WOKE: The Problem with Activist Characters 

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I feel it's because they're written by people who don't believe in the causes, so activism is more often played for laughs.

I'm sleep deprived, but the "I'm so over this Toxic Masculinity in this hallway" bit had me rolling with laughter.

I feel like the only time an activist is allowed to talk sense is when they're the villain. They'll usually throw in some great dialogue, only to finish with "and that's why we need to kill everyone".

Activist characters always feel so hollow when they're written by big studios. its almost like they don't want to portray a character positively that would actively oppose their institutions (aka capitalism)

The depiction of Hermione's pro-elves activism has always disturbed me in HP.

I do dislike some people who treat life like a narrative and deem me “to intersectional” like if I was fictional I’d be called unrealistic but I exist and I don’t get people expect me *a real person* to just reduce the number of traits I have that are marginalised.

Activist characters will only feel real when they're written by people who actually believe in those causes

This has always bothered me. I always think of the lesbian character in Legally Blonde and it is so cringe. Great video as always!

Sophie from Mars (RU-vidr) has been really pivotal in showcasing the footwork necessary for trans activism. It is interviews, arranging marches, getting petitions going, making speeches. It is a staggering amount of work made easier with a group of committed people; their detailed accounting of the nitty gritty bits of activism that are often glossed over in movie and tv depictions brings visibility and understanding to those outside of the community.

I'm glad you brought up Pride (such a sweet movie) and its unfortunate betrayal of lesbian activism. The real-life people the characters were based on, even said that that was one of the least true-to-life parts of the movie. The actual group had no animosity towards the lesbian group and actually worked together most of the time. Also, when watching that part of Queer as Folk when I was a teen, it really made me feel like a dick for often looking through the lens of "we're just like you" .. Where I live, marriage equality was already established by that time (recognized since 2001), but there was still sometimes a sentiment of "I'm okay with gays, as long as they aren't flamboyant".

When it comes to poorly written activists, I think Hermione from the Harry Potter books takes the cake. She was at the center of an entire subplot about how activists are cringey and gross, and her cause was... abolitionism. She was standing up against chattel slavery inside of her school. And not only was not a single human on her side, Rowling even portrayed most of the *elves* as being pro-slavery. I always thought that arc was going to go somewhere, but she just ended it on "slavery is fine if you're nice" and never made any mention of it being abolished or even reformed. The way Rowling went from "slavery is bad" in book 2 to "slavery is fine when the good guys do it and whiny abolitionists need to stop being so preachy and shrill" in book 4 is such a wild turn, and really foreshadowed how she was only ever going to get worse. I mean she started off bad with the goblins and with appropriating Gaelic religions for the aesthetic, but it's still kind of amazing to look back an see her progressively get more and more depraved. *Edit:* The "appropriating Gaelic religions" comment wasn't from nowhere; Harry Potter received a lot of critique from traditional practitioners in Great Britain when it initially released and throughout its run. These critiques didn't get mainstream attention in later years like the racism and antisemitism did, so they've essentially been drowned out by now. Early on, however, the critique was there for people who went looking for it or something similar. (I found it myself when looking up stuff on the goblins, to see if JK was being antisemitic on accident or on purpose. I didn't fully understand the complaints about misrepresenting their culture at the time because I was young, but they stuck with me the entire time.)

Disney's Zombies is a good example of the "good activist bad activist" trope. It's a very unsubtle metaphor for civil rights that uses zombies in place of black people. The main character and "good activist" is Zed, who basically wants the zombies to conform and integrate with human society but only because he wants to play football, and the "bad activist" is Eliza (coincidentally the only zombie played by a non-white person) who protests unfair treatment of zombies and doesn't like humans

Moxy might be the most real depiction of activism based on your summary. A black character started something, inspired, but the aesthetic of a white character got made the head of the movement. That's very very sad to acknowledge inspiration by a POC, but paint a story that the white character really had the ingenuity to enact change. Like the black best friend trope. She helps boost her white friend... But has no goals or challenges herself, just an argument with their friend. All style, what the media triumphs black people in particular for, but no substance, not the main character.

