Art v/s Artist
As conversations about racism and bigotry and transphobia and privilege become more and more a part of the mainstream, more and more mainstream artists and creators have fallen under a lens of investigation and have been found wanting. Recently it was brought back into the mainstream that Dr. Seuss had drawn some racist imagery when the organization that controls his copyright decided to stop publishing some of the books with these racist caricatures. (Read: No one is cancelling Dr. Seuss.)
And because the people who made this decision were the same people who make money from book sales, the ensuing BUY ALL THE BOOKS TO STICK IT TO THE MAN! response was essentially outraged people giving money to the people who made the decision to stop printing some of the books.
While all of this was strange, it was an example of how - when we go back and look - sometimes we uncover things from our heroes that are anywhere from unflattering to repulsive.
I recently discovered that Gary Chapman - the creator of the 5 Love Languages - does not affirm homosexuality. Turns out he’s also a senior pastor at a Baptist church…a denomination that still lists homosexuality as a form of sexual immorality. So, I guess there’s no surprise when someone asked them what to do about their child being gay he said, “Disappointment is a common emotion when a parent hears one of their children indicate that he/she is gay. Men and women are made for each other—it is God’s design. Anything other than that is outside of that primary design of God.” Now…he also very much affirms loving that child, but what we all know is that a child does not feel love if you still believe their love is a sin.
(You can read the full Q&A here or read it in the screen grab below.)
While his responses could be worse, he still encourage parents to continue loving their children, his message regarding homosexuality is one that hides homophobia and hatred in the same way I see in Alabama…a way that leads to a lot of queer teens being bullied or struggling with thoughts of self-harm. So, you know, I wish I hadn’t spent years referencing that guy’s theories.
Of course we can never forget the heartbreak I felt when JK Rowling kept doubling down on her efforts to promote Transphobic messaging and damaging ideas in her version of “feminism.” I felt like this was a real awakening for me…because I said a million times, “I’m so glad JK Rowling is politically vocal on my side of politics or else I’d really struggle being a Harry Potter fan.” Because she was! For awhile! She was very anti-Trump and seemed very gay-affirming and then…slowly but surely…the transphobic started peaking through. First in liked tweets, some which she claimed was “accidental” - and then in outright defense of transphobic views and messaging. I was proud to discover that I was able to call her out and walk away from her fan club.
But with ALL of these situations we come back to the conversations around separating the art from the artist. And honestly? I think the conversations about these situations on a wide scale are moot. JKRowling definitely didn’t get “canceled” as she still has plenty of money and opportunities and a platform to be heard. These wide-scale discussions of these cases often anger me because the devolve to discussions of “cancel culture” which always seem to be more about people not liking consequences. And honestly? As long as a certain reality TV star/former President can still garner media attention and support even after all of his atrocities? I don’t believe in cancel culture.
But I do believe these situations can be discussed on a smaller scale. The art v/s artist conversation is something I think about a lot just as I navigate consuming culture and art. I 100% can not push and promote art from artists I don’t support. I took the Harry Potter books off my Goodreads “Favorites” shelf. I don’t talk about my fandom anymore. I have refused to spend money on any of her properties every again. For me personally…I know I can not separate the art from the artist. I just can’t. I don’t shame people who can, but I just can’t do it.
It has also reminded me how no one deserves to be put on a pedestal. We are all human and the higher you place someone, the further they fall. Or - and this was a problem with those diehards for Trump - you find yourself having to distort realities or truths in your brain (cognitive dissonance) in order to allow yourself to keep worshipping this very flawed human. And after seeing that in action for 4 years in my OWN FAMILY, I really learned to check myself constantly when I start to idolize someone beyond their humanity. I do not want to ever think so highly of someone that I refuse to acknowledge their flaws.
So…all of these conversations around fallen heroes/artists has seeded the ground for a new habit for me. I now tend to do more research about artists/creators if I find myself starting to obsess over them. Especially if they’re cis straight white men. Those men represent a centuries long power structure in this country and that tends to make them blind - intentionally or not - to the struggles of marginalized groups so they are much more likely to have been purveyors of oppression in thoughts, words, or actions. So if I feel like I’m going to start really digging into someone’s art or creative work, I just do a quick google scan to make sure there’s not accusations of sexual assault or testimonies of racist or homophobic behavior or anything like that. And if I find it, I try to see what their response was.
I just know that - for me personally - I believe there is plenty of really great art out there in the world and if I decide I’m going to quit telling people how much I love Joss Whedon’s work anymore because it turns out he created toxic environments for women on some of my favorite shows, there will be plenty more great art to choose from. I mean, it sucks…I adored his work with the Avengers movies and his TV shows got me through a rough year of minor agoraphobia and depression. But jeezus, maybe if we pull these big names out of circulation a bit it’s like chopping down a tree with a large canopy and suddenly all of the smaller vegetation under it starts to grow.
There is no shortage for great art out there. I will find plenty to love even if I avoid certain creators upon finding out they are not people whose pockets I want to line with my dollars or my words boosting their work.
Here’s the thing…obviously I know everyone has a past. I am so grateful there’s no social media documenting the sins of my youth when I used to throw the r-word around like it was just another innocent adjective I could use to describe anything dumb or pointless. I very much remember saying “Eww…you’ve got AIDS!” in the same way we would use the word “cooties” in the early 80s when I was in elementary school. And I’m certain I hid racism in talks about “discipline” and “crime” in my early years as a Mom discussion neighborhoods and school systems. But this was all pre-social media and so I’m relatively safe from skeletons of yesteryear. I’m not saying I refuse to read a book by an author if I dig in and find out they used the f-slur for gay people on their MySpace page when they were 14. But for me, I just want to be able to proudly support someone I love and if I can’t, I don’t want to invest the time or energy into their work.
I even research oooooolllllldddddddd stuff before I start obsessing. Example: I’m a very beginner in the world of poetry. (NOT WRITING, READING! I AM NOT WRITING POETRY, I PROMISE!) and I recently discovered that I keep ending up liking Edna St. Vincent Millay poetry when I’m looking for things to transcribe for meditation and so…I googled her to make sure there was no clear sign of her being racist or something and I was SO HAPPY to find she wrote against facism! I loved this quote about her: “She seems to have caught more flak from the literary critics for supporting democracy than Ezra Pound did for championing fascism.” And she was openly bisexual! In the early 1900s! I took a deep breath and continued by obsession over her.
All of this is to just say: For me? I need to know in order to really allow myself to love something. And once I know there are ideas or actions that I find upsetting? I can’t love it purely anymore. I know there’s a wide range of missteps a person can take and I don’t react the same to all of them. I didn’t quit reading all of Rainbow Rowell after I read about the criticism about her representation of an East Asian character. I just tend to caveat my recommendations of that book now. I think Eleanor & Park was one of the first successful YAs I read with a fat main character, and I don’t want to discount that. And there was a lot to love about the relationship building in the book. I don’t think it has no value, but I do think the criticism is valid and can’t be left off the table when discussing the book.
I just feel like it’s all very personal and when we try to make system-wide rules we alienate end up in this weird “cancel culture” debate which I hate with every ounce of my soul. I much prefer to discuss things on the level of: This is why I personally don’t read those books/watch those movies/listen to that music. And for me? My standards are very high.
Now, I’m not going to complain if enough people feel the same negativity about a big creator that it actually affects that creators life. I think that’s the natural order of things. If enough other people quit buying Harry Potter books for their kids that maybe JK Rowling finally starts feel a rekoning with her transphobia, then I’m going to celebrate that. But until then, I’m going to focus my LET’S ROUND UP TRANS ALLIES attention on saving trans kids in Alabama.