Accusations of black racial stereotypes in Transformers 2
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, one of the summer’s biggest movies, is garnering controversy over two minor Autobot characters, Mudflap and Skids. Moviegoers and reviewers note the pair speak in broken English, bicker constantly and allege they reinforce negative stereotypes of African Americans. Director Michael Bay maintains the characters were developed by voice actors Reno Williams (who is black and voiced Mudflap) and Tom Kenny (who is white and voiced Skids).
In AP Entertainment writer Sandy Cohen’s story, Bay defends the characters by saying their speech, behavior and cadence are the result of learning of American culture through the Web. Bay describes them as “wannabe gangster types.”
Wilson says if the characters had learned of American culture through country music, they would have country accents and speech. “It’s not fair to assume the characters are black,” Wilson said in Cohen’s article. Kenny did not respond to Cohen’s interview request.
Are the character’s a futuristic Amos ‘n’ Andy, bringing negative stereotypical portrayals of African Americans upon the film’s predominantly young audience? Could the characters be perceived as social commentary on negative aspects of U.S. hip hop culture? Do you buy Bay’s story of how the characters’ personas were developed?
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my 13 yr old daughter asked me was i offended by the 2 robots and sadly i was not. it is so odd that we as black folks get angry over the “un”important stuff and let the real issues fly in the wind. did you see that Tyrese was cast as a CMSGT of the AF? race will always be an issue because of many reasons but this is not one of them.
It is good to see a spirited debate on this topic. Though some posters have accused ACAR of fanning the flames on this one, this story was posted because movie reviewers (such as our own Joe Williams) and moviegoers expressed concern about the characters of Mudflap and Skids. Posters on fan sites noted that the original depictions of Mudflap and Skids were not as depicted in the film.
The reaction caused me to think of this: What makes this “controversy” different from the objections of Italian Americans to the Miller Lite mobster beer ads? (Link here: http://www.suntimes.com/business/lazare/1604372,CST-NWS-miller03.article)
Darryl Swint - Unbelievable! You STILL won’t answer the question. So much for a “conversation” about race.
FTPD: Relax. I’ve not yet seen the movie, but rest assured I will see it very soon. I’ll post my personal reaction once I have seen the film.
African Americans can’t have it both ways. You want to cry racism when robots use Ebonics and a street patois saying this isn’t how African Americans sound. AND you want to be able to degrade and ridicule educated African Americans for selling out and sounding white when they don’t use Ebonics. SO which is it do you or do you not want to sound like uneducated drug dealers and rappers?
Paul L: There are quite a few generalizations in your latest post. I don’t speak for the entire African American race, but the Black race is not monolithic in ideology or socio-economic status. As in every other group, there exists diversity in everything. I can assure you that “Ebonics” is not the language of African Americans. English is.
Also, there are difference between prejudice, stereotypes and racism. The article I posted deals with possible stereotypical depictions of African American behavior and speech in Transformers 2. I don’t believe anyone is saying two Ebonics-speaking fictional robots is preventing anyone Black from getting a job, a business loan, a mortgage, etc.
Last, I can’t help you on how drug dealers sound, but I’ve heard various rappers who don’t rap in “Ebonics.” So what determines whether THEY sound educated or uneducated?
Does anyone have a response regarding the similarities or differences between this Transformers 2 controversy and that of the Miller Lite commercials removed due to complaints by Italian Americans of mob stereotypes?
I thought this blog was only about AA?
I think this thread over some “controversial” movie characters will run longer than the Miller commercials and maybe already has. It’s really getting hard to keep this site afloat isn’t it?
I ,as a black man, seen the movie and loved it. But I did make the observation that some parts were unjustly racially motivated. It was clear that it was a white robot “acting black” and a black robot “acting ignorant”. And here is the issue I had….I believe that those people who truely believe that majority of black males act in that manner are just as ignorant as the robots themselves. I am so tired of this stereo type that it is sickening. It is not so much the broken english, being that EVERYONE speaks/or pick up the language from those they be around. Broken english has no barring on education or intelligence. It is based on just surroundings. However, I personally didn’t like the statement of ” We don’t do too much reading” and all th bickering and fighting.
Second issue is that I see a lot of Hip Hop references in some of these replies. First off, rap is a form of art, and while these record lables and radio stations (none of which are black owned) only choose to play or promote the unartistic and unexpressional form of the art is unfortunate. So…only fans of the music should be commenting on the subject of Hip Hop. Anyone else is commenting on a genre of the music is doing so blindly, thus appearing ignorant. “Hip Hop” culture is just a facade created by white mainstream media who really has no true understanding of Hip Hop. Tupac, Mos Def, Jay Z, Talib, Nas….these are the example of hip hop……none of which is being displayed in the characters on Transformers.
*****Stated by John C***** - “I contrast that with the images and sounds of rap music, largely performed by blacks over the last 25 years. Much of it is centered on narcissitic behavior, vulgar and rude language, sexual promiscuity, repetitive lyrics/sounds (thus, in my opinion, lacking creativity) and images that communicate destructive behavior.”
John C, majority of anyform of entertainment (movies, TV, Teen Magazines, music,talk shows, WWE wrestling, UFC, sports, Hardees commercials, ect) are centered on narcissitic behavior, vulgar and rude language, sexual promiscuity, repetitive lyrics/sounds and images that communicate destructive behavior
****Also stated by John C****- Many rappers have died via the behavior described in the music. Yet, the music remains hugely popular with all youth, particularly black youth.”
The music is popular to majority of all youth..not just black. People,not rappers, die via the behavior described in the music. Unfortunatley, those behaviors are true behaviors of a segment of individuals who lack opportunity of an equal eduacation and an oppression from those who feel these sterotypes to be true.
John C why are u soley targeting a black art form in your analysis?
Why is it when an black entertainer portrayal of a street smart individual (gangster) it is taken so seriously. Do you same people believe the Governor of California is from the future and really has a cyborg skeleton. Thats how stupid one appears when they believe the rap artist, who is stratigically placed in the media spotlight, is truely a gangster of any
sort.
And to my white peers who have a hardtime understanding why minorities (blacks, gays, etc) gets upset over these types of stereotypes…..let me explain, we deal with these everyday all day. Until you can go through the torment a minority goes through, you have no right to say how one should deal with it