I like how Elena’s activism is portrayed in ODAAT. Whenever they are teasing her, they are making fun of her methods not the causes themself. Like when she gets a group together to protest a video game company that strongly suggested they would have 3 gender neutral character options but only have 2 (if I remember right). Basically it’s not poking fun at wanting inclusivity but what they’re targeting. They show up on a day the office isn’t even open because they are just kids who want to make a difference but don’t quite know how.

The marketing for tick tick boom really frustrated me. It's been my favourite musical for years, and I was genuinely so confused when I saw the trailer - the show isn't about activism, Jon wasn't an activist (he was an ally/supporter) but never an activist. Especially for a semi-biographical piece it felt weirdly revisionist and dismissive of actual activists. When will writers/production and marketing companies learn that everyone doesn't need to be an activist

Elena generally well liked because the "wokeness issue" is mostly about her as a character rather than "wokeness" itself (like when she's upset because she's passing). She's got the general theory down but is still growing into her personality and morals. And that's specifically about her personality and/or inexperience. So yeah she knows the theory but not the practice of activism which is something that comes with time and experience (we actually see her evolution between season 1 and 4 on that front).

Ngl I know a lot of people hate this character but Diane from Bojack Horseman is definitely one of my favorite activist characters in media especially bc in episodes revolving around her activism she is clearly reacting reasonably to a fucked up world and even when her activism “going to far” is the issue of the episode, she’s still portrayed in an understandable way, not just a wacky annoying character but a genuine moral compass in terms of social issues.

in Poland this type of character has been given a name "Julka" (a short, cutesy version of a common name Julia - Julie), it's the combination of disregarding young teen girls as well as activists or anyone with any semblance of a moral compass, to the point that proclaiming any slight left-leaning opinion online, especially if you're a woman, will get you attacked, called that and your opinion disregarded as insanity

after abortion was all but banned here in Texas, I don’t take any progressive, policies that we think can never be undone for granted. If i’ve learned anything in the past few years is that A LOT of progress can be undone

Learning about the Blood Sisters only just now legitimately has me teary-eyed. At this point I actually have been able to learn more about all the long history of our communities that goes entirely unmentioned in our school programs (in no small part due to stumbling across this channel two years ago), but there’s still just so much more to uncover. Sometimes it’s all so heartwarming, and yet so heartbreaking at the same time.

I have a love of lesbian movies, both indie and more mainstream. I have to say, the whole "one marginalization allowed" rule is horribly annoying. Even when I don't share the marginalizations, I'd much rather see a movie explore the difficulties of being a working class black Jewish man than another movie about two wealthy white gay highschool boys

Reactionaries wanna call social justice activists pushy like their favorite hobby isn't going on mass harassment campaigns against people they deem "SJWs".

This makes me think a lot about Britta from Community, specifically that one episode where we learn she's formed a friendship of sorts with a girl who she's literally only friends with because she thinks that she's a lesbian, only to learn that they actually thought this of each other but neither of them are actually lesbians so they end up just not being friends anymore because they never really were. Ah, a character with such potential who ended up being the idiot activist for the most pointless things.

Hello my fellow siblings of the LGBTQ+ community!

another thing to add: often whenever activists get emotional speaking about their topics, and when i say emotional i mean we voice our frustration or anger, suddenly we are disregarded. but the truth is that when you and your community has been discriminated against since forever you are going to get emotional. they are emotionally charged topics. i believe this is also rooted in misogyny (ex: the hysterical women trope). not to say you can scream at the other person or be rude ofc but it’s a discussion to be had

i feel like the “good activist bad activist” trope is exactly what „sex education” addresses with cal. cal is the loud openly non binary character and gets bashed for being themselves multiple times, while the other „good” quiet nonbinary person gets praised. the difference is that sex education is perfectly aware of how awful that trope is and makes sure to let the audience know that the character bashing cal is the antagonist of the series oh and the show makes cal actually help the other nonbinary character, which is extremely sweet.

