Where Are All The Asians In StarCraft?

[TcheQuevara]

Not really. People form communities, which is why the USA still has African Americans after 200 years.

This is very specific to the US. Look at Latin America. With all the racism, we're mostly have mixed blood.

(actually, look at Europe and you'll see what I'm talking about. In most countries, all local etnicities disappeared an nationality was the only thing left)

And actually people don't form communities based on race... not spontaneously. People are only segregated by race if society estimulates that.


Don't have the numbers but even with all the prejudice against immigrants and muslims, I bet Europeans are much more ok with "interracial" marriage then North Americans.

Throwing this at Koprulu, what kind of thing would stop those guys and gals of marrying with people of other colors? Only if they were racist since the begining... but we see no current sign of racism in Starcraft! Maybe they were very, very racist at first, and in only 250 years, they did aaaall the way since extreme racism to peaceful intolerance (inibiting mixed marriages) to mild segregated tolerance (like modern US)?


Anyway, the Marauder is black.

[Pr0nogo]

They have prejudices against Muslims for a reason.

The Firebat sounds pretty black.

[Gradius]

And actually people don't form communities based on race... not spontaneously. People are only segregated by race if society estimulates that.

Of course they do. A shared similarity is the primary reason for forming a community. It's not just blacks. In the U.S. there are large clusters of hispanics, and yet where I live I haven't seen one since forever. It's less the case with Asians over here, but still applicable.

I'm originally from Ukraine, and there are a bunch of Ukrainian-only communities over here, but I hear there are many more so in Canada. This has nothing to do with society or racism, but a shared ethnicity, which makes me question your claim that ethnicity is irrelevant in Europe. And Europe is different, people (Caucasians) have been interbreeding there for thousands of years. Forming communities with those of a similar ethnicity is definitely something that people do, especially when going to a new unfamiliar environment i.e. the USA or the K-sector.

but we see no current sign of racism in Starcraft!

One example is from Uprising. Somo, an Asian, was referred to as a "fringe-squib". General Duke was also racist towards fringe-worlders.

[nocommayes]

Okay, giving up on my potential Asian unit question.

Of course they do. A shared similarity is the primary reason for forming a community.

This has nothing to do with society or racism, but a shared ethnicity, which makes me question your claim that ethnicity is irrelevant in Europe.

Everywhere I've been in the world [and I've been to over a dozen countries] there have been always been pockets [sometimes neighbourhoods, sometimes just the floor of an apartment] of a single ethnicity. It's why most large cities have a Chinatown.

As far as what TcheQuevara was saying, I kind of get how different S. America is with this. My roommate for three years of college was from Brazil, and I understand that there's quite a bit more mixing there.

There's a lot of mixing here, in Toronto, since it is the most diverse city in the world. Even then, though, a lot of ethnicities [mostly Asian] will push for their children to marry within that race. It's also just a psychological trait that we will seek out those similar to us, and that includes physical appearance.

[phazonjunkie]

You also need to realize that, in regards the original colony ships, we're dealing with a VERY limited number of people with a limited gene pool and limited resources. Given the intense socioeconomic and environmental pressure they'd be under to procreate & expand, it's unlikely they could afford to be picky, at least for the first few generations or so.

So although there'd clearly exceptions, the overall trend would've been towards homogenization.

Also, unless there's been a retcon that I'm unaware of, one of the colony ships actually crash landed on Umoja killing all 8000 on board, so the total number of original colonists was only 32,000.

[Gradius]

You also need to realize that, in regards the original colony ships, we're dealing with a VERY limited number of people with a limited gene pool and limited resources. Given the intense socioeconomic and environmental pressure they'd be under to procreate & expand, it's unlikely they could afford to be picky, at least for the first few generations or so.

So although there'd clearly exceptions, the overall trend would've been towards homogenization.

Also, unless there's been a retcon that I'm unaware of, one of the colony ships actually crash landed on Umoja killing all 8000 on board, so the total number of original colonists was only 32,000.

The smallest village in the world has 6 people in it. Gene pool size is irrelevant. Not saying there would be no homogenization, but ethnic groups in the SC universe are still likely to exist.

[solidsamurai]

Master Miyamoto

I'm betting he also worked for nintendo and invented super mario for Valerian.

Warfield's good too.

He's actually pretty cliche. In hollywood, strong and well spoken black men are acceptable if they look and talk pretty much like Denzel Washington (Warfield is basically Denzel with a mustache; and I think there was another actor that had freckles or whatever that skin condition is that warfield has, besides blackness).

