A new month…A new season…A new list of recommendations!!
As you prepare to get cozy with your comfy sweaters, hot apple cider, pumpkin spice latte, or my new fave cinnamon crunch latte make sure you get your next piece of reading material. I know I am looking forward to my next book so I can chill out on my balcony and take in that Fall breeze!!
And with that said check out this month’s recommendations below!! Add them to your cart, pre-order, and/or visit your local bookstore to get your copies!!
So a couple a weeks ago I had the opportunity to offer a few of my thoughts about Asian representation in comic books and its relationship with the latest Marvel film, Shang-Chi andThe Legend of the Ten Rings for CNN Entertainment!! To view the complete article see here.
Check out some of the snippets below:
Shang-Chi’s early issues relied on some problematic stereotypes
Every iteration of Shang-Chi has a similar throughline: He’s always a spectacular martial artist, always playing tug-of-war with his former life as a fighter and always, always tormented by daddy issues. That blueprint was created by Englehart and Jim Starlin, the two-man team who brought the character to life (Englehart, perhaps best known for his dark, noir take on Batman, has also created characters like Star-Lord of “Guardians of the Galaxy,” and Starlin is responsible for MCU icons like its biggest villain, Thanos.)
In the early 1970s, Englehart and Starlin approached Detective Comics (DC) with an idea: a comic book take on the David Carradine series “Kung Fu.” (The series has been criticized for its use of “yellowface,” or casting White actors as Asian characters. Carradine is White but starred as a part-Chinese martial artist.)Starlin, an artist, loved the martial arts element of the story, while writer Englehart said he was interested in delving into Taoism and other philosophies to flesh out his protagonist. The two thought they’d found a match with “Kung Fu” — but DC thought the “kung fu craze was going to disappear,” Starlin said, and passed on the idea.
So the pair took it next to Marvel, whose executives agreed only after insisting that the pair inject some pre-existing intellectual property into their comic, both men told CNN.
In this case, the company had the rights to the character Fu Manchu, a racist caricature of a Chinese man created by British author Sax Rohmer in the early 20th century. The villain was then “grafted onto the series” as Shang-Chi’s father, Starlin told CNN in an August interview. (Racist depictions of Asian characters had appeared in comics before this, like the egg-shaped villain “Egg Fu” in a 1965 Wonder Woman issue and the 1940 character “Ebony White” in the early comic, “The Spirit,” said Grace Gipson, an assistant professor at Virginia Commonwealth University who studies race and gender within comics.)
Gipson, a pop culture scholar who studies race and gender within comics, said hiring writers of color like Yang to helm series about characters of color is an improvement, but it “is really not a hard task.” She said while comics creators have made great strides in deconstructing norms of who a comic book reader is and what storylines they want to see, the hiring of creators of color needs to happen consistently.”It’s about making sure the voices of those being represented always have a seat at the table as well as a microphone to speak,” she told CNN.
Still, she said, as a fan of comics herself, she’s enjoyed seeing more representative stories being told in mainstream comics.
In the great words of creator and music producer Timbaland, “It’s been a long time, we shouldn’t of left you…”
Been off the grid for a little bit, finding balance with school, work, life and navigating everything in-between. The Fall season is upon us and exciting times are ahead. And I wanted to make sure I shared with you all some upcoming events that I will be taking part in, check them out below:
September 13th:“It’s the Microaggressions For Me: Let’s Talk Pop Culture, Inclusion, Unmasking Privilege, Navigating Inequities, and Taking Action”, Having Tough Conversations Series, Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT
A conversation about confronting privilege, addressing microaggressions, equity, inclusiveness, and what it really means to be an ally through the lens of popular culture.
September 15th (2pm/ET): Black Metropolis Research Consortium (BMRC) Summer Fellows Presentation Series-“Telling HER-story and Continuing a Legacy: Chicago’s Black Girl Magic in Comics” [To attend send an email with “Fellows” in the subject line to bmrcrsvp@lib.uchicago.edu ]
A presentation recounting my summer research fellowship experience on the legacy of Black women in comics in Chicago, IL.
