Insisting that a m/m ship MUST be canon isn’t activism. Insisting that a personal interpretation of acttractive men, usually yt be a canon m/m ship as the *official interpretation*, and all actors playing those parts need to be onboard, lest they face fandom wrath, isn’t activism. Insisting that the VALID POINT that Anthony Mackie made about the importance of normalizing affection and sensitivity as part of the lexicon of regular-eglur straight masculinity in pop culture, ESPEC. given his blackness and how often black men’s masculinity is weaponized against them, doesn’t matter…. because your personal fanon ship is the real issue here… Nitpicking words, when you KNOW WTF he means… Is peak toxic YT entitled nonsense and B.S. STOP.
Yep!
The problem isn’t even that they ship m/m ships, it’s insisting they be canon and distorting everything to have a romantic notion that doesn’t exist. People don’t understand the layers mackie is working with and is intentionally misconstruing it to be something negative.
Men should be allowed to have platonic intimacy without any sign of affection being portrayed as romantic or sexual. Then when cis straight men aren’t doing this and trying to “prove” their masculinity and how straight they are, that’s also a problem (it is!). However, attractive men being vulnerable and caring for each other is shipped and seen as gay.
Then people are claiming that they’re being queerbaiting and, folks, most of that stuff isn’t queerbait. I’ve read many compelling metas across many fandoms, and the MCU isn’t one of them largely speaking. It’s funny how queerbaiting and an “obvious” gay ship is only framed with the attractive male characters, where as not many mention Carol and Maria. Not many care.
Anything didn’t say no one can ship m/m, but insisting it be canon, esp when the narrative doesn’t support what fans claim are happening, is ridiculous.
This, THIS THIS…. And stepping on Mackie’s point to do this?! OMG, is only revealing how far (TOO FUCKING FAR) yall are willing take something that should *only* be funtimes for fandom and our creations/ imaginations. This isn’t about a fucking ship.
I repeat and clarify…
This is BIGGER than your personal fucking ship.
It is an important idea that a black man in pop culture be seen being sensitive; can be vunerable and have that be a default trait w/o any caveats (and yes, saying ‘he *must* be gay’ as an explanation for it is included, and low-key homophobic -gay men run the spectrum, just like everybody else in how they “act”). Being clear again. Ship it. Have fun. Don’t insist everybody including the actors must be onboard because then that makes you an asshole.
