We Need To Talk About Racism And Sexism In The Cosplay Community
By Tai Gooden
Cosplay is supposed to be an escape from reality — instead, it can make the realities of racism and sexism more visible than ever.
There are times when we all need an outlet to escape our daily lives. Some women write. Others work out. And those who are self-proclaimed nerds many combine their ingenuity and fandom passion to enter the magical world of cosplay. Cosplay (a portmanteau of “costume” and “play”) is a type of performance art where a person, known as a cosplayer, portrays a character from a novel, comic, TV show, movie, or other pop-culture medium. Some cosplayers dive into their character and take on their personality, while others continue to be themselves while dressed like their favorite character.
The term cosplay was coined back in 1984, during a Los Angeles sci-fi convention, and the community has continued to grow over the years. The current size of the community is hard to ascertain because cosplay happens both at conventions and in daily life, but the recent mainstream boom in all things geek/nerd related has placed the community in the spotlight. There are hundreds of forums dedicated to cosplay tips, websites to find cosplay pieces, and even documentaries about…
