The Hunger Games' original casting call for Katniss: actress aged 15-20, WHITE and underfed -
THIS. Pretty much sums up how I feel about THG movie casting (although I’m less inclined to think Katniss was supposed to be Greek or Italian, considering all the other racial overtones present in the book and Katniss being from the Appalachians).
Before I get any more Asks about my feelings re: Katniss and Jennifer Lawrence, read this. I’ve gotten messages saying “they auditioned for talent, not skin color” and “Katniss wasn’t Black in the books.” No, folks, no. The point, you have missed it. The casting call was for whites only and that’s why I have an issue with it.
Katniss is described as olive-skinned with black hair and gray eyes. In terms of ethnic population, the Appalachian region has plenty of people who could be described as olive-skinned, particularly Native Americans and Italians who immigrated in the early 1900s. There are people today who are white who have an “olive complexion” — most folks with southern Italian or Greek backgrounds, for instance. So yes, Katniss could be played by a white person and still be honest to the books. But the fact that the casting call was for whites ONLY means that Native, Hispanic, and biracial actresses weren’t even considered for the part. They cast a blonde, blue-eyed actress and dyed her hair.
I have no issue with Jennifer Lawrence. She did a great job. But don’t pretend she was the only person who could have possibly played this role. If they’d auditioned actresses of every race and ultimately decided on Jennifer Lawrence, I’d have a lot less of a problem with it. But they didn’t. They didn’t even consider non-white actresses for her, and probably not for Gale either (who’s supposed to look a lot like Katniss).
-Jess
Remember that word ‘innocent’? This is why Trayvon Martin is dead.
i don’t know which is more racist: the fact that aurora’s flavor is ‘vanilla’, or that tiana’s flavor is ‘watermelon’.
Fact: Black youths arrested for drug possession are 48 times more likely to wind up in prison than white youths arrested for the same crime under the same circumstances.
Source: “Young White Offenders get lighter treatment,” 2000. The Tennessean. April 26: 8A.
Fact: Black and Latino men are three times more likely than white men to be stopped by the police and have their cars searched – even though white men are four times more likely to have weapons or drugs.
Source: Matthew R. Durose, Erica L. Schmitt and Patrick A. Langan, Contacts Between Police and the Public: Findings from the 2002 National Survey. U.S. Department of Justice, (Bureau of Justice Statistics), April 2005.
Fact: White men with a criminal record are more likely to be called back for a job interview than black men with no record, even when their education and experience are the same.
Source: Pager, Devah. 2003. “The Mark of a Criminal Record.” American Journal of Sociology. Volume 108: 5, March: 937-75…
(Source: abagond.wordpress.com)
How & Nosm’s new mural going up on the LA Weekly building.
I always wondered how graffiti artists painted murals so high up—now I know, and knowing is half the battle. Too bad more companies don’t willingly offer their buildings up for use as street art canvases… the world would look so much more interesting if they did.
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(Source: esmaaax, via mango-watermelon-love)
stfuconservatives: thegirlwiththefinchertattoo: swoozi: This is tragic.
(Source: keepyourhopesuphighx)
The Beginning is Near