Since this and the original "discrimination" thread are really about privileged people struggling to accept their privilege and work in solidarity with the disadvantaged, mods might consider merging them.
Logic can always support privilege as long as it wears a certain set of blinders that denies social, political and plain
ole human decency factors. There's a logic to saying that if people who are trans are the only ones who should
play trans characters (not sure many even against SJ's participation would take that stance unequivocally) then only cisgendered people should
play cis roles and so on. But that's not what this is really about unless you're only interested in protecting your privilege. I bet all or most reading here have more compassion, so let's get to work.
Always ask first, who has the
power? Does the cisgendered person need that
role? Does the highest paid woman in Hollywood need it? Is she more qualified than a talented trans actor? What can be done to elevate talent and authentic experience over established star
power? The star doesn't need the
role. On the topic of authentic experience "versus" acting, acting isn't merely about pretending to be someone you're not. Respectfully (I do mean that) that's a simpleminded and foolish concept of the artform. The channeling of personal experience is fundamental, and as this and plenty of other conversations illustrate, cisgendered people have a harder time figuring out trans identity than perhaps any other aspect of humanity. So why not give trans talent a chance to tell their own stories?
I wasn't immensely bothered when I heard about this Johansson story because I'm aware of collaborations between trans and queer and cis and straight people that have been really thoughtful and compassionate and complicated and truthful, like
Transparent until Tambor acted a fool, and also I'm a
cisgendered straight white man so that helps dull the urgency. That's how this works. But it does bother me that people deny there's a problem. I've done my best to support several trans students through their transitions and it's nothing short of a miracle to see them emerge from their "dead" selves into their true identities - so much confidence and light and happiness and productivity when we love who they really are. It's pretty painful to lose opportunities for them to contribute to our artform, and specifically opportunities to represent their own identities. Equality doesn't equal equity. When disadvantage is so pronounced, equality isn't functional - elevate for equity.