Welcome to This Week in Fandom, the OTW’s roundup of things which are happening! Before we start, did you see Deadpool 2 this weekend? How about Solo: A Star Wars Story? Deadpool ruled the box office, according to cnet, but there’s no denying the roguish charm of Lan–I mean Han.
Warning: Some of the links in this section contain racist language, threats of violence, and mention of suicide and rape. Please proceed with caution.
This week kicked off with a Buzzfeed News article about racism in the BTS ARMY. The article tells the stories of 14 black BTS fans who have experienced racism in fannish spaces. According to the fans interviewed, the harassment occurs largely on Twitter and Curious Cat (a social media site where users can accept questions from others).
While much of the material is not appropriate to directly quote here, one fan had her selfie edited by a fellow Twitter user to lighten her skin, and several other fans received anonymous messages on Curious Cat with threats and accusations.
But black fans are fighting back. They’ve organized the hashtags #BlackArmyBeauty and #BlackARMYsMatter as a way of declaring their presence and spreading positivity about who they are.
https://twitter.com/MlNSANAS/status/990391242730233857
Curious Cat issued a statement to Buzzfeed News (and one to Teen Vogue, which also published an article on the topic), stating that they are “currently designing and building the foundations for a safer Curious Cat, both behind the scenes and out front.”
In other news, fans are working to save the Supernatural spinoff Wayward Sisters. Den of Geek published an article explaining that, while the CW didn’t pick up the show, its fans aren’t going down that easy.
fans were left in shock – mind you, not just fan-fueled “my show didn’t get greenlit” shock, but more like “how could this show not get greenlit” shock. Consequently, the “Save Wayward Sisters” petition (only a few days old,) has corralled over 54,000 digital signatures, already most of the way toward its initial goal of 75,000.
As of the time of writing, the petition has passed its goal of 75,000 signatures.
The article states that Wayward Sisters wasn’t just another iteration of Supernatural–unlike its previous failed spinoff, Supernatural: Bloodlines–but “was to be something different, showcasing a diverse female cast (in an industry atmosphere that’s clearly calling for such a thing).”
Fans agree that the representation and diversity of the spinoff is important:
Because I want a 🌎 wherein love, kindness, loyalty, strength, empathy & honesty are valued. Where girls & boys grow up knowing women can be & are however strong, smart & capable as they want to be. Where everyone feels represented and heard #SaveWayward #SaveWaywardSisters
— Rachel Miner (@RachelMiner1) May 17, 2018
Have you signed the petition? Do you plan to? Let us know in the comments!
Lastly, actor Margot Kidder has passed away at the age of 69, according to CNN. She was known for many roles, including that of Lois Lane in the 1978 movie Superman. She died peacefully in her sleep.
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