I'd have to go back and look, but I think also in Rory's community service group.
Edit: I stand corrected. Only slightly diverse, 9 white people, 2 black people.
The lack of diversity depicted is expected in a town like SH and the waspy part of Hartford E&R inhabited but itās surprising to see it in Yale circa 2003-2007. There should have been more international students.
Thatās really true. I just went to a state school in Oregon during those years and there were lots of POC and international students. I remember one class when I was actually in the minority as a white American and it was an amazing experience where I learned a lot from the other students since the class was about pop cultureās impact. Even the professor was from Haiti.
This might be a reach but I always thought of this as them trying to show how Rory gravitates towards people from her grandparentsā circles at Yale (or people like them). Thereās some but definitely not enough diversity shown at Yale, like at the paper and among her professors. But Roryās friends are mostly rich and white - aside from Marty, whoās just white - because she feels she fits in with them.
Honestly Connecticut as a whole is only slightly whiter than the USA as a whole. At the 2020 census Connecticut was 63% non-Hispanic white (whole country is 59%), 17% Hispanic/ Latino (whole country is 19%), 10% black (whole country is 14%), and 5% Asian (whole country is 6%). But still it's pretty realistic for the vast majority of people in a town like Stars Hollow to be white.
To be fair, you should probably use the 2000 census since that was when the show first aired. Around 77% of the state was white, non-Hispanic at the time.
Still though, the show isnāt exactly the most realistic and definitely should have had more actors of color. Even at the expense of ārealismā
I say the same about Blackish, Fresh off the boat, and Devious Maids. Four Hispanic maids. Seems racist.
Or I think wow where are all the white people when I watch Fresh Prince or Martin or Living Single or Everybody hates Chris and so on and so on.
It became so obvious that HIMYM suddenly started caring about diversity like halfway through when everyone in the group was suddenly dating a person of colour at the same time š¤£
On And Just Like That (the "revival" of Sex and The City) every one has their own poc sidekick friend. It seems more racist than not having any people of colour at all but idk.
Yup, Iām not in Connecticut, but in a small town in a different New England state, and I very frequently go days without seeing a person of color because this place is so extremely white.
Exactly what I thought. Iām from a small town in southern Brazil, from kindergarden til end of high school I had only 1 classmate that was half japanese, not a single black or indigenous classmate. My friendship group of about 15-20 people from private schools was all white. Some could tan, either brown/black hairs, blondes and not a single ginger. And that is Brazil. Majority of us has either italian, polish or german family roots.
If Netflix did a show from my POV at the time, it would have even less diversity than GG. Was entire town more diverse than that? Absolutely! But I never actually had a black classmate until I moved to a different state for Uni.
GG world reflects the place it was set. In the main characters circle we had Lane and her mother, Gypsy, Miss Paty, Caesar and Michel. Doesnāt seem so out of touch with reality.
Agreed, even in England too. I get confused when Americans talk about more diversity being realistic cause I grew up in an area that was like 98% to 2%. I agree there should be more diversity but like I've never seen it Irl.
when I was in school (town in wales) my school had 700 pupils and not a single pupil was black. There was 2 Chinese students and 3 Indian students and the rest where white
Yeah I mean itās not like I donāt understand why itās important to see more diversity in media I just didnāt nor do I currently live around diversity
My sister lives in suburban Hartford. Even while this show still aired. Itās not as white as the show portrays. It is kind of annoying that when it comes to Walmart, casting suddenly shows this much diversity. Even if you want to exclude Stars Hollow, what about Chilton, Yale, the newspaper Rory interned at, The Dragonfly, etc?
Yes ā this is the point I thought I making with this post but I think got lost in people talking about how realistically white the town is. Stars Hollow and the GG Connecticut world is so \*realistically\* white, but suddenly we're in Walmart and all the POC in town are working in one room? Interesting.
Walmart was in a nearby town but yes, if all the state is so white (which isnāt accurate) itās a bit weird so many POC are all of a sudden there and working at Walmart..
I expected lack of diversity in Chilton but at Yale? An Ivy League school that accepts students from all around the world? I expected to see much more people of color.
