Scientific American says Star Wars and Jedi are all kinds of racist and stuff; no, really, it says that

[chuter]

This is what scientists do now? Social justice?
This is one reason why "science" has lost a lot of credibility recently.

Why the Term 'JEDI' Is Problematic for Describing Programs That Promote Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

They’re meant to be heroes within the Star Wars universe, but the Jedi are inappropriate symbols for justice work

www.scientificamerican.com

Why the Term ‘JEDI’ Is Problematic for Describing Programs That Promote Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion​

...The Jedi are inappropriate mascots for social justice. Although they’re ostensibly heroes within the Star Wars universe, the Jedi are inappropriate symbols for justice work. They are a religious order of intergalactic police-monks, prone to (white) saviorism and toxically masculine approaches to conflict resolution (violent duels with phallic lightsabers, gaslighting by means of “Jedi mind tricks,” etc.). The Jedi are also an exclusionary cult, membership to which is partly predicated on the possession of heightened psychic and physical abilities (or “Force-sensitivity”). Strikingly, Force-wielding talents are narratively explained in Star Wars not merely in spiritual terms but also in ableist and eugenic ones: These supernatural powers are naturalized as biological, hereditary attributes. So it is that Force potential is framed as a dynastic property of noble bloodlines (for example, the Skywalker dynasty), and Force disparities are rendered innate physical properties, measurable via “midi-chlorian” counts (not unlike a “Force genetics” test) and augmentable via human(oid) engineering. The heroic Jedi are thus emblems for a host of dangerously reactionary values and assumptions. Sending the message that justice work is akin to cosplay is bad enough; dressing up our initiatives in the symbolic garb of the Jedi is worse...

Star Wars has a problematic cultural legacy.
The space opera franchise has been critiqued for trafficking in injustices such as sexism, racism and ableism. Think, for example, of the so-called “Slave Leia” costume, infamous for stripping down and chaining up the movie series’ first leading woman as part of an Orientalist subplot. Star Wars arguably conflates “alienness” with “nonwhiteness,” often seeming to rely on racist stereotypes when depicting nonhuman species. The series regularly defaults onto ableist tropes, memorably in its portrayal of Darth Vader, which links the villain’s physical disability with machinic inhumanity and moral deviance, presenting his technology-assisted breathing as a sinister auditory marker of danger and doom. What’s more, the bodies and voices centered in Star Wars have, with few exceptions, historically been those of white men. And while recent films have increased gender and racial diversity, important questions remain regarding how meaningfully such changes represent a departure from the series’ problematic past. Indeed, a notable segment of the Star Wars fandom has aggressively advocated the (re)centering of white men in the franchise, with some equating recent casting decisions with “white genocide.” Additionally, the franchise’s cultural footprint can be tracked in the saga of United States military-industrial investment and expansion, from debates around Reagan’s “Star Wars” Strategic Defense Initiative to the planned Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure (another “JEDI” program), sometimes winkingly framed with Star Wars allusions. Taken together, the controversies surrounding Star Wars make JEDI at best an inappropriate way to brand justice work—a kind of double-edged sword (or better yet, double-bladed “lightsaber”). At worst, this way of branding our initiatives is freighted with the very violence that our justice work seeks to counter.

 

[DavidMcmillan]

Someone sure went to a lot of effort to accomplish absolutely nothing!

 

[Catt57]

/facepalm

 

[Gideon]

Any programs that promote Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity are, in fact, "problematic", but not because of Obi Wan Kenobi and plasma swords.

 

[MacFromOK]

___

 

[okierider]

So that is what happens when 5 fools get in the same room.
Bet they all have 12 year degrees to get to that level of stupid.

 

[joegrizzy]

This is what scientists do now? Social justice?
This is one reason why "science" has lost a lot of credibility recently.

Why the Term 'JEDI' Is Problematic for Describing Programs That Promote Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

They’re meant to be heroes within the Star Wars universe, but the Jedi are inappropriate symbols for justice work

www.scientificamerican.com

Why the Term ‘JEDI’ Is Problematic for Describing Programs That Promote Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion​

this is literally what Palpatine said. so i mean....i guess if like....you are an empire apologist.

>sheev did nothing wrong!

 

[Rod Snell]

NOT A GENUINE SCIENTIST IN THE BUNCH!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR(S)​

J. W. Hammond is a postdoctoral researcher in the School of Education at the University of Michigan, where he researches and teaches about rhetoric, writing and racial justice. His current scholarship centers on educational assessment history, theory and technology, as well as the ethical, political and rhetorical dimensions of research access and use. A (nearly) lifelong Star Wars nerd, he believes that science fiction shapes our ethical horizons and sense of scientific possibility in ways good and bad, big and small.

Sara E. Brownell is a discipline-based education researcher and professor in the School of Life Sciences at Arizona State University who studies how we can create more inclusive undergraduate biology learning environments, particularly for women, religious students, community college transfer students, and LGBTQ+ students. You can follow her on Twitter @brownell_sara.

Nita A. Kedharnath earned her M.A. in educational leadership and policy from the University of Michigan. She is the project manager for the Sloan Equity and Inclusion in STEM Introductory Courses (SEISMIC) Collaboration, coordinating multi-institutional and multidisciplinary research and teaching projects focused on making introductory STEM courses more equitable and inclusive.

Susan J. Cheng is a forest ecologist and instructional consultant specializing in data analytics, assessment, and instruction of undergraduate courses. She earned her Ph.D. from the University of Michigan and leads research projects in two intertwined strands of scholarship: understanding how ecology shapes Earth's climate and how classroom climate shapes student learning. She is on the advisory board for 500 Women Scientists and serves on the American Geophysical Union's Education Section committee. You can follow her on Twitter @susanjcheng.

Recent Articles by Susan J. Cheng​

• Scientists Must Speak Up for the Green New Deal

 

[RickN]

I am so old I can remember when Scientist was a good thing.

 

[Seadog]

This is what scientists do now? Social justice?
This is one reason why "science" has lost a lot of credibility recently.

Why the Term 'JEDI' Is Problematic for Describing Programs That Promote Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

They’re meant to be heroes within the Star Wars universe, but the Jedi are inappropriate symbols for justice work

www.scientificamerican.com

Why the Term ‘JEDI’ Is Problematic for Describing Programs That Promote Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion​

Racist people see racism everywhere. Cry baby’s. Loved the first three movies before the crappy CGI ruined the following three. Han Solo the movie wasn’t bad either.