Imagine This:
Think about the a time when you were young, eight maybe six or so. Your parent(s) bring you to a store with the promise of any doll/action figure of your choosing. Needless to say your ecstatic to be given any toy you want. Pacing excitably through the isles you search for the perfect toy you can play with for hours on end and will never get bored with. A variety of dolls for a variety of childish tastes is what you naturally see, except after a while, you find none of them are what you're looking for. A tireless search in other stores begins for whatever it is you want, but it's all the same where ever you look. Confusion on even what you want is further aroused as you stroll through all the markets in your area. However you answer your on question with the realization. None of the dolls/action figures had your skin tone, none of them had your body type, none of them had the kind of name you have, none of them dressed like you, none of them even remotely echoed the background you were brought up in and wear with pride. Giving up for the day, driving through the highway home a troubling thought sinks into your mind "Am I not important?"
Stories Shape you
It's obvious this isn't true, nowadays dolls/action figures provide multiple skin tones and appearances of minority children. By all means I know in 2018 this is a situation no one-in America at least-could experience anymore. The following paragraph was purely meant to send a point, even if you yourself never had the frustration of misrepresentation of you and your lifestyle. What you listen to, watch, & read not only reflects you but changes you. Lessons these outlets communicate to you, in the songs, stories, and point's view no matter what/who you follow. It's always the same as you gain a unique sense of perspective for someone/something you never thought you could engage with.Within its finest potential opens doors to emotional, physiological, and/or mental investment. Sentimentality of characters can reach even beyond reality whilst we walk in their shoes and look through their eyes. Elizabeth Bennet has an entire college course revolving around her life story long after the author Jane Austen has passed.
Due to Elizabeth's raw believability we're fascinated by her, what Jane Austen writes elegantly of Elizebath's character are the reactions she has to certain events. Her paralyzing worry over her youngest sister's disappearance, how quick she'll turn to judgementality of strangers, tenacity regarding vulnerbaility with the gamble of rejection. We can't say we lived in 18th/19th century Victorian England but we can recall the emotions we felt while we've walked through these situations. However Relatability is just as powerful as an inspirational character, a prime example being Superman.
The themes that surround him are that of humanity and selflessness, despite not being of Earth he loves it as his own refusing to allow his sorrow to break him. Mirroring what we'd hope to do in his shoes, we'd like to think we'd have the purest actions with the power Superman has. Multitudes of storylines spending as much time to reflect the flaws among his merits. Flesh him out as imperfect but no less a shining hero we all dream of having or being.
Stories Mirror us As a People
Fiction impacts us, represents what we as a society do, act, believe, and strive for. Discoveries of our past have been piling by the dozens as decades roll onward. Yet Mythologies, folktales, and fiction, arguably aid the most in carving the best model we can of how these former people's lived. By the stories that nailed the test of time, having such works survive may show how much the people cared for this work. By analyzing we can uncover what the people found so special about it. What inspires and relates to these people tells us who they were, even when history isn't in there favor.Fiction is important, even more is what we put into it. Unfortunately this can also be for the very worst, not showing us-all of us, is a terrible disservice to be evaded at all costs. By making the future peoples of the world woefully misunderstand who we were, means we've failed to show our true colors. I mean that figuratively and literally, lazily forging minorities by these cardboard cut out marganilzations translates that these people were never important to us. No such aspect of our society derives value from them. With the claims "how can you value the voice/mediums that aren't the same race/gender identity/orientation of you?". Is the same as saying you can't relate or have any investment from those like Elizabeth Bennet and Superman because we don't live like them? I'm certain you have loved one's who're not of your race, orientation, and/or gender identity. I speak from a country that's boiling over with unique people of unique sections of the world. So when I say "A people" It's not exclusive to people who look like you and act like you.
Interpreting it as people who're your peers, co-workers, friends, family, teachers, students, and etc, those you carry out your daily lives alongside.
How Diversity Must be Done
Meanwhile having the tropes "Repressed asian", 'Spicy Latina", "Depressed Trans", "Stoic action white tragic Male", "The girlfriend", "Femme Fatale", "Bury your Gays", "Gas Station Indian", "Angry/Sassy Black Woman/Man" ever present not only is insulting to our society. Certain minds will never be changed, I am aware, even in 2018 with the progressions we've made. Most cease to deem effort of telling these stories of these people in accurate form vital. Perhaps out of a fragile ego or greed, maybe alike many others ignorance buffers you from true representation. With the steadfast info the internet provides ten minutes of research could do all the difference-meaning its inexcusable at this time.
Even with aim to represent respectfully can be a failure by design. The stem being laziness and to be blunt, apathy. To put it like this, if your sole goal in your diversity is to flaunt the "I'm not a biggot" flag, you need reaffirm yourself as a writer and as a person if minorities mean THAT much to you.
I wish to keep this simple though I cannot avoid talking about one trope in it's entirety. "The Token" is the most infamous narrative trap of this subject matter, it'll degrade the representation which is why even the most inclusive variety falls flat. This addresses all minorities, settling for a singular model of each minority is regulating them to the most minor voice you can. Thus one Indian person, one Queer person, one Asian person, and one Black person won't cut it, you must be selective and reasonable with this. Choose how many minorities you want while maintain a balance. Even combine minorities in characters considering queers of color and biracial individuals exist. But moving on Two Indian people, Two Queer people, Two Asian people, and Two Black people is the the conventional means to go.
Conclusion
The aim of this post is not mean to start a witch hunt, not to call anyone out, nor criticize your work as a writer. Yet this is an issue all fiction writers face, by having this fiction reflect the world we live in today, ineffectively. Even without residing in America, there are likely individuals who're devoid of visibility in the country, histories have been neglected by media. As creators it is our job to show all people, it lays in between the lines of the job description.
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