Even though Obi-Wan Kenobi has been breaking viewership records for Disney+ over the weekend, some fans out there are angry about one character. Inquisitor Reva, played excellently by Moses Ingram, has been getting unnecessary flak from some members of the Star Wars “fandom”. Moses Ingram is an African-American woman and some of the comments about her performance are going deeper than just that. In response, the official Star Wars Twitter went on the offensive to defend her.
It’s an astounding development that the official Twitter for one of the biggest properties in the world has to go to measures like this. However, that’s the world we live in. There are some people out there that are frightened or angry that such a powerful character could be portrayed by a woman, and an African-American woman, at that. If you saw any of what happened during the Obi-Wan Kenobi press conference or at Star Wars Celebration, Moses Ingram is extremely excited and loves being in a Star Wars show.
That’s not to say that people can’t have gripes about the show, but when those gripes extend far beyond criticism and verge into racism, that’s when we have a problem. Guess what Star Wars is all about, it’s been political and “woke” since 1977, it’s about people fighting against a racist oppressive regime. After the treatment actors like Ahmed Best, Kelly Marie-Tran, Daisy Ridley, Jake Lloyd, and Hayden Christensen faced, it’s nice to see Star Wars finally standing up for one of their own. Frankly, they need more of this kind of energy.
Star Wars is supposed to be fun and inclusive, it has no place for racism.
For more on Star Wars make sure to check back to That Hashtag Show.