If anyone has seen the new how I met your mother reboot, episode 6 has an interesting case of this mixed with some very intense biphobia. A bisexual character is used as a plot point where a brother and sister end up dating the same person, and is portrayed as the dumbest bad faith representation of a social justice warriors (at one point she gets offended by fake leopard print on a t-shirt saying, "how would you feel if I wore a print of your skin?". She also calls in a bomb threat at a Panera bread due to their use of poppy seeds). I'm interested in how the stereotypes of activists and bisexuality intersect. I think this is in part due to bisexuality being still seen as a radical act in itself. Bisexuals struggle to fit in among straight communities and gay communities and have to constantly fight to taken seriously by anyone. Biphobia has the same tone as social justice representation where they are portrayed as too sensitive, too dramatic, and making things difficult for the attention. Anyways, love the video it's so important to discuss how media can affect public opinion.

Never forget when She Who Must Not Be Named made one (1) of her characters acknowledge that slavery is bad even towards house elves, and then proceded to made the fact that she cared about them the butt of the joke.

Moxie was also really frustrating to me in terms of how Vivian's mother was portrayed. The way she talked about her high school experience felt so artificial and surface level "Yeah, we were all about taking down the patriarchy" or whatever she says. I compare this to my own mom and the way she speaks. She doesn't have all the "right" words or the "woke" vocabulary, but she was a total BA when she was in high school in terms of what she did and how much she fought back. I also think it's worth noting that nothing actually changed at my mom's school while she was there. She never achieved what she was fighting for (notably similar to Moxie's plot, she was desperately trying to get recognition for girls' sports and the school pulled some crazy shit with a scholarship that they passed over several girls for, including my mom whose chance was tanked by receiving a 0 in "citizenship"). Anyway, just would have been nice to see a more nuanced portrayal of an older "activist" character that didn't have the same vocabulary as our current generation and to explore how things have and haven't changed.

could stand to contextualize this with some discussion of how the most common uses of “woke”, whether the (mostly non-Black) people using the term are pro- or anti- “PC”, are using an AAVE term as a joke or at least in a very skewed and decontextualized flattened way. like your use of it feels a little mocking in a way that i don’t think was intentional, but still reflects the way Black people, and the language and activism and movements they create, are constantly ripped and riffed off of, to the extent that you can participate in that without even noticing. also, re: trans people who are not activists being misrepresented as such because they exist in public - a good example of this is “gender critical feminists” painting any opposition to them as “TRAs” - according to that variety of political transphobe, they’re concerned citizens nobly advocating for the status quo, while their “opponents”/the people they seek to push further into the gutter are hysterical activists fighting a doomed and disorganized war against science/common sense/culture/history/whatever.

What I find super weird is that some very vocal right wing activists seem to have no clue that what they are doing is activism. I feel like that is also partially related to the depiction of all activism being left wing. If people scream all day on stream about how "the woke are destroying the world" and to prevent that you have to vote for a certain politician that is activism.

The one example that I’ve always thought of in the insufferable activist stereotype role is Britta from Community. When I first got into the show, I was just starting to become more leftist and figuring out my own queerness etc and seeing Britta be slowly morphed from a well meaning liberal to a caricature of an angry, entitled feminist really hurt actually, especially because it’s not like there was another character that had similar values to her but wasn’t as much of a hypocrite? It just came across as very anti-SJW era RU-vid if that makes sense lmao.

