Month: May 2019

Posted on

“‘See You Yesterday’ and the Perils—and Promise—of Time-Travelling While Black” (The New Yorker)

“‘See You Yesterday’ and the Perils—and Promise—of Time-Travelling While Black,’ by Maya Philipps (May 27, 2019)

“Loopholes, resurrected characters, plot resets, ever-branching arcs: time travel is an infinitely flexible conceit, limited only to its own pseudoscientific rules of causality. The new Netflix movie “See You Yesterday” makes an unusual contribution to the time-travel canon while highlighting one of its most prominent flaws: the racial privilege baked into these stories, or the dangers of time-travelling while black.

From Marty McFly to James Cole and even Wolverine, time travellers are almost always white and frequently male. It’s a practical choice on the part of writers. Post-Reconstruction? Not a problem. Colonial times? Let’s make it a three-day weekend. Time-travel shows and movies tend to fall into one of two categories: quaint personal journeys and heroic quests. In stories like “Back to the Future,” “The Time Traveler’s Wife,” and “The Butterfly Effect,” the scale is that of a personal narrative, with a white protagonist comfortably insulated from a larger racial history. On the other hand, in stories like “12 Monkeys,” “The Terminator,” and “Timecop,” the central conflict is so large—apocalypse, dystopias, national or global disasters—that the narrative can easily sweep past issues of race. (As for forward time-travelling, the future tends to be surprisingly post-racial, as evinced in “Star Trek” and “Doctor Who.”)”

Continue reading at The New Yorker by clicking the link in the title.

Posted on

“A Chef Tells the Story of the Slave Trade Through Dinner” (NYT)

“A Chef Tells the Story of the Slave Trade Through Dinner,” by Korsha Wilson (May 17, 2019) (NYT)

“Nearly a year ago, the chef Eric Adjepong stood in Macau on the set of the “Top Chef,” having made it to the finals of the cooking competition show. The only thing standing between him and the title was a four-course meal, served in two parts. He’d decided to use his menu to show the judges how influential Africa’s culinary heritage is on other parts of the world, including America.”

Posted on

“Latina Reads: Haitian Women Authors to Make Room for on Your Bookshelves” by Virginia Isaad

“Latina Reads: Haitian Women Authors to Make Room for on Your Bookshelves,” By Viriginia Isaad, May 07, 2018.

“Haiti is a Caribbean country rich in revolution and Black freedom. Enslaved Africans achieved independence from France in 1804, after centuries of colonial rule. Haiti, which means “mountainous country” in the language of the Taínos who first inhabited the land, is the source of inspiration for the works of the women on this list — for its beauty, its resistance and its turmoil.

Here, brilliant Haitian women authors, on the island and in the diaspora, you should know and read.”