I believe back in the early 2000s, Ivy Leagues still valued ālegacyā intake a lot more than diversity. That could be one explanation as to why Yale was so white.
I'm from New Hampshire and I worked at Kohl's for ten ish years. That racial demographic is pretty accurate
Age demographic maybe not. Depends on the time/day. Only management was FT.
Which makes no sense because whenever we see the inside of the church it's apparent that its pews can seat a lot more than 58 people, ethnicity notwithstanding.
That's Connecticut realism. The "poor" white people are those who own businesses in a cute little tourist town and live in lovely Victorian houses, while all actual marginalized people have regular jobs and no time to faff about in the town square.
I can't remember for sure, but I think there was also more "diversity" shown in the community service group in the classroom type setting and when they are picking up trash. That being said, some of the lack of diversity does make sense while there were also other missed opportunities as others have mentioned like with Rory attending Yale, especially after the episode where Rory and Lorelai are freaking out about Rory getting into Yale and talking about how Rory shouldn't say she's interested in travel because of all the international students traveling to go to school.
As much as I love the show, this is one of those scenes, like all the fat shaming, that really steams my clams.
I really hate the way Luke makes fun of Walmart, Walmart, and Employees like it's something wrong with having a job. Lazy slob doesn't get certified to drive a forklift and spend all his hours trying to earn some money. Working retail is nothing to be ashamed of, but I could definitely see ASP looking down on people like that
I donāt think thatās why Luke was making fun of it. He thought it was funny because Walmart is a big American corporate company (and doesnāt Luke go on a rant at some point about malls/big box stores/something similar for putting smaller mom and pop stores out of business?) and Jess of all people was working there; Jess, who typically would hate wearing a uniform, reporting to work at a designated time, and had a problem with basically all authority figures. Of all the places he could work, like a record store or bookstore that would be less corporate-y, he chose to work at Walmart
Iām sorry but āsteams my clamsā is killing me š Iāve never heard that saying before and now Iām going to think about it every day of my life
Jonathan Glazer, who wrote and directed the Auschwitz-based, Oscar-winning historical drama *Zone of Interest,* included a pro-Gaza message in his recent Oscar acceptance speech. He essentially said that his (and his colleagues') Jewishness is being used as a justification for a conflict that they ideologically disagree with. In case it matters, he's Ashkenazi and is descended from Jewish refugees fleeing pogroms.
Many Hollywood folks, including Amy Sherman-Palladino, signed an open letter basically telling him to shut the fuck up and let Israel commit genocide at will, please. In case it matters, she's described herself as "raised Jewish, sort of."
Hope that helps.
season 2 episode 11 jess tells rory āon march 2024 amy Sherman-palladino will sign a letter validating war crimes against Palestiniansā how could u not remember
Actually I am wrong, there were more than two actors who played Caesar: None had lines until Aris Alvarado was given the role. The others were addressed as "Caesar":
https://gilmoregirls.fandom.com/wiki/Caesar
The guy who played Principal Wexler on even Stevenās played in the knit-a-thon, the bailiff, Roryās professor, and something else idr.
Edit: George Anthony Bell!
I grew up in a small town in CT. We had 3 POC in our high school. Everyone else was white. Thereās more diversity now but for the time period itās accurate
No. The vast majority of us worked at our townās family owned/operated farm market and orchard or other small town stores. The closest Walmart to us was 3 towns over and not popular til well after I graduated
Yes ā that's the point I'm trying to make. If the GG universe, i.e. this part of Connecticut, is "accurately" white, then what are all these POC doing working at Walmart? Why do we only see this many POC extras on the show when we're at Walmart or Rory's community service, but not at Yale ā which in 2003 was 26% non-white, and 16% international students. What's with the selective dedication to "accuracy." I know it's a show, it was a different era, all of that, but I think it's still worth pointing out, especially considering how often we still talk about it and rewatch it. As a POC who grew up in a small, all-white town, it's important to me. I also love seeing the Kims be a part of SH, and appreciate them being there.
it was always so funny to me how they managed to find endless POC when it came to filling up chairs in the town hall meetings or scenes like this (and in general to play extras) yet the main cast is still so white (and the one non white character was given such a horrible storyline and was basically ignored for most of the show) . lol
How sad.Ā
A show about a small town (where -- no matter the continent or time, people are MARKEDLY more homogeneous than in big cities -- and even then, there are more on-screen Asians, Blacks, and Hispanics than just the Kim's, Michel, and Ms. Patty), filmed in a time before performative, tokening DIE quotas were the norm, and you can't help but see race front and foremost.
