Parting Thought: Remembering Dwayne McDuffie On His Birthday [Video]

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Dwayne McDuffie would have been 51 today. Just typing that makes me angry, because I know he should still be here with us. Tomorrow is the two year anniversary of his death, but I'm more interested in celebrating his life than remembering the shock of his passing. McDuffie was an incredible talent who was often seen as a "black writer" as opposed to just a writer, largely due to both his stature in the industry, and his ability to eloquently discuss the difficulties that face black writers in comics.

There are dozens of examples of him doing just that, but the one that often sticks out to me -- the one I find myself revisiting most often -- is this interview he did years ago, in which he discusses how being a writer who fans know is black "puts a lot of the white, male readership on edge."

In light of the fact that there are currently no black writers working at Marvel or DC, I believe the following video is essential viewing for all of us, and I highly recommend you check it out. Happy birthday, Dwayne McDuffie.

Tags: Black History Month - BlackHistoryMonth - Dwayne McDuffie - DwayneMcduffie

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jeffreysmorris

I corresponded a few times with Dwayne. He was one of the top names on my "like to meet in my lifetime" list. I've always regretted not being able to fulfill that. Brilliant man.

February 21 2013 at 12:35 PM Report abuse Permalink +1 rate up rate down Reply

Michael Aronson

Why isn't Christopher Priest still writing for Marvel or DC?

February 21 2013 at 12:09 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

1 reply to Michael Aronson's comment

edward2962

My understanding is that for a variety of both personal and professional reasons, Priest just isn't that interested in working for the big 2 anymore. He keeps busy with successful endeavors outside of comics these days. However, I do think I read that he said he MIGHT be lured back by a chance to do either Batman or Iron Man. Otherwise tho, he's done.

February 21 2013 at 8:01 PM Report abuse Permalink +1 rate up rate down Reply

scottmac213

Mr. McDuffie was a great writer and a really nice guy. I contacted him about using a line from Hardware #1 for the epigraph of my first novel. His words were, "Use away!" plus he gave me some great advice. It blows my mind that more people of race, sexual orientation, etc. aren't writing for the big two, but in this video I think he's actually generalizing "white, male, comic book readers." Yes, I have favorite writers and artists, but that has nothing to do with what color they are. And no, just because I'm a "white" guy doesn't mean I'm uncomfortable around a "black" guy or story theme. If it's a great story with great characters, I'm on board. I prefer McDuffie's other writings and videos about breaking down barriers and reaching out to talent and fans and I don't really understand the perspective or agenda behind this article. He was a remarkable creator. RIP Dwayne McDuffie.

February 21 2013 at 10:41 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

AntMac

Interesting video, and there is no doubt of the mans sincerity, and that he is clearly expressing the facts of his society as he perceives them.

However, the human race has a bigger pool of experience than that contained just in the USA. His experience is local, and he should not talk in the absolute terms that he does. What would be the rule of three in Kenya do you think?. China?.

February 20 2013 at 11:50 PM Report abuse Permalink -7 rate up rate down Reply

1 reply to AntMac's comment

Jacob

I think, using some context clues, it's pretty obvious he's speaking specifically about American Comic Media (and briefly expanded into American media in general). We know who he is; we know where he's from and what his experience is, do we really need a 20 minute preamble specifically limiting what he's saying.

Where are these comments on white creators?
Using just CA articles:

"While The Simpsons remains an entertaining and endearing cultural touchstone, after almost 25 years on TV, even the most die-hard fans would have trouble claiming that the show is in its prime."
Um actually, the Simpsons is only a cultural touchstone in America, specifically for people in their 30s or younger. In other countries it's not nearly as popular. Don't use such absolute terms.

"The publisher also revealed that the creative teams behind each Green Lantern title would be leaving their respective books, which left fans to speculate who'd be taking over."
Um actually, only DC fans, and specifically only Green Lantern fans have been speculating. I only read Daredevil at Marvel, and I couldn't give a flying fig. Let's curb this universal talk for a minute.

We don't hear those comments, because they use context clues in those situations. This goes directly back to what McDuffie is saying, "They're always hyper-rational." You're reverse engineering an argument from an opinion rather than the other way 'round.

February 21 2013 at 9:12 AM Report abuse Permalink +7 rate up rate down Reply

zsquared

A true storyteller. Justice League Unlimited remains one of the greatest collections of superhero stories in any medium, thanks in no small part to Dwayne McDuffie. Happy birthday sir.

February 20 2013 at 11:45 PM Report abuse Permalink +7 rate up rate down Reply

Santiago Killing

Interesting interview. Being a phenotypically white male myself (albeit a quarter "hispanic") I can say that few things disturb me more than conspicuously "white" products for "white audiences". The problem is, people are brought up and educated with an us vs them mindset, where superficial differences and similarities with regard to pre-defined "groups" are meant to provide our sense of self-worth (i.e. "this is your one and only culture, if it dies you die with it."). Basically, people want to feel safe and comforted by their entertainment and don't want to think about or deal with issues like these. For example, people don't want to think about how so much of their "white culture" is made up of bits and pieces stolen from other cultures and ethnic groups (both scientifically problematic terms), because that would invalidate the still widely disseminated notion of some sort of inherent cultural superiority (i.e. "we invented everything") and lead to the acceptance of other human groups as equally "valid". In other words, we would have to let go of our static notions of culture and identity, and accept the intrinsically fluid nature of the world (there is no such thing as a pure ethnicity).

But we don't want that because, as Louis C.K. said, it's great being white, and we want non-threatening black characters ideally written by white men who validate our preconceived notions and allow us to continue acting as if we ******* owned the world.

February 20 2013 at 11:09 PM Report abuse Permalink +2 rate up rate down Reply