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Category:Race Tropes: Difference between revisions
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{{IndexTrope}}
{{quote|''I get offered movie roles all the time, and I say, 'No! No, I don't want to play a manicurist!' I don't want to play a really pissed-off [[Asian Store Owner|liquor store owner]], I don't want to go nowhere with a chicken under my arm, I don't want to play an [[Asian and Nerdy|exceptionally good student]], I do not want to [[Japanese Tourist|get off a tour bus and take numerous photographs]], I do not ever want to utter the phrase, '[[You Only Live Twice
Tropes about race and racial behaviors in Western media.
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'''Blacks/Africans:''' Frequently the [[Token Minority]] in an otherwise all-white cast, black people have achieved the greatest increase in positive TV depictions. The [[Magical Negro]] is the most common one, but some producers still can't resist slipping in a wisecracking [[Uncle Tomfoolery]] for comic relief, though such stereotypical roles often come with a [[You Know I'm Black, Right?]] line or [[Stereotype Reaction Gag]] to show the [[Media Watchdogs]] that yes, we're aware of their race and no, we don't find anything offensive about that! The [[Scary Black Man]] crops up in police procedural shows, but is always found to be innocent, avoiding the stigma of the [[Scary Minority Suspect]]. There's an increased chance of appearing in a role on a TV show as a judge or a police officer.They are most likely to become a [[Captain Ethnic]] or [[Proud Warrior Race Guy]]. Growing more frequent in television is the [[Black Boss Lady]], who simultaneously provides a positive black character as well as a positive female character in a [[Twofer Token Minority]]. There is also [[Black and Nerdy]], a character who is pretty much completely stripped of any black cultural stereotypes and is most likely academically inclined (but may still speak with an inner city accent and use double negatives). The subject of portraying black male characters and crime is problematic. One side of the issue argues that current depictions play into [[wikipedia:Criminal black man stereotype|stereotypes of violent black men]]. The other side of the issue says that [[Fresh Prince of Bel Air|modern depictions]] ignore important issues in black communities and paint an [[The Cosby Show|unrealistically positive]] picture. So whatever, sticking to stereotypes you can't win either way.
Sometimes such fanatical care is taken to avoid matching black characters to negative stereotypes, however, that an inverse occurs, in which said character is one of the few exempt from a certain negative condition (ala the movie [[Sgt
'''Hispanics/Latinos:''' Less likely to be a [[Token Minority]] than blacks, much less be shown in a good number of TV shows. Many Latinos are either clownish buffoons or thick-mustached, greasy-faced villains, and are rarely ever portrayed seriously. A partial exception to this is the charismatic [[Latin Lover]], but even that depiction still presents the Hispanic as a slightly menacing presence because of his overt sexuality associated with his ethnicity. Latinas are almost always [[Spicy Latina|irresistibly sexy temptresses]] who have ample chests, skintight clothing, and are irredeemably gossipy and short-tempered--unless they are over 40, in which case they immediately transform into rotund, tempermental mother-figures. In many shows and films (most notably ''[[The Shield]]''), Latino gangs are generally portrayed as more violent and brutal than black gangs. There's some uncertainty in media over whether Hispanics are a "race" rather than a linguistic/cultural group, likely because they come from a whole spectrum of centuries of mixing black, white, and native but not many people outside Latin America know this. Not very many people are aware of race relations in the Hispanic world, where those with predominately Spanish or Portugese background are considered at the top of the chain, followed by Creoles, black and full-blooded Native. Accents also follow a hierarchy in the hispanic world, where the form of Spanish spoken in Spain is considered "proper," and Latin American accents are looked down upon by the snotty. One episode of ''[[Law and Order]]'' even featured a Hispanic white supremacist, fiercely proud of his "pure Spanish blood", much to the disgust of the Hispanic detective interviewing him, showing a dramatized version of [[Truth in Television]]. Films/series centering around Hispanic families seem to have made progress in recent years. For example, ''[[Spy Kids]]'', ''[[The George Lopez Show]]'', ''[[Ugly Betty]]'' and, yes, ''[[Wizards of Waverly Place]]''.
'''East Asians:''' Vastly underrepresented in American media. This is most notably evident in TV shows or movies taking place in cities with a very significant Asian population in real life but few, if any, Asian characters. The few representations that do exist are mired in stereotypes. Viewed as the "model minority" in real life, portrayed as having no financial problems, and not experiencing racism. Historically, they were referred to as model minorities because they were less likely to complain about mistreatment like other minorities, such as Blacks and Hispanics over Jim Crow, or Jews over Antisemitism. Even so, there's likely more than one average Asian out there. In reality, there are Asian groups who are considerably worse off than whites, but the model minority myth largely overrides this. Asian depictions are split between [[Asian and Nerdy|smart, hopelessly nerdy guys]] (but ''never'' [[Otaku]], mind you) with a knack for technology and [[Funny Foreigner|Funny Foreigners]] who speak [[Asian Speekee Engrish|broken English]] (the [[Asian Store Owner]] is one such minor comic role). Though we've come a long way since the [[Yellow Peril]], we still have a long way to go. For example: the Asian man will never, ever, get the girl. At most he will receive a remark regarding his small penis. Their womenfolk, on the other hand, are hyper-sexualized demons in the sack and will almost always fall for the white guy or even the black guy ([[Asian Gal
'''South Asians:''' Will occasionally appear as [[Asian Store Owner|corner shop owners]] or doctors, or cab drivers on U.S. TV. A handful may be portrayed as computer scientists or other science researchers, but all of them have a veddy veddy thick accent. Good luck finding South Asian women, and when they do appear, they tend to have very few lines. If a South Asian woman is portrayed as either having or being a [[Love Interest
'''Native Americans:''' Good luck seeing them beyond a few [[Noble Savage|Noble Savages]] and Pocahontas, unless you make a side-trip to [[Injun Country|a casino.]] Their religion and culture will most likely be simplified to earthy nature-worship and "[[Magical Native American|magic]]." Exception: Canadian television where they are more common (often in roles where being aboriginal is incidental to the character). If the character is female, she may be an [[Indian Maiden]] or a [[Nubile Savage]].
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