Not me early to a Rowan Ellis video 💜

my favorite example of an “activist character” is eloise from brigerton. she’s clearly there to throw up a token protest against the period sexism, but is treated exactly like modern activist characters. Her brothers who get more screen time and central plots roll their eyes at her and the film language is clearly communicating that she is annoying and out of touch. i guess it makes sense, clearly we’re supposed to be rooting for romance and losing ourselves in the period, but why even include her. it feels like a parody.

i wish people would retire the terms "cringe" and "sjw"

The movie Jeffrey was my intro to gay issues and the first time I remember hearing about AIDS at all. It's not about activism, it's a rom com where two men fall in love but have to deal with the HIV/AIDS epidemic and the fears and stigmas surrounding health and just being visible. Also, Patrick Stuart is in it and it's just lovely.

L3-37 from the Star Wars movie "Solo" was a jokey-joke fighter for droids rights, serving as a comic relief character addressing those specific concerns of fans over the many decades. Something these modern reboots/spin offs of older media love to lampshade these days, partially to "justify their own existence." I initially did find her kinda amusing, but as pointed out by RU-vidr Jenny Nicholson, L3-37's activism and character is just very caricatured. :/

It honestly feels like these activist characters are just saying a bunch of buzzwords to feel or seem like they’re fighting for something but don’t really care about it beyond a shallow surface level.

Fun fact: the most famous West Wing scene wasn't actually written by any of their writers. It was stolen from an online post

People laughing at genuine activism is quite sad tbh, the school in Moxie and schools in gen are ignorant to harrasement its horrific

I mean, "Shut Up and Listen" sounds like a great podcast name to me.

One of the most abysmal representations of "activism" (not entirely the word applies here, but it's close) is the leader of the "Flag Smashers" 🙄in Falcon & The WInter Soldier. She leads a group who wants to do things like abolish national borders, but she goes Too Far and kills someone, and therefore becomes a villain.

I've always found this archetype irritating, they really are just anti-activism propaganda (not implying it's done on purpose)

Your comment about activism never being taught in schools? We’re working on it! I’m a current trainee teacher, and I have a module I’m doing at the moment about global issues of injustice and how to address them in a primary classroom. According to my lecturers, it’s the only teaching course in the uk with that module, but we have it! And it’s been running for years now. There are 60+ teachers qualifying a year who have been taught how to teach activism to 5-11 years olds, and some of the first are now starting to get into positions of power. So, never say never, believe me, my lecturers are working on it.

On the subject of the movie Pride, which I quite enjoyed, I think it's telling that the first "trivia" fact listed for it on Amazon Video when I watched it was that it had been "criticized" for not having enough people of color in the cast, as if it were the first and only movie set in the UK (or anywhere, really) to have that problem. It's almost like Amazon, a famously anti-union company, wants to convince the exact kinds of "woke" people who might go looking for films like this that actually it's bad because it's not PERFECTLY "woke." The idea that a movie having been "criticized" even qualifies as trivia is pretty ridiculous. I criticize films all the time. Should my complaints about the Star Wars prequels be considered trivia?

"How I Met Your Father" has a couple of this over the top ridiculous leftist characters, and it really makes me dislike the writers. I don't like seeing things I believe portrayed that way.

You should do an analysis of the queer characters of PLL. Mike’s mic did an unhinged recap of the entirety of pretty little liars, and a lot of memories watching the show came rushing back. The show had a Lot of lesbian/bisexual characters and it’s VERY hit or miss.

I'm so sad that mj from the mcu Spiderman movies falls victim to this kind of trope. like, she has really cool social views, but it's just treated as her being an "edgy teen"

A lot of these portrayals have the same vibes as "conservatives getting mad about things they made up". It's writers removed from the cause who invent non-issues in their minds, and then get mad at the idea of The Activist™️ that they themselves created in their imagination...

That last bit of "i want to help but I've no clue what that even entails" was something I was thinking the entire time i was watching this video

I loved Moxie when I first watched it, but looking back on it it's so upsetting how much of a missed opportunity/how shallow it was.

