“That Is Not Awareness. That Is Indulgence.”
Critics on social media are citing white activists’ performance behavior stemming from the increased visibility of a white cosplayer dressed as My Hero Academia’s Katsuki Bakugo at the “No Kings” show.
Asian influencer Eunnuri Lee posted a get-together-with-me video on TikTok, stating that even during rallies against authoritarianism, racism, xenophobia, deportation, state violence, and fascism, there is a way for white people to focus on self-expression.
“Even in a protest against authoritarianism, racism, xenophobia, deportation, state violence, fascism, a white person can and will always find a way to orbit the moment around self-expression,” Lee said.
Admitting that the cosplayer had a strategy to attract attention and raise funds, Lee noted that the action was still a form of strategy rather than solidarity. Lee argues that the disclaimer of white privilege is not an excuse for performative actions.
“If you know that your whiteness gives you the privilege of turning a protest into a cosplay and you do it anyway, that’s not awareness. That’s tolerance,” Lee said.
Lee also brings up the death of African-American online cosplayer Ashley Gail Paxton, who played Squid Kid, who committed suicide due to harassment from white cosplayers on TikTok. She questions why there has been so little discussion among the cosplayer community about Paxton’s death.
Generally, Lee states that the issue raises the issue of treating a political moment as a moment that needs to be captured aesthetically. “Aesthetics temper criticism,” Lee said, noting that white people and their fandoms consistently view political events as opportunities to build their own brands.
“Not every serious political moment needs to be filtered through the lens of your brand. Protest is not Comic Con,” Lee said. “When activism turns into pure demonstration, people begin to confuse visibility with usefulness. People begin to think that care is the same as solidarity.”
However, he did not fully condemn artistic expression in the protests. Lee emphasized that what he opposes is the filming of such performances and their conversion into content, and said, “Humor, creativity and art definitely have a place in protest.” “Do you have to film this and turn it into content? I don’t think so. Not because cosplay is inherently bad, but because white people need to understand when to decenter themselves.”
Commentators responded by offering their thoughts and opinions, as well as additional examples of performance behavior across different types of shows. Commentators noted signs bearing overtly racist sexual language during Black Lives Matter rallies. “And SIGNS on BLM!! They talk about ‘big booty Latinos’ from ‘BBC’ and anti-ICE protests like it’s literally a rite of passage for them,” the commenter writes.
One user rejects the claim that going would make one an activist. “I hate it when people bring this up and the annoying mfs say ‘At least they left’ it’s like holding up a sign saying ‘I love the BBC’ at a BLM protest isn’t the activism you think it is,” they write.
Another commenter criticizes women who bring “hot rivalry posters” to anti-ICE rallies. “This is exactly why I think the girls who brought those heated rivalry posters to the ICE protests should go to hell. People sympathize with them, ‘At least they were there!’ they were talking about. They should have kept their stupid male-centered asses at home,” they say.
The last commentator criticizes the double standards applied to discussions of executive conduct. “White people will always get a pass in some way, while a person of color will not get a pass and will be instantly ‘held accountable,’” they write. “Stop trying to be oppressed, support the oppressed.”
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