Culture

Avatar Racist? White Vs. Blue Is The New Internet Meme

by Yuliya Talmazan | January 11, 2010 at 09:26 am

2515 views | 2 Recommendations | 4 comments

Today, Google Trends had "Avatar racist" in the top 10 trends. First, that signifies that people are still talking about James Cameron's epic Avatar. Secondly, it means people are now pondering what they saw on the screen and re-evaluating the message. A week after the movie's release, Internet was abuzz talking about the so-called hidden message in Avatar, which many figured was a call to protect and cherish indigenous cultures in an effort to learn from past mistakes and stop repeating them in the future.

However, recently Avatar message is being re-evaluated by many. The latest Internet meme is that Avatar is actually racist. Some allege Avatar is anti-white, showing whites as a race of self-centered destructors. Jake Sully, the central figure in the movie, is being accused of "betraying his own race" as he tries to help out Na'vi, the people of Pandora whose home humans are trying to destroy in order to mine precious unobtanium. Many are saying the movie is all about Sully being an outcast and a kind of white Messiah, coming to the rescue of noble natives.

Here are some of people's reactions on Twitter to the claims that Avatar is racist:

diannerz: Wth ? Why are people calling Avatar a racist movie . Crazy .

waialuadakine: These ppl need to get over themselves. RT @HonAdv: Some see racist theme in 'Avatar'

chriszeller: according to CNN Avatar is racist against white people, and is so depressing that it has led some to kill themselves. WTF?

bink204: Just read an article about how "avatar" is racist, against who, 9 foot tall blue guys with a tail? Its not like he was drinking malt liquor.

IvonaTomiek: Avatar racist and sexist!??? No, I definitely don't think so... I've seen it weeks ago and absolutely loved it! Great movie!

The movie director James Cameron says he does not see the movie as racist.

Writer/director Cameron, who is white, said in an e-mail to The Associated Press that his film "asks us to open our eyes and truly see others, respecting them even though they are different, in the hope that we may find a way to prevent conflict and live more harmoniously on this world. I hardly think that is a racist message."

Avatar is now #2 highest grossing movie of all time with only Titanic still in the lead. The movie was released three weeks ago on December 18, but most of the shows are still sold out hours in advance.

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bobbbbbbbby (not verified)

at 11:07 on January 11th, 2010

LOL, racist, jesus.... If this is racist, then god help us. I mean obviously it is racist against white people (sarcasm) because its main characters are white people (excluding one). Its not anti-white, its against raping another planet/country/people for resources because of a feeling of superiority. But of course, racist has become such a horrible thing that people confuse themselves with its meaning.

coryengle

at 22:04 on January 11th, 2010

haven't even seen this movie yet, thought it looked pretty lame actually. but since EVERYONE seems to like it, maybe i'll check it out lol

ceti_alpha (not verified)

at 22:39 on January 11th, 2010

The film has some pretty standard Hollywood tropes, but people who call it racist for having a white hero are being unwittingly played by those who want to thwart the larger message that Cameron has himself enunciated (although they might not really care about anti-colonial, pro-environmental struggles, but I digress). While the film is as unsubtle as a brick, it is pretty obvious that it is purposely so to get through the audience's thick skulls. Sadly, the deranged blogosphere where snark = brilliance spins this whole thing way out of control. I mean, Black Knight bore some pretty dark fascist themes, while Transformers served as a noisy ad for the military, but very little column space was expended on them as opposed to Avatar.Then again, distraction, confusion, and cynicism are useful tools in creating controversies and spinning in self-aggrandizing ways.