“For many people, this is revolting” *Men casually dance to music so quiet you can hear them stepping* That was comedic perfection until I remembered that it happened in real life and not as a parody of homophobes

The first character i thought of was Britta from Community. Its why if i mention any form of activism or just rights... i get met with eyerolls by so many people. People see any form as activism as boring or annoying

Oh I need to take time to fully watch this when it's not late because this is such an important issue and it's so good you're talking about it! (Also if you want actual great activism on screen, I can only recommend the currently airing Thai drama Not Me which talks about a lot of important issues surrounding activism, privileges, minority rights, a truly intersectional view (class, disability, trans issues, etc.), policy brutality, having different opinions within activist movements, and is also very queer, it is the best show about activism and fighting for your rights with what we call "la convergence des luttes" in French, the convergence of the struggles, think Pride)

My Mom explaining homosexuality to me, age 11, in 1994: It’s fine for homosexuals to love each other in their own home. Of COURSE they should be treated with the same respect as anyone else. I don’t think she saw the cognitive dissonance. She just wanted to be made to feel comfortable. And she was so much more progressive than her parent’s generation. They really don’t need to ask for more!

The one that gets me the most is hermione who is advocating AGAINST SLAVERY. and jk presents her as that out of touch activists whos cause

Your video has me thinking about how many people likely _today_ see neurodiversity activists - and contrasting to how I _hope_ we will be seen by society in 20 years retrospect. Today, I think that many people see us as self-entitled flunkies who do not understand the realities of the workplace. I hope that when society looks back at us in 20 years, they will realize that _we_ are the ones who _do_ understand the realities of the workplace - and understand those realities well enough to know that the way things are is _wrong_ and needs to _change._

i think another aspect of using a person outside the group as an intermediary is that if, say, a queer person were to demand rights and respect it would be uncomfortable bc they are demanding it for themselves, therefore appearing as biased in a sense bc they stand to profit and if the other person were to refuse to grant it they would be a baddie bc they are refusing someone respect and rights directly to their face. however, if a non queer person demands it for queer people they appear as noble and selfless bc they're not asking it for themselves and it's easier for the other person to refuse without feeling like an asshole. lol this made more sense in my head but hopefully i managed to get my point across

Just here to say that i love u elena alvarez

Informing people about issues and pushing for equality in conversations is seen as empty activism, like if one truly cared they wouldn't be spending their time on debates. But in reality - stopping harmful mentalities and spreading a good mindset in your day to day interactions is probably one of the most effective forms of activism there is. Changing the average person's views is what leads to legal change, not the other way around.

i am very vocal about my attachment to social justice issues and activism and unfortunately this year i’ve been made fun of for it (by cishet white men ofc). and it’s very hard to navigate because i’ve found myself being depicted as that one “hysterical” feminist and “extremist” lgbt rights advocate. simply for voicing my opinions for example by spreading awareness on social media or… not laughing at their racist jokes and calling them out? to me it just goes to show how this representation of the annoying activist leads people to make assumptions about real life activists.

*"they were often peppered with well-meaning ignorance. like this guy who talks about how he's okay with the mixing of homosexuals and 'normal' people."* yo that reminds me of when my mom and i were watching "Breaking Amish" and she said something about *"Amish people vs. straight people."* as if "Amish" and "straight" were opposites on some kinda spectrum. i laughed so hard i almost threw up. she's a little confused but she's got the spirit!!

The reactionary dismissiveness that the general public have towards any social progress movement can only really exist so long as the history of similar behaviour is burried and forgotten. I think if we made sure to teach about the way people treated (for example) MLK *alongside* the things he achieved and is remembered for, similiar instant rejection would be harder to justify. It would be like seeing their own actions in a historical mirror, knowing how people would percieve them in the future.

Most shows and movies in general have completely forgotten the «show, don’t tell» rule and activism feels very performative through words with no action. Assuming the audience only understands if it’s spelled out makes everything seem fake and juvenile.