The smallest village in the world has 6 people in it.

Wow, probably consists of a single house, doesn't it?

You also need to realize that, in regards the original colony ships, we're dealing with a VERY limited number of people with a limited gene pool and limited resources. Given the intense socioeconomic and environmental pressure they'd be under to procreate & expand, it's unlikely they could afford to be picky, at least for the first few generations or so.

Pretty good point. They must have had to resort to science to prevent the disasters that often occur with inbreeding (like superpowers; for those that've watched wrong turn).

Anyway, the odd asian will probably look very white or at least be part of the culture nostalgia that results from certain wealthier family lineages - and no, they don't have to be confederate old families, considering there was only 20 of those.

[Quirel]

He's actually pretty cliche. In hollywood, strong and well spoken black men are acceptable if they look and talk pretty much like Denzel Washington (Warfield is basically Denzel with a mustache; and I think there was another actor that had freckles or whatever that skin condition is that warfield has, besides blackness).

You mean Morgan Freeman?

[TcheQuevara]

Everywhere I've been in the world [and I've been to over a dozen countries] there have been always been pockets [sometimes neighbourhoods, sometimes just the floor of an apartment] of a single ethnicity. It's why most large cities have a Chinatown.

There are Chinatowns because Chinese people have strong values that are very different from the native community. There is also the language barrier and last but obsolutely not least, the discrimination and exploitation that is common against immigrants.

Europeans where brought to Brazil to whiten our blood (true story). Even then, many of them were treated like slaves when they arived. Immigrants are hostilized, stranged, and exploited. And these things strenghten the instinct of refusing your culture to be down-watered. There are cultural, not racial, reasons to form as strong communities as Chinatowns.

I'm originally from Ukraine, and there are a bunch of Ukrainian-only communities over here, but I hear there are many more so in Canada.

Many Ukrainians communities in my city Love your dances. But not in a racist way.

Your family arived in the US in a much less troubled time then when the Chinatowns formed themselves, and you still gathered around the Ukrainian community. That would be a solid proof against my theory.

But you guys arived at a well formed country with 400 years of history. Where there was such thing as a native culture and a foreign culture. Both instinct and ideology make people relate more to their own, even if there is no hostility in that. And let's not forget the Ukrainian community started existing in the US during more troubled and hostilizing times than today. I mean that if Ukrainians arrived in the US with the first colonizers there would be no such thing as a Ukrainian community today or even in the 1800's.

The main thing we have to point here, thought, is that people tend to stay at their own cultures. People have absolutely no tendency to marry their own race, except when there is racism involved.


So, 32,000 people arrived at Koprulu... sorry, no they didn't. Actually they arrived at packs of 8,000 or 16,000 in each planet, right?

Those 16,000 people aren't ariving at a formed country and have to fit in a pre-existing structure. They're writing their history at a blank page. There are no foreigners and no natives. The tendency is to mix races - except in two cases. If almost everyone belongs to a culture that is heavely linked to a race, or if there is racism. And if in 2200 cultures are as dissolved as they are today (logic would say they would be more), there wouldn't be many people picking up who to date with based on accent, favorite dishes or clothing.

Okay, giving up on my potential Asian unit question.

Predators could repeat their names like Pokèmons, does this counts?

I think the Warhound could be black with a strong African accent. The Hollywood racist inside me tells me Africans are good mercenaries.

People mentioned the Viking as a good unit to have an Asian pilot because it's a transformer. I'd like it best to see an Asian is a less typical unit. Maybe an infantry unit.

[nocommayes]

People have absolutely no tendency to marry their own race, except when there is racism involved.

I definitely feel that there's more to it than just racism. There is such a thing as Ethnic Nepotism, the tendency for humans to prefer their own ethnicity when searching for partners. Culture is a large part of it, I agree, but there is that psychological hardwiring to seek out others like us, and the first indicator of similarity is always physical/aesthetic.

Predators could repeat their names like Pokèmons, does this counts?

I think the Warhound could be black with a strong African accent. The Hollywood racist inside me tells me Africans are good mercenaries.

People mentioned the Viking as a good unit to have an Asian pilot because it's a transformer. I'd like it best to see an Asian is a less typical unit. Maybe an infantry unit.

I also think that the Viking would be fairly cool. I think what's probably most important is staying away from offensive stereotypes, so preferably nothing related to samurais or ninjas. A psychic assassin type of unit would have to be done very well for it to not be seen as horrifyingly racist.

Thanks for the suggestions!