Sight Beyond Sight: Race Issues In The Nerd Community

This week Nerd Caliber has been focusing on persons of color and nerd culture. This is the last of three articles that deals with this controversial topic. Here we interview cosplay photographer Adam Howell, Natsuki Shinaito (co-editor of CosplayNYC), Jason A. Canty (CEO & President at Angry Viking Press LLC) and Brena Robinson who dresses lolita-style. I hope this article will give persons of all colors some insight into what some of the struggles our nerdy brothers and sisters go through.

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I met Jason Canty over a year ago at the New England Comic Con in Boston, Massachusetts. He is the CEO & President at Angry Viking Press LLC, a comic book company that produces work by many minority writers and artists.

EO: Have you ever experienced a positive or negative reaction to your “nerd-ism” because of the color of your skin?

Jason A. Canty: Well since I had a high IQ growing up, it wasn’t too suprising I became interested in geeky stuff, though I was often called White Steve Urkel. There were always the few that thought  “But wait your black? Why don’t you like sports?” Especially from older people. I vividly remember one older lady, who I think meant well, trying to be nice and said I would make a good basketball player one day while sitting next to me in a park in Marblehead. I tried to politely tell her that I had no interest in sports and was more into math and science. Having asthma didn’t help either.

She seemed oblivious to that. At worst, it’s always been an, “Oh? You like science/nerdy stuff?” As I’ve gotten older and the fact that  I’m into science is very apparent (I was a teacher for 5 years until last year), people don’t really question it as much. I still think I had it better than other minority kids however. I can’t say for sure since unfortunately growing up I was almost always the only black kid in my area, but I ‘guess’ my experience growing up wasn’t as bad. Again, I had no other friends to compare to.

EO: Do you think that culture has shifted enough in the last ten to twenty years that people of color are becoming more accepted in nerd culture?

Jason A. Canty: Well I think nerds themselves, in my experience, didn’t really care what background you were. It was “normal” people who seemed surprised. Nerds just seem to worry about Picard vs. Kirk, Spider-Man vs Batman. Also since some of them have social inabilities or disabilities like Asperger’s Syndrome, its been shown people with those conditions are less likely to be concerned with race and the preconceptions that some people should always like one thing over another.

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Adam Howell is a passionate cosplayer and talented photographer. 

EO: I know you sometimes get the nickname Blaxel from your cosplay of Axel from Final Fantasy. Do you see that name as a racist remark?

Adam Howell: Ironically enough, the word Blaxel is not a racial term or racist. My friend jokingly said I’m going to call you Blaxel because your black and you’re cosplaying Axel, so he went and spread this around the anime convention Anime Mid Atlantic. People started to catch on to it and the next thing I know a couple of conventions later people I didn’t even know started calling me Blaxel.

I think honestly race does not matter in cosplay. I have received mostly positive feedback. Numerous people have said I was the best Axel cosplayer they have seen which means a lot to me because my style of Axel is not the traditional black leather outfit.

The only negative reception I received so far is on the Otaku House Idol Competion website. In the solo and voting portion there was a few hateful comments but other than that I don’t tend to receive any harsh comments at conventions. Matter of fact, I think when I go to conventions, I bring the atmosphere up.

EO: If I may ask, what do you mean by hateful comments? Was their criticism about the color of your skin or the craftsmanship?

Adam Howell: Well, on the Idol House photo there are comments like “the N word.”

EO: That’s a shame.

Adam Howell: An earlier contest had some negative feedback similar to that. Yes, it is a shame.

EO: You mentioned you received a lot of positive feedback. Do you think the American Otaku community is generally positive to anyone cosplaying, despite their race, gender or size?

Adam Howell: I think that the American Otaku community favors it. We all live in an amazing world and we all should respect each other. For the most part, the cosplay community is a tight niche group. I tend to see more hate towards people of size which makes me very sad. I think cosplaying when you are not the perfect size shows you have to courage to overcome negative feedback you might receive from others. There will always be the elitist out there who will complain about being the right color or sex but there are more supporters than haters.

Brena Robinson is from New York and participates in lolita fashion and culture.

EO: What is it about the lolita fashion and culture that interests you?

Brena Robinson: I like that it is something that is so different from what is usually marketed to women my age. There isn’t a need to be sexy. You don’t feel like you need to show a ton of skin to look beautiful. With lolita fashion it’s the opposite, the less skin the better. Not only that but aesthetically I’m attracted to the the beauty of Lolita and the creativity that goes into making these outfits and putting together the perfect coordinates.

EO: Have you felt any negative or positive responses concerning your interest in lolita fashion because of race, whether it’s from cosplayers or non-cosplayers?

Brena Robinson: A lot of non-cosplayers don’t really understand what Lolita is exactly, and I try to explain to them what it is and why I like it but it usually ends up with them just thinking I’m weird. I get mostly negativity from my own family. Anything that is different from what they deem normal is bad.

As for other cosplayers, most of them are pretty positive about it, and they tend to get it. But there are those that make some very ignorant comments. For example, I found a forum discussing “Afro Lolita” which usually just refers to someone in a really curly wig. And someone had made a comment that Afro’s in general have no place in lolita fashion, and that hair should be straight or loosely curled. Comments like that have made me a little hesitant to even try Lolita.

EO: Why do you think some people make such comments?

Brena Robinson: A lot of the “Lifestyle Lolitas” are elitist. The have a set of rules of Do’s and Don’ts of what a lolita should do and be. And others I feel are just ignorant of how offensive some of their opinions are.

EO: What’s been your most positive experience as a fashion lolita?

Brena Robinson: I would say, meeting other lolitas, whether it’s in real life or online, meeting other who share your interests, surrounding yourself with so much positive energy, and forming friendships and just enjoying that feeling of being pretty in your frills and lace.

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Natsuki Shinaito is the co-Editor-In-Chief of CosplayNYC magazine and the head of NaruNatsu.us. 

EO: Have you ever experienced a positive or negative reaction to your cosplay or to your “nerd-ism” because of race or skin color?

Natsuki Shinaito: I’ve never experienced any negative or positive reaction solely because of race or skin color. If anyone comments negatively on my “nerd-ism” it’s because I’m wearing my cosplay in the streets. It’s quite a sight to see!

EO: Why do you think cosplay attracts people of all races, gender and size? What is the appeal?

Natsuki Shinaito: I had heard about conventions and cosplaying from manga and j-pop magazines. But when I saw the poster for the New York Anime Festival, I knew I had to go into cosplay! I loved watching Pokemon and Sailor Moon as a child. My favorite manga was Baby and Me!

EO: What are your thoughts on the evolution of cosplay as it is becoming more and more popular? Are there problems within the culture? If there are, what are they and what do you think should be done about it?

Natsuki Shinaito: I think cosplay attracts so many people because it lets us be someone else. It lets us show off our creativity and gives us that warm feeling when we finally finish our cosplay. There’s also a cosplay community and there’s just something special about being apart of. Community where you can be whoever you want to be!

EO: One last question. Where do you see cosplay headed in the next five to ten years?