I honestly have noticed this even before coming to grips with my own identity and sexuality. I am aro/ace and non-binary. But back when I thought I was a straight cis male I noticed that when they had a gay character on screen fighting for their rights it seemed "Selfish" is a weird word to connect to it but its close to what I mean. It reads entirely differently when its a straigt cis person pointing out the obvious that lgbtq people are of course deserving of all the same rights and freedoms. Now as someone who is definitely not straight or cis I see those depictions in a different light. I see those gay characters fighting for their rights as also fighting for my rights. But for a cis straight person this is not what they see. They see it as the gay person fighting for their rights, not the rights of others because thats not often how its framed.

For a bad depiction, there's that Hermine girl in that magic school series who has the audacity to object to in-fictional slavery. Very bad, that girl, for doing that. Thankfully, we had wiki writers writing essays about slavery being actually very good, to make sure nobody was confused.

Haven't watched it yet, hope you cover the good activist characters as well. Like the ones in the film Pride about the intersection of LGBTQ people and the miners.

The show that made me finally grow sick of the over the top activist character was Marvel's Runaways, i didn't even watch the entire first episode but the only thing i remember was this one girl who was so overdone, like every thing out of her mouth was some angry, buzzword-laden retort. I saw her character and thought "I've definitely seen this exact character before" and also "no-one has even been like this"

i have to admit the biggest reason i stayed in the closet for so long was the illusion that people would listen to me more readily if they thought of me as ''one of them''

i have thought about this concept for so long since every single female character in media i've seen who has described herself as a feminist is always the most annoying character, and it's always the fault of the writer. so excited to hear what you have to say!!

The women's rights movement in the late 1800s excluded lesbians, black people, and liberals. Matilda Joslyn Gage, an activist from that time, wrote a book about it called Women Church and State 1893. It's free to read online and a modern readers version has been republished.

Even when an activist character *isn't* written like this, or is actually written exceptionally kindly, consumers of the media will misinterpret them as this trope because it's all they know of activist characters.

On "Get woke, go broke." I want MORE diversity in my media. I've seen more men who look like me in interesting roles in the last 5 years, than in the previous 35. I'm also happy to see that my daughter seems to be oblivious to the idea that people who look like her ever WEREN'T in movies and television shows. It's fantastic, I want more of it. I definitely want more nuanced and human portrayals of activists. I think that some people who use that phrase are racist or sexist or transphobic or yes. But I think many people are just tired of seeing really cringe, poorly conceived and executed garbage made out of their favorite franchises. I'll use the live action remake of "The Little Mermaid" and "The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power" as contrasting examples. In both cases, there are valid reasons to feel that the characters should played by Danish and British actors respectively. The first is a fairy tale, set in a medieval Denmark, and the second is meant to be a mythology for the British Isles. I love the casting choice for Ariel and am sincerely looking forward to the movie. I'm super excited for my daughter to see a woman that looks like her, playing this iconic role. I'm apprehensive for LOTR: TROP at best. In fact, I very worried that it's going to be absolute crap. Why the different reactions? The director for "The Little Mermaid" was clear. All he did was not exclude BIPOC from the casting process. He didn't set out to cast a BIPOC actor, he just didn't erect artificial barriers. He chose Halle Bailey for Ariel because she is perfect for the role. Her voice is perfect, her demeanor is perfect, she is going to absolutely nail this and it's gonna be beautiful. What he didn't do, was set out to hire a BIPOC actor for Ariel because "Disney needs more diversity". His attitude suggests that he wants to make the best version of the movie he can, which includes hiring the best actor for the lead role. The producers for LOTR: TROP have also been clear. They have decided Tolkien's work should represent "...what the world actually looks like." They've decided that Tolkien's work is "...about people from isolated communities doing their best, when they leave those communities and come together." This attitude combined with a dedicated propaganda video starring "super fans" where nothing regarding Tolkien's actual vision is discussed, but instead the focus is on how "representative" it is, does little to inspire confidence in the actual work. The fact that these supposed "super fans" don't seem to actually know much about the material, and themselves appear to have been selected by checking off a list of demographic traits, makes this feel like the worst attempt at pandering. Once you read that they didn't even bother to get the rights to the materials that actually cover this time period, it really starts looking bad. Nothing about this looks like progress. It looks like trying to use a famous IP as a vehicle to pander to the very non-existent trope of an activist that was analyzed in this video. Take note, that the project I'm more excited for, is the wone with the BIPOC actor in the lead. All the central character's in LOTR: TROP are still played by white actors. The reason I'm worried it's gonna suck is because their actions suggest the project is not about the material, but instead about pushing an agenda. If they had cast Tati Gabrielle as Galadriel, and explained that they chose her because her portrayal of Prudence Blackwood showed that she is capable of both stately poise and terrifying menace, I'd be all in.

