151 Dumb Shit That Stupid People Say: Dan Didio Edition

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When Dwayne McDuffie was writing “Justice League of America,” we had an incredibly diverse cast of characters as we worked the Milestone characters into the DC Universe.

-Dan Didio, on the diverse cast of characters in the DC Universe (June 21, 2010)

DC has also given the go ahead to a major project about their black characters and their place in the DCU, but I’m no longer sure I want to do it as I’m increasingly concerned about their posture on racial matters. I hope I’m wrong. I’m sure we’ll talk about it in the next few months.

-DiDio’s arguing point,  Dwayne McDuffie, on his message boards after being dropped from JLA (June 20, 2009)

Almost a year to the day.

Not only did these characters Didio references not get worked into the DC Universe, and not only did McDuffie get dropped from the book after a few issues but McDuffie himself is flat-out saying your company’s stance on racial issues is cause for concern. So… probably not the best example that could have been used there.

I think there’s a lot of the stuff that other, smarter people have all said about this issue, and I don’t really have a lot to add except that even if you are completely oblivious to this glaring problem, and even if you’re genuinely stunned that people find this kind of thing offensive, you’re still being racist.

See, people are hung up on saying the whole whitewashing of DC is unintentional, and I think that’s true, too. I don’t think that DC is consciously saying “ew, gross, get rid of ‘em.” But if as a company, or a publisher, or an editor, or a writer, you see nothing wrong with replacing minority characters with white characters on a wide scale, and in fact are oblivious to the scale in which it is taking place, that’s more than just an honest mistake. It’s more than just oversight. It’s racism. Unintentional, but bordering on institutional. And I can’t believe it takes a bunch of flabbergasted bloggers to point that out.