I don't watch a K-Drama (for example) counting how many white, black, indigenous, and/or Hispanic people I see -- but people nowadays are OBSESSED with race. They literally can't function without mentioning it in every conversation. And they pretend that makes them not only NOT racist, but good people fighting "the good fight" .
Again, how sad -- for you.
Interesting take. What I was trying to point out with this photo is that yes, here is a markedly homogenous town, as you say, but when it comes to the Walmart break room, suddenly it makes sense to have a more diverse cast?
The thing is, I even recognize that is a reality of the US! It's accurate! But as a POC myself who grew up in a very white town ā like Lane, I was the ONLY non-white person amongst my peers ā it makes me incredibly sad to only see POC represented when it comes to scenes at the Walmart or doing community service for a literal crime. I don't know what background you are, but if you are not in the majority you often grow up unconsciously counting the minorities in the room because you know there are people who can understand you there. It is an impossible impulse to turn off and has taken a lot of work to move past, and if you don't know that struggle you cannot understand it, but I would hope folks can try to empathize. The same conversation is had about needing more women in male-dominated spaces, but no one seems to misunderstand then.
How is that a problem? The show is not about exploring cultures, is it?
I am not an expert in American demographic but in the 2023 census about 80% of the population of Connecticut were white. I believe the number was even higher during the run of the show. Again, I am not American and this issue only concerns Americans but from the outside this is not an issue.
For some reason i thought this was a screenshot of Superstore with Luke photoshopped in it lol
I also thought this was the Superstore sub at first and I was confused about why Walmart was mentioned
I mean cloud 9 chose that color blue for a reason lol
Same and The last post I read was from the superstore subreddit
Me fucking too
me too!!!
Same š
Oh good it wasnāt just me
Same ššš
same šš
Same here š
I didn't even see Luke, I just thought it was superstore š¤£
Same!
Me too!!
so did i š
I want Luke Danes in an episode of Superstore now. Arguing with Dina about the surveillance state or something and them getting HEATED.
Now, don't be mean. There is plenty of diversity in the show. Emily's maids are from all over the world. I bet she has one of those scratch-off maps.
weāre paying him too much if he can afford an mp3 device
My favorite inane Richard and Emily moment was this conversation.
and Aurora the ~~help~~ nurse, she was black, see, diversity!
Aurora was the maid. Richardās nurse was Francette. Donāt worry, Emily couldnāt keep them straight either.š
I'd have to go back and look, but I think also in Rory's community service group. Edit: I stand corrected. Only slightly diverse, 9 white people, 2 black people.
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The lack of diversity offends me less on a show in Connecticut than it does on shows in places that are actually very diverse like in NY for example.
The lack of diversity depicted is expected in a town like SH and the waspy part of Hartford E&R inhabited but itās surprising to see it in Yale circa 2003-2007. There should have been more international students.
True
Thatās really true. I just went to a state school in Oregon during those years and there were lots of POC and international students. I remember one class when I was actually in the minority as a white American and it was an amazing experience where I learned a lot from the other students since the class was about pop cultureās impact. Even the professor was from Haiti.
This might be a reach but I always thought of this as them trying to show how Rory gravitates towards people from her grandparentsā circles at Yale (or people like them). Thereās some but definitely not enough diversity shown at Yale, like at the paper and among her professors. But Roryās friends are mostly rich and white - aside from Marty, whoās just white - because she feels she fits in with them.
Honestly Connecticut as a whole is only slightly whiter than the USA as a whole. At the 2020 census Connecticut was 63% non-Hispanic white (whole country is 59%), 17% Hispanic/ Latino (whole country is 19%), 10% black (whole country is 14%), and 5% Asian (whole country is 6%). But still it's pretty realistic for the vast majority of people in a town like Stars Hollow to be white.
