Anyone who is interested in further discussion should keep an eye out for an announcement regarding a debate involving the whole steampunk community (on this matter and others) which will be taking place in the coming months.

Jha – Are you Jha’Meia? From ShinraOnline? If so, small internet. I recognized your eloquent writing.

I understand what Jha is saying with regards to steampunk, but having traveled extensively in Asia, living in China (Beijing) and Japan (Asahikawa), I can say that what she describes goes on there much more there – much more common, and to a greater degree (bear with me for a moment…)

In the Asian countries I lived and visited, racism (and fetishism of Western cultural artefacts) is on a level matched by the Victorians. I was stared at in public places. Some shopkeepers and waitstaff refused to serve me because of my race. Others were continuously amazed that I could use chopsticks. My Chinese is decent (spoken, anyway) and my written and spoken Japanese is pretty fluent, but people would not accept that I could speak anything but English. Also, everybody automatically assume that I’m American because I’m white. People buy ‘large nose’ masks for parties. The list goes on. I can’t help but notice similarities (however cursory) to PoC finding themselves in Western societies a century ago.

Everyone will have unfortunately encountered racism of some form or another in North America. My Asian-American friends have told me about their experiences in daily life there, and the racism is somewhat more subdued given the laws against racism due to the civil rights movement. I can’t imagine what pain they would feel if they were asked continually if they could speak English, or if people expressed amazement that they could use a knife and fork. Or refused service because of their race. Yet this sort of thing is done in Asia to Caucasians (not just Europeans/North Americans – consider the treatment of Japanese to Ainu; Han Chinese to Uighurs and other non-Han peoples). It goes both ways, often simultaneously, depending on the setting (another example: the shabby treatment of atheists in the US and other countries with religious majorities).

This is why I question the use of the term racism in this context. I would say what Jha describes is culturalism, or cultural imperialism (in this case: theft of cultural artefacts or ideas without attribution). Orientalism cannot be attacked without also attacking (or at least acknowledging) what I would call Occidentalism. It goes beyond race to culture. Calling it racism waters down the term, and unfortunately reduces its effect.

What I have written here is not meant to dismiss or marginalise Jha’s excellent arguments in any way. It is simply a point to consider. Commodification of culture occurs by dominant groups everywhere. Ownership of cultural artefacts can only be attributed through education – once something is shared, it is no longer really owned (as such – it is in the public domain and others are able to adopt it). I would agree that the attitudes behind “Victorientalism” have to go – the blind adoption of things foreign-looking for the sake of foreign-ness, without any sort of attribution nor knowledge of its source nor significance in the original culture.

In academia, one understands and acknowledges (enforced through citation and peer review) the source of ideas. As a person who has lived in many places, I strive for knowledge behind everything I see and use. If I adopt something, I want to know its origins. And if someone asks, I tell them (heck, I usually tell them, even if they don’t ask!). However, the danger in branding such things as racist is that people like me get branded as racists because I am white and have or use something that is originally from a “non-white” culture.

So if the intent of fetishism behind Victorientalism is no longer there (through knowledge and acknowledgment of source), is it Victorientalism anymore? Is that when it becomes Asian-inspired steampunk? (Can you clarify, Jha?)

If we’re going to point some fingers, mine is pointed squarely at capitalism and greed. But those aren’t going away anytime soon!

(my, that was long. It could be its own post!)

-Ani8