tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9902716.post298547994844655364..comments2024-02-22T01:36:48.427-08:00Comments on On Theatre and Politics - Matthew Freeman: Diversity and suchFreemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01183078884824734105noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9902716.post-68299774610199514732009-12-22T12:19:16.441-08:002009-12-22T12:19:16.441-08:00Nic, I am in total agreement with you.Nic, I am in total agreement with you.Joshua Jameshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08239067667651048280noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9902716.post-66960780692809962932009-12-22T10:32:04.059-08:002009-12-22T10:32:04.059-08:00Scott is puzzled. So am I.
Statistics show that t...Scott is puzzled. So am I.<br /><br />Statistics show that the Lotto sells best in poor neighborhoods. Tom and Scott are trying to sell the exact same as a viable option for the disenfranchised in theatre. Both are theatre educators. They would be rightly ridiculed at any faculty meeting if they proposed this notion. So why they allow themselves to propose the same in the theatrosphere is a puzzle. Similarly Tom proposes we read the anonymous comment hosted by the anonymous blogger competing with two other anonymous kibitzers in the comment section of an anonymous blog post and to accept what is said as fact without any added scrutiny or concern. Again, is this the research an educator would have students practice? So it’s puzzle to me why this is acceptable to the discussion here.Nick https://www.blogger.com/profile/13280949568861084843noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9902716.post-74784985175121496522009-12-21T19:48:04.201-08:002009-12-21T19:48:04.201-08:00If you read "The Trouble With Diversity,"...If you read "The Trouble With Diversity," which I quote, you will see a pretty strong argument that race, which is based on bad genetics, is a cover-up for the real issue, which is class.<br /><br />But the real problem is in this paragraph: "Affirmative action is not about numbers: it's about acknowledging that racism was/is a part of our system, and that only a systematic approach can correct that on a large scale. Let's just remember that all discussions of "diversity" are about individuals and not about counting colors."<br /><br />So which is it, the system or individual people. I think I'm pretty clear: the system (the riverbed) must be changed. "Choice" lives at the individual level -- we've seen many years of fair, honest people whose hears are in the right place making choice after choice that excludes diversity (by which I mean all kinds of variety, not just race). It can't be done at the level of the individual. It has to be the system. My proposal, which is a stopgap measure, makes diversity more possible because the values are made explicit (through the rubric), so it can't hide behind "gut feelings" which mask prejudices. And it makes a change in the system, so that everyone is forced through the path of least resistance to do what they WANT to do (provide more diversity) but are afraid to do because the system punishes errors.<br /><br />It is very puzzling to me that everyone is all about encouraging diversity as long as they don't have to change anything they do to accomplish it!Scott Waltershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06465161646609405658noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9902716.post-15393581272607931552009-12-21T14:36:49.042-08:002009-12-21T14:36:49.042-08:00Tom,
A fair question. And one that affects me on ...Tom,<br /><br />A fair question. And one that affects me on some level, as I'm an unagented writer that does cold submit.<br /><br />I still believe that despite the challenges inherent and laid bare, there is still a measure of choice involved and the core principle of that, no matter how compromised, is to be maintained and cultivated. What we're hearing about is how the decision making process can feel arbitrary, flawed or broken. I still insist that at the core of it is a desire to make good choices.Freemanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01183078884824734105noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9902716.post-3932499959294686642009-12-21T14:24:04.779-08:002009-12-21T14:24:04.779-08:00Matt,
I know you will read what 99 has posted con...Matt,<br /><br />I know you will read what 99 has posted concerning the "confessions of a literary manager." Would you call the system he describes choice? Or chance? Honestly, I am not being sarcastic; I would honestly like your opinion on the matter. Given what the anonymous poster wrote on 99's comments, I wonder if these days there is really much difference between choice and chance in the actual theatre world. -twlTom Loughlinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12773887632041140683noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9902716.post-75524851308349714862009-12-21T11:56:46.582-08:002009-12-21T11:56:46.582-08:00I'm in just about full and total agreement wit...I'm in just about full and total agreement with you here. I do think there's a kind of overlap, but achieving true racial diversity in our organizations and on our stages requires different things than achieving class/cultural diversity. And I think you're right that Isaac is pushing at one thing and Scott is pushing at another. I do think that, in the long run, both can get us there.<br /><br />For me, in all honesty, racial diversity is more important right now. I think a strong, concerted push for affirmative action to make our theatres less monochromatic would do wonders for our industry. The experiences of people of color in this country right now, today, is so rich and varied and only a tiny fraction of that is making it onto our stages. If a provocative idea is what it takes to get us closer to that, I'm all for it.99https://www.blogger.com/profile/11955916620902994495noreply@blogger.com