh, not even an issue.This is like people taking those "Only Asians Should Cosplay" YouTube videos seriously.

Cosplay is about the quality of your work and enjoying yourself and to hell with your weight, height, and especially skin color.

[The Fujoshi]

Kii, on 31 March 2012 - 06:17 PM, said:

Psh, not even an issue.This is like people taking those "Only Asians Should Cosplay" YouTube videos seriously.

Cosplay is about the quality of your work and enjoying yourself and to hell with your weight, height, and especially skin color.

I agree with this but I have the fear that someone, or someone would take a picture of me and post it all over tumblr/cgl to gawk and make fun of.

Like I totally want to do the Subway master Emmet in the future one day, but I can image some idiot would point out how I'm not a twin or I'm black or what not.

This fear comes from me randomly looking for pairings on tumblr and finding some hetalia mocking site and lo and behold I find pictures from a Hetalia photoshot a few years ago, with the poster mocking how these people look nothing like the nations in question among other things. Stuff like that annoys me and hurts, because of the power of the internet.

[DioxideIL]

Our shared interests are completely universal, and were intended to be appreciated by all. I cannot stand when people feel a need to degrade others for no reason whatsoever. We live in such a bully-heavy time, and it saddens me to see others accosted by punks who have nothing better to do. I love meeting people of every race color and creed. We're all living this whole life thing together so why can't we do so collaboratively?

[Dark Spellmaster]

The Fujoshi, on 03 April 2012 - 06:27 PM, said:

I agree with this but I have the fear that someone, or someone would take a picture of me and post it all over tumblr/cgl to gawk and make fun of.

Like I totally want to do the Subway master Emmet in the future one day, but I can image some idiot would point out how I'm not a twin or I'm black or what not.

This fear comes from me randomly looking for pairings on tumblr and finding some hetalia mocking site and lo and behold I find pictures from a Hetalia photoshot a few years ago, with the poster mocking how these people look nothing like the nations in question among other things. Stuff like that annoys me and hurts, because of the power of the internet.

Fujoshi, don't let them hurt you. The net is known for being anon, these same people that mock are, more then likely, the type that would love to cosplay but don't have the guts to do so, or act like they don't want to due to peer pressure. Also they mock because they don't feel good about themself and would rather tear people down. Sadly when I was much younger I was one of those people, didn't mock others for cosplay but for other things, it was not a good time. But I learned that it came from self esteme. People that do this need help with their esteme, and that's pretty much what a lot of it comes down to.

[Kii]

The Fujoshi, on 03 April 2012 - 06:27 PM, said:

I agree with this but I have the fear that someone, or someone would take a picture of me and post it all over tumblr/cgl to gawk and make fun of.

Like I totally want to do the Subway master Emmet in the future one day, but I can image some idiot would point out how I'm not a twin or I'm black or what not.

This fear comes from me randomly looking for pairings on tumblr and finding some hetalia mocking site and lo and behold I find pictures from a Hetalia photoshot a few years ago, with the poster mocking how these people look nothing like the nations in question among other things. Stuff like that annoys me and hurts, because of the power of the internet.

Being made fun of on the internet is something every cosplayer sort of risks.There's a lot of jerks out there who like to hide behind their little screens and poke fun of everyone who isn't doing things the way they think they should be done.
Don't let people like that control you.It's what they want, but it isn't what they deserve.

[antisocialist]

If you are black or non-white/non-Japanese, know this. A person who trashes you solely because of race

1. Is threatened by you.
2. Cannot find anything else other than your race to talk about - it means that your costume is just that good. Generally, with a lot of black cosplayers, they have to try harder to get the costume right due to their race. As a result, I've seen some extraordinary craftsmanship come out of it as a result. It's compensatory, but it says that the cosplayer can get the character down perfectly even though they aren't the race of the character. Also, to point out the hypocrisy of those people, they would rather see someone get a character inaccurate (such as Fran or Yoruichi) if it means that the person cosplaying them is white or Japanese.

If you have haters, you better figure out how to get more, because if your costume looks that good, it means that you're doing something right.

This post has been edited by antisocialist: 19 April 2012 - 01:23 AM

[BreBre716]

I was worried about negaivity about being black cosplaying as someone who wasn't dark skinned which is why I went for two darker female characters last year with it being my first time at Acen and cosplaying . Yoruichi Shihouin from Bleach (http://www.facebook....&type=3) and Yuko from Persona 3. (http://www.facebook....&type=3). But Then I realized I shouldn't even care. People who comment on skin color are idiots and need to realize that Cosplay is for everyone and anyone has a right to do so , if you aren't dark skinned you can cosplay as someone who is as white as snow if you wanted or vice versa. I cosplayed as Squall Leonhart from Final Fantasy VIII a BOY and who has "Asian features/Caucasian features" at C2E2 this past weekend and people liked it! >B( (http://www.facebook....&type=3) and I'm bringing my Squall to this Acen !

[MasterHavik]

BreBre716, on 20 April 2012 - 11:57 AM, said:

I was worried about negaivity about being black cosplaying as someone who wasn't dark skinned which is why I went for two darker female characters last year with it being my first time at Acen and cosplaying . Yoruichi Shihouin from Bleach (http://www.facebook....&type=3) and Yuko from Persona 3. (http://www.facebook....&type=3). But Then I realized I shouldn't even care. People who comment on skin color are idiots and need to realize that Cosplay is for everyone and anyone has a right to do so , if you aren't dark skinned you can cosplay as someone who is as white as snow if you wanted or vice versa. I cosplayed as Squall Leonhart from Final Fantasy VIII a BOY and who has "Asian features/Caucasian features" at C2E2 this past weekend and people liked it! >B( (http://www.facebook....&type=3) and I'm bringing my Squall to this Acen !

You did great job cosplaying Yoruichi and Yuko. I hope you're at Acen. I'm glad you don't care about what people say about you. I'm hoping I can see you as Mitsuru or, heck, even Rukia.

[BreBre716]

MasterHavik, on 20 April 2012 - 01:45 PM, said:

You did great job cosplaying Yoruichi and Yuko. I hope you're at Acen. I'm glad you don't care about what people say about you. I'm hoping I can see you as Mitsuru or, heck, even Rukia.

Oh Yeah I'll be at Acen. As Squall on Saturday as a Teddiursa Sunday and Friday as Minako Arisato of Persona 3. But I'm doing a "Black girl version" I guess of Minako since her hair is brownish and mine is naturally black so I'm putting my hair up and attaching a black girl weave/extension pony tail so my hair style is basically the same. The outfit I had for Yuko last year is basically the same outfit as Minako's but with a few minor changes plus a naginata weapon which I'm working on now. (yes I know. last minute XD.).... I dunno I know I said I don't give a hoot about what people say but for Friday I'm a bit irked and on edge since...

1) I haven't been in the Shin megami tensei fanbase for very long
2) I don't know If I'll be recognized as the FEmMC if I'm the "black girl version"
3) people get weird when cosplayers don't have the "proper wig"

also my reason for being the "black girl version" is because I can't afford a stylized wig like hers since I already bought my Squall wig for 28 bucks via ebay from a wig place in Hong Kong. >_> (unemployed College student here)

This post has been edited by BreBre716: 22 April 2012 - 07:39 AM

[MasterHavik]

Repping the P3P FemMC is godlike. I'll try to get a picture of you as Sqaull and her.