Unlike Hollywood’s Latest Depiction, Stagecoach wasn’t Mary

It premiered on Netflix on November 3 They Fall HarderIn the late 1800s, a movie about revenge with a bit of history is directed by Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter. The film features a fantastic and impressive cast of Regina King, Idris Elba and Jonathan Majors.

One of the most anticipated movies of the year, the movie requires some historical storytelling as we have several lead roles playing real Black people from Black American history. One of these people is Stagecoach Mary. Mary Fields, also known as Stagecoach Mary or Black Mary, was the first African American star route mail carrier in the United States.

Do a little research on who Stagecoach Mary is and you’ll find historical sources that portray her as daring, brave, rifle-carrying, and hard-drinking. He was clever and did everything necessary to protect other stagecoaches.

Stagecoach Mary was a Black, dark-skinned, plus-size woman who wore men’s clothing and became a Wild West legend. So why does Stagecoach play the role of Mary? Zazie Beetz?

Who was Mary Fields, aka Stagecoach Mary?

stagecoach mary He was born in Tennessee in 1832 and was released after the Civil War. During this newly discovered period of freedom, she moved north from working along the Mississippi River, where she worked as a maid to families, and took root in Ohio, where she took refuge in safety and a convent.

At the convent, Mary worked as a field guard, who often quarreled with other nuns. Mary was not an obedient woman, although at that time (and still to this day) white women believed that Black women should have a role; to remain silent and accept what is given to them.

Mary often struggled with her words and was not afraid to back down when she felt she was being mistreated. He was not afraid of physical contact with anyone and was known to be “offended”.

Mary was kicked out of the convent after she opened fire on a male janitor – her gun. This led to Mary being contracted by the postal service in 1895, becoming the second woman and first Black woman to carry and deliver mail. For eight years, Mary protected the mail from thieves and bandits. He retired due to old age in the early 1900s.

Erasing Mary

I drew this picture of Mary for you because believe it or not, the historical context adjacent to Mary’s skin color and size is why Hollywood portrays her as “a feisty skinny fair-skinned Black woman.” she was a tough, tall and strong plus size dark-skinned Black woman.

Hollywood, like many cultures, still sees dark skinned Black women who are big on being masculine and “aggressive”, and if you’re masculine and aggressive, it becomes much harder for audiences to believe you can be. a love interest in your own story.

This is ironic because every historical male figure who should have been dark-skinned starred a dark-skinned man. I really believe this is one of the many reasons Stagecoach Mary is underrepresented in this new Netflix movie; because nobody falls in love with a fat black woman.

We still live in an age where fat, dark-skinned women and most marginalized people deserve less care and nurturing, so when we look at television, movies or any mass media fat black woman Being a love interest at any given time is ridiculous to most and unbelievable at best.

Cartoons and Stereotypes

I know from experience and see every day that fat Black women and girls, especially those with dark skin, should never “get the guy”. Instead of being a love interest, you’re the bully. Stereotypes like this are why I continue to argue that the Mammy cartoon, which sees fat Black women as asexual, still exists in the media and that fatphobia is racialized.

Someone in the body covered by Zazie Beetz would never experience the damage that someone in a body like Mary Fields would. When you’re a fat, tall, dark-skinned Black woman, you’re exposed to a lot of violence. And the media agrees. How can you focus on your love life when you spend most of your time trying to survive and not get hurt?

Inside Fear of the Black Body: The Racial Origins of Fatphobia, Dr. Sabrina Strings reminds us that in the early 1900s, white women already set the tone to limit their food intake to being thin, white, and saying that you are closer to God, that you are delicate, and that you are pure. During this time, Stagecoach Mary was far from it, and her body was demonized within itself. This movie is no different.

Hollywood has a fat phobia

Hollywood’s casting directors still have a problem with colorism, fatness and anti-Blackness. To accurately tell the stories of our heroes and ancestors, you must first begin by publishing them in all their completeness and likeness.

Similar to my questions about the role of Ma Rainey – was Danielle Brooks too busy? What about Wunmi Mosaku? Or Ouzo Adoba? Choosing to pick someone as fair-skinned and skinny just because a man plays the opposite of her girlfriend is lazy and tiring.

Why doesn’t it apply here when people use phrases like “if we can see it, we can be it”? This is a deletion. This is violence. Obesity is systemic and affects people’s livelihoods, job opportunities, medical care, etc. When we say you deny it, this is just one of those examples.

It would be nice to see a dark-skinned, 6-inch, plus-size actress playing Stagecoach Mary.

It would be nice if the historical roles that fat black women played in our history were narrated with dignity. It would be nice to set aside the cartoon of those fat Black women who deserve to be loved on screen.

Yes, it’s not a biopic, and yes, it’s licensed fictional and it would still be nice.