Monday, December 10, 2007

What have we here?

While discussing racial subcultures the other day in my humanities course the conversation came around to "Uncle Toms." And, inevitably, Billy D. WIlliams, also know as Lando Calrissian. I tried to defend Lando, explain that he was just an entrepreneur, that the Empire had put the screws to him and he was just doing what he had to at the time but came through in the end. Boy was I full of shit. Because, the truth of the matter is, Lando might just have been the most stereotypical character in all the star wars films. Being the only black guy in the whole of George Lucas' universe isn't easy though and I think he is due some credit. As a non-alien black guy Lando was single handedly representing an oppressed and stylized culture. Even while surrounded by british Nazi's and teenage Trotskyites, Billy D was cool and clean, full of sexual chocolate, pimping a pimp cape and ordering white guys around. Yeah, Lando might have been an uncle tom, but shit, he was just protecting his own black ass.

Or maybe he was just into white meat. I don't know. Either way, George Lucas is a racist, Lando is a pimp, and Billy D WIlliams is as smooth as cocobutter.
What have we here?


Caleb, of Jason and the Ugnaughts

part 2
The Simpsons:


1 comment:

Daniel said...

Have you not seen Chasing Amy?

Hooper: Always some white boy gotta invoke the holy trilogy. Bust this: those movies are about how the white man keep the brother man down, even in a galaxy far, far away. Check this shit: You got cracker farm boy Luke Skywalker, Nazi poster boy, blond hair, blue eyes. And then you got Darth Vader, the blackest brother in the galaxy, Nubian god!
Banky Edwards: What's a Nubian?
Hooper: Shut the fuck up! Now... Vader, he's a spiritual brother, y'know, down with the force and all that good shit. Then this cracker, Skywalker, gets his hands on a light saber and the boy decides he's gonna run the fuckin' universe; gets a whole clan of whites together. And they go and bust up Vader's hood, the Death Star. Now what the fuck do you call that?
Banky Edwards: Intergalactic civil war?
Hooper: Gentrification! They gon' drive out the black element to make the galaxy 'safe' for white folks. And Jedi's the most insulting installment! Because Vader's beautiful black visage is sullied when he pulls off his mask to reveal a feeble, crusty, old white man! They tryin' to tell us that deep inside we all wants to be white!
Banky Edwards: Well... isn't that true?
[Hooper pulls out his gun, shoots Banky]

god, i love that scene. no mention of lando though...

and from scrubs:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7BXEvmWbeC8