Social Issues

Hoist the Colors High

March 9, 2012

In recent months, I read an article by James Schafer and Kate Franklin of Parliament & Wake, entitled “Why Steampunk Still Matters.” Following an unrelated article I had written being picked up on the community Facebook page they co-administrate with others, Mr Schafer invited me to offer my thoughts on what he had to say. Meanwhile, other ideas for stories on related topics were being discussed between myself and the boss, Dr Fantastique. While the two seemed to dovetail nicely, it has taken me a while to decide exactly what kind of statement I would choose to make, because...

Keeping history relevant: Some thoughts for prospective contributors

January 13, 2012

By AJ Sikes

January 11th, 2012 marked the 77th anniversary of Amelia Earhart’s flight from Honolulu to Oakland, the first flight across the Pacific made by a woman. This and other “firsts” by Earhart, more than her disappearance in 1937, make hers a story of considerable interest to the Steampunk community. Among our goals at Doctor Fantastique’s Show of Wonders is the promotion of good efforts and action by all members of society. By ‘good’ I refer to contributions, inventions, explorations and discoveries that aim to benefit the whole of humanity. Be it through the design of a new tool to make...

“Social Justice begins at home”

January 6, 2012

By AJ Sikes

Perhaps no truer words have been uttered in the course of America’s history. What many may find surprising is that the quote taken as the title here is from none other than James Couzens, Treasurer of the Ford Motor Company in 1914. Certainly the era of the utterance held much in the way of promised social change, though how much of that change we might consider “good” is up to question. The work of the Suffragettes was still to be done, and on this it is clear that good change was the order of the day. Likewise we may...

Steampunks Around the World, Unite: Multiculturalism in Steampunk

August 8, 2010

By Ay-leen the Peacemaker

Steampunks Around the World, Unite: Multiculturalism in Steampunk

Part 1 Multiculturalism: One compass, many directions When one thinks of the words “steampunk” and “multicultural,” there’s a moment of head-scratching. Since steampunk has existed as an aesthetic style, first identified as a form of British Victorian aesthetic expression, the word conjures up images of stuffy, pale-skinned aristocrats donning goggles on their top hats while flying about in their dirigibles. “Multicultural” sounds too modern, too varied, too irrelevant to associate itself with the likes of what is steampunk, standards that are quickly-becoming formalized as the subculture becomes exposed to the mainstream and examples of the subgenre’s style become more...

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Social Issues

Hoist the Colors High

Keeping history relevant: Some thoughts for prospective contributors

“Social Justice begins at home”

Steampunks Around the World, Unite: Multiculturalism in Steampunk

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