A Michigan high school student was criticized at a school board meeting last week for a mural she painted for a local middle school. Some of the controversial elements were the transgender flag, a hand symbol derived from a Latin American religion, and the “satanic” mask of one Genshin Impact Character.
Corresponding WZZM13, high schooler Evelyn Gonzales had to face parents at Grant Middle School over the mural she painted for the health center. The parents said the painted hand symbol was “demonic” and part of “witchcraft” (United States today describes it as the “Hamsa hand,” a religious symbol in Latin America). They also attacked the transgender flag on the mural. But you’re reading this story on a gaming website because parents criticized the mural for showing a face of “Satan.”
It’s, uh. It’s not really Satan. It’s a mask worn by Xiao, a character in Genshin Impact. Xiao is an immortal guardian who protects the Liyue nation from evil spirits. If anything, he is the anti-Satan. The mask comes from nuo opera, an ancient folk art used by performers for exorcism. The Chinese version of Xiao’s Ultimate Attack is translated as “Nuo Dance of Evil Conquering”.
While Gonzales tried to defend her mural, the parents weren’t very sympathetic. “I feel like she did a really good job finding excuses to defend the things she was attracted to,” said one of the contestants. “None of us are that stupid.” Another explained that the transgender flag is a “disease” and that adults who “pretend such things are real life” need to be “fixed” through medication and counseling. Others were concerned that the mural discriminates against the Christian faith.
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One student said they were bullied for identifying as queer and that parents “should care more about their children’s behavior than what’s on the wall.” One parent with a conservative identity was unperturbed by some of her peers’ comments, saying she had “never seen people so bigoted in my life.”
There are so many layers of shit in this situation. But I think it’s worth noting that both the Nuo mask and the Hamsa hand come from non-Western belief systems. The people who called the mural “hate material” are not only intolerant of the existence of transgender people, they are also representations of a culture that is not white. As genshin becomes even more mainstream, will be more white forced to fight back with cultural patterns and influences that will seem alien to them.
The mural was allowed to stay, with some adjustments. my box reached out to Grant Public Schools for comment, but was not receiving any at the time of publication.
“I put my art there to make people feel welcome,” Gonzales said WZZM13 in tears.