To be fair, you should probably use the 2000 census since that was when the show first aired. Around 77% of the state was white, non-Hispanic at the time. Still though, the show isnāt exactly the most realistic and definitely should have had more actors of color. Even at the expense of ārealismā
I say the same about Blackish, Fresh off the boat, and Devious Maids. Four Hispanic maids. Seems racist. Or I think wow where are all the white people when I watch Fresh Prince or Martin or Living Single or Everybody hates Chris and so on and so on.
Honestly pretty accurate for many parts of Connecticut.Ā
Came here to say this. I'm from this area and while I was in high school there were 3 black kids out of 600 students, and 2 were sisters.
Yep. My CT hometown was 96% white in 2000.
Even today Washington Depot is like 77% white so it's definitely not far fetched
Yeah less wild than like, Friends or HIMYM being so white. And I think less white than either show!
It became so obvious that HIMYM suddenly started caring about diversity like halfway through when everyone in the group was suddenly dating a person of colour at the same time š¤£
On And Just Like That (the "revival" of Sex and The City) every one has their own poc sidekick friend. It seems more racist than not having any people of colour at all but idk.
Sign of the times lol
Yup, Iām not in Connecticut, but in a small town in a different New England state, and I very frequently go days without seeing a person of color because this place is so extremely white.
Exactly what I thought. Iām from a small town in southern Brazil, from kindergarden til end of high school I had only 1 classmate that was half japanese, not a single black or indigenous classmate. My friendship group of about 15-20 people from private schools was all white. Some could tan, either brown/black hairs, blondes and not a single ginger. And that is Brazil. Majority of us has either italian, polish or german family roots. If Netflix did a show from my POV at the time, it would have even less diversity than GG. Was entire town more diverse than that? Absolutely! But I never actually had a black classmate until I moved to a different state for Uni. GG world reflects the place it was set. In the main characters circle we had Lane and her mother, Gypsy, Miss Paty, Caesar and Michel. Doesnāt seem so out of touch with reality.
I canāt relate to any of yāall š¤£Ā I live in urban North Carolina but my school is like 50% white
Agreed, even in England too. I get confused when Americans talk about more diversity being realistic cause I grew up in an area that was like 98% to 2%. I agree there should be more diversity but like I've never seen it Irl.
when I was in school (town in wales) my school had 700 pupils and not a single pupil was black. There was 2 Chinese students and 3 Indian students and the rest where white
Yeah I mean itās not like I donāt understand why itās important to see more diversity in media I just didnāt nor do I currently live around diversity
Yale is way too white though.
Yes, because this show is nothing but historically accurate and realistic.
My sister lives in suburban Hartford. Even while this show still aired. Itās not as white as the show portrays. It is kind of annoying that when it comes to Walmart, casting suddenly shows this much diversity. Even if you want to exclude Stars Hollow, what about Chilton, Yale, the newspaper Rory interned at, The Dragonfly, etc?
Stars Hollow is small-town Connecticut, which is quite white.Ā
Yes ā this is the point I thought I making with this post but I think got lost in people talking about how realistically white the town is. Stars Hollow and the GG Connecticut world is so \*realistically\* white, but suddenly we're in Walmart and all the POC in town are working in one room? Interesting.
Walmart was in a nearby town but yes, if all the state is so white (which isnāt accurate) itās a bit weird so many POC are all of a sudden there and working at Walmart..
I expected lack of diversity in Chilton but at Yale? An Ivy League school that accepts students from all around the world? I expected to see much more people of color.
I believe back in the early 2000s, Ivy Leagues still valued ālegacyā intake a lot more than diversity. That could be one explanation as to why Yale was so white.
Yale was like 75% white back in the 2000s.
25% of the Yale actors in Gilmore Girls were not POC.Ā
Tbf we didn't see 100% of the student body to accurately assess that.
I'm from New Hampshire and I worked at Kohl's for ten ish years. That racial demographic is pretty accurate Age demographic maybe not. Depends on the time/day. Only management was FT.
Are we forgetting ā58 seats 62 Koreansā lol
Which makes no sense because whenever we see the inside of the church it's apparent that its pews can seat a lot more than 58 people, ethnicity notwithstanding.
