MSNBC host Melissa Harris-Perry–a favorite of the liberal Left–went on a tirade about the so-called “racism” in Star Wars.
According to Harris-Perry, who is black, the series’ supremely evil villain Darth Vader was “totally a black guy.”
“While he was black he was terrible and bad, awful and used to cut off white men’s hand, and didn’t actually claim his son,” she said. “But as soon as he claims his son, goes over to the good, takes off his mask and he is white.”
Angry, she added, “Yes, I have many feelings about that.”
While Darth Vader technically wears black armor–and is, in fact, voiced by a black man, James Earl Jones, whose voice was added in the post-production editing of the film–it’s a stretch to claim that his “color” is explicit racism on the part of series creator George Lucas. When his helmet comes off, and he’s revealed to be a white man–which makes sense, considering his two children are white–it’s also not necessarily a statement of his “becoming a white man,” either.
In fact, in the more-recent prequel trilogy that depicts a younger Darth Vader (a white man, played by Hayden Christensen), he gets progressively more corrupted. And remains white.
Harris-Perry, who portrays herself as a journalist, has grown infamous for her ability to see the racial “injustice” in just about anything.
Now? It looks like she’s taking offense at one of the most successful and beloved film franchises of all time–simply because the villain happens to wear black armor for much of the film.