Simpsons Not Using White People To Voice Non-White Characters Anymore: What Do You Think?

Dancer

Just now I saw something on the news about how The Simpsons will only be using non-white people to voice non-white characters from now on. I wonder who else has seen that thing on the news and what they think of it. If you want to explain more about your decision then feel free to comment down below about it.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/amp/entertainment-arts-53201667 Here it is

Former Member

Meh

I think it's a good decision to allow non whites a better chance of having that voice and job 

On the other hand, Bart Simpson is voiced by a girl so it's been pretty standard that the voices are unorthodox.

Like Aidan I haven't watched it in years baring the few treehouse of horrors and classics like steamed hams 😂 

TLDR. I'm happy for other people, doesn't bother me much. Bring back steamed hams 😂

independent_

It was a great idea

I think it’s a good idea, I never really watched it mind even as a child so it doesn’t affect me much but it just makes sense to have ethnic minority groups voiced by members of ethnic minority groups.

Dancer

It was a great idea

I like the way everyone has shared their own opinions on this topic. Remember that all thoughts and opinions are welcome on here.

Past User

I guess that it is something that you can't argue against

Great now can we can an actual Scot to voice groundskeeper willie .. just makes sense but where will it end ? Am no very fussy personally. It’s not really something you can argue with because it just makes sense  haha 

Dancer

It was a great idea

Lol. Does the news ever really make sense though?

Former Member

Meh

Meh. They are all very talented and well trained at different accents and voices. Many male voice overs are played by female.. 

Dancer

It was a great idea

That is a very valid point @Aidan but some people might believe (particularly people who are of colour) that bringing in a variety of ethnicities for voices would actually encourage them to watch it. Some people might feel like The Simpsons is not The Simpsons anymore without the fan-favourite character voices though.

Former Member

Meh

You make a good point @Aidan on the sad news front the voice actor who portrayed Cleveland has resigned as a white voice actor.

I know many people are upset it's really a confusing double ended sword where it's good to give black voice actors a better chance but you're also taking away fan favourites it's very tricky subject  

Maybe there can be some middle ground where new roles are cast by black individuals but some favourites stay? 

It's good to see a nice discussion about it  

independent_

It was a great idea

That’s a very good point @Aidan, I think Laine’s idea of making it a rule for new actors but maybe keeping some of the favourites that have been there the whole time (if they want to stay of course) is a good one. But all new actors should be of the same group as the character?

Azziman

Most of the discussion centralises around Apu. A lot of ethnic minorities actually love Apu's character because they find it genuinely funny - they didn't really care for who was voice acting it. But this is a move is 'of the time' - there's a lot of attention focused on representation nowadays so it does bring it into line with that  

Skive

Im conflicted.

If this course of action will fix a genuine inequality issue, then it is the right thing to do. Clearly there are historical racial inequalities where white actors using blackface in film resulted in fewer jobs for black actors. Is this still true for voice actors?

If not I think you have to be careful and pick your battles, else you may create resentment that will ultimately be counter productive to a legitimate cause of equality.

For example I saw a tweet the other day from an ex MP labelling Kellogg’s racist for having a monkey as a mascot for Coco Pops. A claim that was widely (and rightly) ridiculed - a case of social justice over teaching. 

Dancer

It was a great idea

Aidan said:

Thinking about it with my morning brain (which is either really fresh or really slow I haven't decided yet ), are they trying to end racism on the show, by letting voice actors go, because of their race?

"How do we stop racism? Stop talking about it. I'm going to stop calling you a white man, and I'm going to ask you to stop calling me a black man." 
~Morgan Freeman

Yeah I believe that is a very valid point that you have. Racism isn't just aimed at black people although that is what most people might associate racism with but also white people sometimes have to face racism.

Skive

Kasa2103 said:

Aidan said:

Thinking about it with my morning brain (which is either really fresh or really slow I haven't decided yet ), are they trying to end racism on the show, by letting voice actors go, because of their race?

"How do we stop racism? Stop talking about it. I'm going to stop calling you a white man, and I'm going to ask you to stop calling me a black man." 
~Morgan Freeman

Yeah I believe that is a very valid point that you have. Racism isn't just aimed at black people although that is what most people might associate racism with but also white people sometimes have to face racism.

While it's true that anybody can be racists or suffer prejudice because of their race, there is little to no evidence of systemic racism against white people.

Italia

It was a great idea

Skive said:

Kasa2103 said:

Aidan said:

Thinking about it with my morning brain (which is either really fresh or really slow I haven't decided yet ), are they trying to end racism on the show, by letting voice actors go, because of their race?

"How do we stop racism? Stop talking about it. I'm going to stop calling you a white man, and I'm going to ask you to stop calling me a black man." 
~Morgan Freeman

Yeah I believe that is a very valid point that you have. Racism isn't just aimed at black people although that is what most people might associate racism with but also white people sometimes have to face racism.

While it's true that anybody can be racists or suffer prejudice because of their race, there is little to no evidence of systemic racism against white people.

That's a great point Skive!

@Kasa2103 - This post here might help explain a little. It was written by @simran121 one of The Mix staffers and it explains some of the history behind racism, and why its targeted so much towards at Black and people of colour. Understanding the history and how we came to be where we are today can be a good place to start.  

If anyone has any questions feel free to ask - it's a safe space to do so. 

On the Simpsons actors using people of colour to play characters of colour...
I think it's good that such a prominent show (that so many of us grew up watching) is setting a good example. My understanding is that it's a pretty big issue across the entertainment industry as a whole. So if it makes other people in the entertainment industry stop and consider who is playing their characters of colour - then that's only a good thing yeah. 

@Kasa2103 this is such a great thread! Thank you for asking the question and starting the conversation  

Dancer

It was a great idea

Skive said:

Kasa2103 said:

Aidan said:

Thinking about it with my morning brain (which is either really fresh or really slow I haven't decided yet ), are they trying to end racism on the show, by letting voice actors go, because of their race?

"How do we stop racism? Stop talking about it. I'm going to stop calling you a white man, and I'm going to ask you to stop calling me a black man." 
~Morgan Freeman

Yeah I believe that is a very valid point that you have. Racism isn't just aimed at black people although that is what most people might associate racism with but also white people sometimes have to face racism.

While it's true that anybody can be racists or suffer prejudice because of their race, there is little to no evidence of systemic racism against white people.

That is a good point @Skive Thank you for your input.