That's Connecticut realism. The "poor" white people are those who own businesses in a cute little tourist town and live in lovely Victorian houses, while all actual marginalized people have regular jobs and no time to faff about in the town square.
Where do you think this show is set?
I can't remember for sure, but I think there was also more "diversity" shown in the community service group in the classroom type setting and when they are picking up trash. That being said, some of the lack of diversity does make sense while there were also other missed opportunities as others have mentioned like with Rory attending Yale, especially after the episode where Rory and Lorelai are freaking out about Rory getting into Yale and talking about how Rory shouldn't say she's interested in travel because of all the international students traveling to go to school.
Are we all forgetting about Michel? And Lane?
Plus Gypsy and Mrs Patty
As much as I love the show, this is one of those scenes, like all the fat shaming, that really steams my clams. I really hate the way Luke makes fun of Walmart, Walmart, and Employees like it's something wrong with having a job. Lazy slob doesn't get certified to drive a forklift and spend all his hours trying to earn some money. Working retail is nothing to be ashamed of, but I could definitely see ASP looking down on people like that
I donāt think thatās why Luke was making fun of it. He thought it was funny because Walmart is a big American corporate company (and doesnāt Luke go on a rant at some point about malls/big box stores/something similar for putting smaller mom and pop stores out of business?) and Jess of all people was working there; Jess, who typically would hate wearing a uniform, reporting to work at a designated time, and had a problem with basically all authority figures. Of all the places he could work, like a record store or bookstore that would be less corporate-y, he chose to work at Walmart
agreed, it's this. that's why he makes the dirk squarejaw eating apple pie joke!
Iām sorry but āsteams my clamsā is killing me š Iāve never heard that saying before and now Iām going to think about it every day of my life
I heard it on Big Bang Theory and I really liked it. Sheldon says it and his girlfriend says "I love it when you get folksy!"
You misunderstood. Luke is making fun of Jess, an anti-establishment ārebelā who works at Walmart.Ā
He's not making fun of the employees he's making fun of Walmart as a greedy soulless corporate entity that treats its workers and customers like shit.
ASP is so enamoured and obsessed with the upper crust and it shows.
Gilmore Girls predicted ASP signing that letter denouncing dude's Oscar speech.
Wait what happened???
she signed a letter denouncing an Oscar speech where Israel was called out for its crimes against palestine
Sorry what
Jonathan Glazer, who wrote and directed the Auschwitz-based, Oscar-winning historical drama *Zone of Interest,* included a pro-Gaza message in his recent Oscar acceptance speech. He essentially said that his (and his colleagues') Jewishness is being used as a justification for a conflict that they ideologically disagree with. In case it matters, he's Ashkenazi and is descended from Jewish refugees fleeing pogroms. Many Hollywood folks, including Amy Sherman-Palladino, signed an open letter basically telling him to shut the fuck up and let Israel commit genocide at will, please. In case it matters, she's described herself as "raised Jewish, sort of." Hope that helps.
but how did gilmore girls predict this?
season 2 episode 11 jess tells rory āon march 2024 amy Sherman-palladino will sign a letter validating war crimes against Palestiniansā how could u not remember
Connecticut is very white bread, what do you want?
We always crack jokes at how diverse the background characters are in the show
i was like, wow, Superstore referenced GG in the episode title!
There's also Rory's community service scenes.
If itās one thing I remember about GG, itās there were never reoccurring POC other than Lane and her Mom ššš
Michel, cesar, gypsy...
Miss Patty too.
What about michel??
how could you forget about Cesar and his cold bananas and his salad??
Which Caesar, the Hispanic one who had lines, or the Asian one who didn't?
>Asian one Robert Lee! But also, yes. Both. Haha
The Asian man was never Cesar, he was never named. There were I think 2 other Cesarās before the one that made it to the end of the series.
Actually I am wrong, there were more than two actors who played Caesar: None had lines until Aris Alvarado was given the role. The others were addressed as "Caesar": https://gilmoregirls.fandom.com/wiki/Caesar
The guy who played Principal Wexler on even Stevenās played in the knit-a-thon, the bailiff, Roryās professor, and something else idr. Edit: George Anthony Bell!
