On Mad Men and Race

My original article (honed though conversations with Highjive of MultiCultClassics and G.D. of PostBourgie) focused around what I saw as the erasure of the black voice. Sure, blacks are visible in the series, but silent. Some people have taken that to reflect the attitudes of Draper and Co. toward their plight. However, when you contrast the images of blacks and Asians with the images of other marginalized groups, you find that there are other methods the writers use to peek into the lives of “others” – and that time after time, this courtesy is not extended to blacks.

I grew even more sure of this idea as I watched the growing chatter about Mad Men on other forums. Whenever the idea of race was broached, the idea was that the subject had been handled – after all, blacks were in the scenes weren’t they? As servants? Totally realistic! However, it reinforces what commenters N and Cocomala were discussing in the other comment thread – there is an idea that if blacks are present, it is the same thing as their story being told.

It is not.

Reading through responses, I really started to be concerned. Are people so conditioned to ignore black narratives that any representation will do? And are people so accustomed to commentary about race coming in broad, heavy handed “racial moments” that we will ignore the lack of nuance used to portray the lives of axillary black characters?

At the end of the piece, I asked if it would be so hard to show some of the strain of racism, as we see Betty staring off into space in her suffocating suburban prison showing the issues in her existence, or Peggy’s constant air of discomfort. This does not call for re-imagining the show. As I wrote in the original:

Mad Men is a world dominated by white men, so it only bears to reason that much of the show will be from the perspective of the central characters, namely the men of Sterling Cooper and their wives.. However, the some marginalized groups get to have their say, using their limited time in the Mad Men world to share their insights as outsiders. [...]

The Mad Men are not interested in hearing about the world of women, of understanding Jews or hearing their issues. But, through intimate conversations and intra-group conversations, we are allowed a glimpse into what those groups were going through.

In contrast, other racial minorities have no voice and no representation. The black characters are literally voiceless. How is it possible, in a series that illuminates so much about that era, to remain in the shadows? To be an after thought? [...]

There is not a single character of color, outside of Menken, who has the space or ability to voice what they are experiencing.

Some while some viewers believe that Mad Men adequately deals with race. But this is a lie. Inadvertently, Mad Men features a stunningly clear view of how we deal with race in 2009. While there is the acknowledgment that bad things happen – the race riots are clucked over at the office, with some sharing concern for Kinsey – ultimately, the black characters have no voice of their own. And the loss of this voice continues to dehumanize them.

This is a form of erasure, and shows how much as not changed from 1960 until today.

Is it possible to tell a story or to convey a moment without centering that character? I would argue yes. Take, for example, the other gay characters in the series. Most of the analysis of LGBTQ themes focuses on Salvatore, but there are other gay characters around the margins, who again, still have the ability to illuminate their condition. Remember Joan’s roommate, the one who drunkenly confessed that she had done all she could to be near her? Joan politely downplays her request, and continues as if nothing was ever confessed.

However, the devil, again, is in the details. The scene after shows Joan and her roommate entertaining two gentleman guests. Joan brings her guest back to her room, leaving her roommate awkwardly sitting with the other man. He makes a flirty remark. She looks chagrined, before saying something to the extent of “it doesn’t matter” and submitting to his advances. Joan’s rooommate is not seen again, but has already managed to place an important message in the mind of a viewer: is this how homosexuals had to deal with their sexuality then? How many lesbian women submitted to men just because it was easier?

Another areas I found telling was the treatment of Asian Americans in the series. Often not even mentioned, in the original I wrote:

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