Reflection and Analysis

Black Cleopatra is Racist Towards Non-Black POCs (5/10/23)

The title should say it all.

Actually, I wish I didn't have to say this at all, but with the fact She-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named decided it was completely fine to cast a Black actress as Cleopatra simply because it's "her truth" - well, I find myself having to say it. Of course, here's where I point out She-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named thinks there is nothing wrong with cheating on her husband with her son's friend should in itself tell you all you need to know about "her truth" and how she doesn't care about reality.

Cleopatra wasn't Black.

Period.

And that so-called critical review that brushes off the criticisms regarding the casting choice in what is labeled as a documentary and not a fictional film series is just a matter of people complaining because it wasn't a white actor cast as Cleopatra.

Wrong!

What people are taking issue with is that a certain Black woman feels it's alright to present a non-Black POC group's history as if it is Black history.

And the justification?

Someone's grandma said Cleopatra was Black, and because someone's grandma said Cleopatra was Black, that must be true, and not ever listen to what those history teachers in school are telling you.

Irony - this is coming from a group whose been pissed off that American history was rewritten to leave out the Black person so effectively their solution is to do it to everyone else. And this is the logic behind all of the raceswapping we've seen in our favorite IP, that it is right, some kind of wrong by...

Well, by treating others the way they've been treated.

Because everyone knows two wrongs make things right, right?

Actually, the phrase is "two wrongs don't make things right," but the person who argues that as the justification for swapping the race of a character does not have the moral high ground.

As for the other arguments, "the best actor/actress for the job" is actually a rare occurrence if the casting calls are done correctly.  There wasn't a physical type like the Kingpin character that personified that character. They're not creating something like The Wiz or Polly, which asks the question of how the story would change if told from a Black perspective. They're not creating something like Annie, which took place in a modern setting where they wanted to accurately reflect the foster care system, the modern equivalent of the orphanage.

More often than not, changing the race of the color has to do with virtue signaling, but this virtue signaling is bushed as creative and inventive of the person despite the fact it's been done so many times that it's not this new thing they're pretending it is. And often, they're wrong about this "first" they're claiming.

In this particular case, it's a historical documentary. There is an expectation to be historically accurate and not make things up.

Oh, and calling the Egyptians liars and racist?

Sorry, but those who made this show are the racists, the ones who decided it's okay to erase another POC group just for Black representation.

Like, stop. It's not funny.

As a non-white person, as a POC it's not funny.

The end result?

Good job of making Black people look bad for culturally appropriating another culture when they keep complaining about others doing it to them.

The sad part is there are plenty of Black people who don't support this.