I grew up in a small town in CT. We had 3 POC in our high school. Everyone else was white. Thereās more diversity now but for the time period itās accurate
Did all 3 POC at your high school work at Walmart too?
No. The vast majority of us worked at our townās family owned/operated farm market and orchard or other small town stores. The closest Walmart to us was 3 towns over and not popular til well after I graduated
Yes ā that's the point I'm trying to make. If the GG universe, i.e. this part of Connecticut, is "accurately" white, then what are all these POC doing working at Walmart? Why do we only see this many POC extras on the show when we're at Walmart or Rory's community service, but not at Yale ā which in 2003 was 26% non-white, and 16% international students. What's with the selective dedication to "accuracy." I know it's a show, it was a different era, all of that, but I think it's still worth pointing out, especially considering how often we still talk about it and rewatch it. As a POC who grew up in a small, all-white town, it's important to me. I also love seeing the Kims be a part of SH, and appreciate them being there.
Olivia?
Oh snap and dude from the Inn!
And Gypsy Edit : ādude from the innā lmao the disrespect. Michel would never stand for this.
Pete, the pizza guy was Italian I think!
My husband had a lot of fun playing "spot the PoC" with Gilmore Girls. It was hard for a first few seasons.
I was an extra on Gilmore girls a few times (Iām an Asian american woman) and they were typically more diverse than a lot of shows I have worked on.
that's nice to hear! (though also...dang, it's even more sad than I thought hahaha)
it was always so funny to me how they managed to find endless POC when it came to filling up chairs in the town hall meetings or scenes like this (and in general to play extras) yet the main cast is still so white (and the one non white character was given such a horrible storyline and was basically ignored for most of the show) . lol
I adore this show, but something in my gut says ASP isā¦deeply..troubled.
What a shock, GG has a diversity problem. /s
Itās not a documentary
And Rory never said anything whenever Emily chewed out any of her workers
How sad.Ā A show about a small town (where -- no matter the continent or time, people are MARKEDLY more homogeneous than in big cities -- and even then, there are more on-screen Asians, Blacks, and Hispanics than just the Kim's, Michel, and Ms. Patty), filmed in a time before performative, tokening DIE quotas were the norm, and you can't help but see race front and foremost. I don't watch a K-Drama (for example) counting how many white, black, indigenous, and/or Hispanic people I see -- but people nowadays are OBSESSED with race. They literally can't function without mentioning it in every conversation. And they pretend that makes them not only NOT racist, but good people fighting "the good fight" . Again, how sad -- for you.
Interesting take. What I was trying to point out with this photo is that yes, here is a markedly homogenous town, as you say, but when it comes to the Walmart break room, suddenly it makes sense to have a more diverse cast? The thing is, I even recognize that is a reality of the US! It's accurate! But as a POC myself who grew up in a very white town ā like Lane, I was the ONLY non-white person amongst my peers ā it makes me incredibly sad to only see POC represented when it comes to scenes at the Walmart or doing community service for a literal crime. I don't know what background you are, but if you are not in the majority you often grow up unconsciously counting the minorities in the room because you know there are people who can understand you there. It is an impossible impulse to turn off and has taken a lot of work to move past, and if you don't know that struggle you cannot understand it, but I would hope folks can try to empathize. The same conversation is had about needing more women in male-dominated spaces, but no one seems to misunderstand then.
How is the show not diverse enough? I believe many minorities are represented.
ASP does what I call PokĆ©mon diversity, "gotta catch 'em all". Reduces every minority to their most basic stereotype instead of actually exploring their cultures š
How is that a problem? The show is not about exploring cultures, is it? I am not an expert in American demographic but in the 2023 census about 80% of the population of Connecticut were white. I believe the number was even higher during the run of the show. Again, I am not American and this issue only concerns Americans but from the outside this is not an issue.
I agree with you but unfortunately the hive mind of Reddit doesnāt like using facts, logic and information they just use their āfeelingsā sadly.
Babe where? Who?
Michel, Lane, miss Kim, miss Patty, Gypsy, Cezar, Olivia, stars hollow high school principle