OK, but smug centrists and "apolitical" right-leaning people clearly have no idea how annoying THEY are.

i feel like it’s just trying to be like “hello fellow kids! look at me, a very rich person that is making the media form! i’m so relatable and pandering to gen Z!!” like-it just feel fake because it’s big media forms making chacters that are trying to stop big media forms

As someone who presently has the desire to study politics and sociology and become an activist I appreciate this video.

They do this shit when depicting black activists on screen too

Something that's rarely talked about in intersectionality unless you're actually experiencing it is that many aspects of your identity will be out right denied because of this false narrative that belonging to multiple groups is uncommon. I've had to fight tooth and nail with my dad to have him not even entertain or believe, but just shut up about my transness, and because of that I absolutely refuse to initiate any sort of communication about being evaluated for autism soon. Even with a long term therapist and several neurodivergent friends to back the theory up with either professional opinion or experience.

I'm glad you brought up the feminists in Pride - that is one bothersome point in a brilliant film

I'd like to learn more about queer activist history. Can you recommend any good sources?

There are certainly people like this, who use a cause for the sake of their own moral superiority, and portraying them in media wouldn't be a problem on its own, but these are the *only* portrayals of activists in media, while they're certainly not the only kind of activist in real life. The disparity between media and reality, and the preconceptions of which this disparity tries to convince its viewers is a pretty critical problem.

I love the video but I wanted to let you know that I got an ad for an alt-right hate group called American Firebrand during an ad break on this. I know there’s not much you can do about that but o thought you’d want to know that YT is showing very inflammatory ads to your audience.

Really interesting and informative video. I've definitely found myself irritated by tropes you've mentioned and it was as if you were vocalising my own thoughts to me so thank you! HOWEVER I wish you had also looked at the fact that there are a lot of real people in the world who like to borrow an activist aesthetic for whatever reason, (often whilst ignoring their own privileges and usually doing little-to-no actual activist work). These people often display exactly the caricature traits you were describing in the first bit of this video e.g. criticising semi-random little things and sometimes even being unpleasant about it. I think it's perfectly legitimate for media to present and then criticise these kinds of people. When they do so I don't think they're necessarily criticising actual activism, more that they're criticising hypocrisy and a lack of self awareness. It's got to be alongside representation of actual activism through otherwise the two get confused. I also think in the historical bits you could have made it slightly clearer whether you were talking about the US or the UK. Seemed to be a lot of flipping between the two. In terms of things I've seen, I saw a musical a few years ago called Rhondda Rips It Up about a Welsh LGBT suffragette. Thanks for the video! Definitely worth the watch.

“i beg your misogynistic pardon” NEVER SAY THAT AGAIN😍😍😍

I think what kills me is that I can never tell if a show is _trying_ to make a parody of activism, or if they're trying to imply that it's bad, _or_ if they're just so disconnected that it's painful to watch. I just want to see someone on screen who is compassionate but fiery in their beliefs, and that it's shown to be a good thing without being the primary trait of that character. I don't want a character whose entire being is simply "being an activist," I want something... I dunno... realistic?

I didn’t realize Rent was supposed to be about activism. I just thought it was a snippet, a peak into a few ppl’s lives.