September 22nd (7:15pm/ET):Making Our Stories Visible- Humanizing the Black Experience Through Television, Freedom School 3.0 Lecture Series (Department of African American Studies at Georgia State University & Auburn Avenue Research Library), [Register Here]
2019 and 2020 served as a period filled with sadness and pain, protest, laughter and excitement, creativity, and truth-telling particularly from the Black perspective. During this time, several new series entered the television landscape, which have contributed to ensuring that various Black voices are more visible and not minimized or forgotten. More specifically, television series such as HBO’s A Black Lady Sketch Show and Lovecraft Country and Starz’s P-Valley are effectively providing spaces to humanize the Black experience while engaging with the past, present, and future. Through this talk I will specifically engage with the abovementioned television series and how they each center Black voices, while serving as visual outlets of re-telling, re-sharing and remembering Black stories and experiences.
To get additional information and keep up with what’s going on in Dr. G’s world make sure to check out my Events page!!
New Month!! New Week!! And of course New Trailers!! Go some good stuff for you all this week especially as it relates to Fall TV returning!! Check them out below:
The Wonder Years (Season Premiere September 22nd [Wednesdays] on ABC)
Season 3-Doom Patrol (Streaming on HBO Max September 23rd)
Queens (Season Premiere October 19th [Tuesdays] on ABC )
Marvel Studios’ Eternals (In theaters November 5th)
Well today is the day!! Year 2 as an Assistant Professor in African American Studies at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU)!!
Last year was one definitely to remember…I had just moved to Richmond in the middle of a pandemic, VCU had pretty much asked professors and instructors to change their formats for teaching, and my apartment became not a just a place of residence but also a work place. This year, while there is still a pandemic, people are getting vaccinated, students are returning to campus, and majority of the classes are in-person (with mask requirements). The in-person part is really exciting to me because I thrive off being able to see my students live and in living color, it just feeds the soul!!
So this semester, my teaching schedule has one new addition! I have the privilege of teaching the Capstone Seminar course for Africana Studies students and I will also teach the Theories and Foundations in Africana Studies course for the second year! The Capstone Seminar course is definitely going to be a new venture for me as I will be guiding students through a semester long research project. It’s more than just teaching but also serving as a guide for this major undertaking. I have always wanted the opportunity to serve as mentor and I feel like this will be great preparation. In addition to the teaching I have also been tasked with serving as the advisor for the “Black Excellence at VCU” organization for which I am pretty siked! All in all, I am very much looking forward to this Fall semester!!
Now as this new semester begins, I will be honest there are still butterflies in the stomach and a little nervousness, but it is to be expected. I strive to always give 110% to my work, my students, and myself so my daily prayer is that I find that balance with all three and just do my part in being the best person, scholar, and professor that I can be. My one main goal that I always have every semester is that my students leave my classes with at least one thing that they did not know prior to the course. It may seem simple and minimal, but major for me. That one new thing, idea, thought that a student leaves with can be a life-changer and to know that I may play a role in that is a huge accomplishment!
AUGUST 24th, 2021 the journey continues!!
And to all those who are starting today or have already started WELCOME BACK!! As the summer winds down and my favorite month comes to a close (SMILE), it is time to get back into the routine! Time to get those creative juices flowing again…Time to inspire, encourage, and motivate (teachers and students)…Time to make some new memories!!
So let’s blaze some trails and seek new horizons!!
Alright that’s enough for the first day, but make sure you stay tuned periodically for updates and check-ins, because trust me I GUARANTEE there will be some memorable moments shared!!
It’s my BIRTHDAY month (August 16th to be exact!) so you know I gotta bring the heat with this month’s list!! Even added a book for the kids (cause of course you know Dr. G loves the kids!!)!! And the summer is not over yet, so you still got some time to hit the beach and get some good reading in while soaking in that good Vitamin D!!
Black Future Feminist 