white washing and race bending

When I started my research in order to write my dissertation, I did not occur to me the gravity of the issue of ‘white washing’ and ‘race bending’ as well as how frequently it happens in the media until I dug a little deeper.

Wikipedia explains that :

‘Racebending’ or ‘Whitewashing’ are terms used when the race or ethnicity of a character, in a story, is altered to an ostensibly more “palatable” or “profitable” ethnicity. ‘Whitewashing’ is the older term, with ‘racebending’ coming to the fore, as a broader term.

Let’s look at instances that white washing has taken place.

A much paler version of a Inuit-inspired character played by Nicola Peltz as Katara in The Last Airbender.

White washing comes to a whole new level when real life characters are white washed. Jim Sturgess as Jeff Ma in 21 which was based on the life of Jeff Ma, a real-life MIT blackjack team.

Jake Gyllenhaal slathered in tanning lotion in his portrayal of The Prince of Persia.

A less tanned Mike Myers in his depiction of an Indian man in The Love Guru.

Many would argue however, that the concept of race bending a white character to a minority character may not entirely be a negative reflection as it is a great way to incorporate minority characters in the media that should reflect multicultural world that exists today.