How do you become an activist? Is it best to give your money to an organisation/charity? Your time? To do something locally? Locally but focused on international causes?

Also- thank you for stating that the fight for equality and gay marriage- truly was a battle or "war" within many of our lifetimes. If you are 35 or 40+, you undoubtedly remember how the assumption of defeat was seamingly default for activists... I honestly think it took 40 years of things like David Bowie, Divine, Rupaul or Queen and things like dog day afternoon, RENT, & the shows you mention in this. Thank you!

fun fact: before Stonewall, before the use of the Rainbow flag, some LGBTQ folk used the North Vietnamese flag as a symbol of solidarity & a recognition of oppression at home & abroad (*whisper* that's that scary intersectionalism 👻). A lot of LGBTQ people were already heavily involved in the Civil Rights & Anti War movements, homeless / street activism, etc, and were politically radical / leftist already. LGBTQ rights didn't just happen to fall predominantly to 'the left' by chance - they were already revolting :)

Idk if The Bold Type tv show is available to watch in the uk, but I really like how Kat the "activist" character is portrayed. She is sometimes blunt and brash, but her friends always support her and her activism is never the punchline. There's even a whole character development storyline about how, after facing some p big consequences from her last activism moment, changes her strategy to benefit her and her friends' safety.

Oh I’d love to hear your thoughts on treatment of lesbians in It’s a Sin. It’s been a while now since I watched it so I can’t remember how they were talked about in the show

Quick aside, I know this is about activism, but please know from the bottom of my enby heart that I LOVE that puff sleeve dress and pirate outfit. You literally killed me and I’m dead. Anyways back to performative strawman wokeness

Yeah I read Moxie back when it came out and it's not intersectional. They shoulda adapted Nowhere Girls instead.

It's very allegorical since it's literally about zombies, but I really liked the balance that the show In The Flesh struck. While it's somewhat vague in some senses bc you can take the PDS sufferers and their struggles as allegories for queer people, disabled/neurodivergent people or poc or a mix, I like that while it does show us their version of 'extremist' activists that you really shouldn't try and emulate (obviously hightened in this supernatural horror setting), and a protag who's very sceptical of and resistant to that approach, he doesn't ultimately settle on 'it's best to be quiet and respectable and blend in'. While he's probably not gonna rush to lead a zombie pride parade, he rejects that universe's ideas of respectability politics in his own way and learns over time that he can be unasahmedly himself, even if some people would see that as 'repulsive' or tell him he's flaunting his unnatural-ness, and that he deserves to exist and take up space in the world and be treated with respect no matter how he presents himself. It's not a perfect show but damn if it doesn't still get me, I wish it hadn't been cancelled and we could've seen where his journey took him next. Also it has the line 'when injustice becomes law resistance becomes duty' which still hits.

Also so often activist characters are the villians! E.g. Korra, Black Panther, X-Men and so forth. A lot of the villains in superhero type things especially are defined by their desire to shake up the status quo and their political disagreements with things as they are.

I can't stand most anarchist and/or liberation activist characters. They're almost always presented as villains by having them go *too far* to achieve their goals! 😒

I love that you are tackling this topic, but I think it’s important to recognize that that there is basis for some of these characters. Activism and social advocacy are terribly important, but I have known many people in the LGBT community specifically who attach them to their own sense of ego. I have seen some of my peers lash out at others, who I knew they felt intimidated or insecure about in some way, with social Justice issues in order to have a sense of superiority over them.

That's why I really like Brooklyn 99, they always treated Holt's struggles as a black gay man with a lot of respect

The most intresting thing about Moxie is that it completly eareses the plot of the book (which is great) where the representation of activism is genuinly good. The book also tackless a lot of the other problem that people have with the movie, like how several characters point out to Vivianne that she is white and therefore doesn't experiance the same tyype of problems that they do. Espacially Lucy is changed completly basically nothing about her in the movie is correct. Anyway this makes me sad since like I said the book is great.... And the movie is not...