Satirical Web site challenges views of slavery's past

By CORY SHINDEL
Collegian Staff Writer

Void of hard facts and numerical figures, the online play Feets! Don't Fail Me Now presents American history and race relations from a rarely taught perspective -- a humorous and fictitious one.

The play, written by David Trotman, a former teacher of African-American history at the University of Washington, satirizes the institution of slavery in the 1860s to inspire discussion about the past. Trotman, who now lives and works in San Francisco, said in an e-mail he felt the need to create the work after lecturing about slavery in the classroom.

"I was never particularly interested in the antebellum (slavery) aspect of American history until, when lecturing upon the subject, I saw how my mostly African-American college students were psychologically unable to engage the topic," Trotman said.

After witnessing the pain discussions of history caused his students, Trotman developed a film script for Feets! Don't Fail Me Now. The script was later presented as a stage play before its adaptation to the World Wide Web in 1997.

The online play, which can be found at home.earthlink.net/~feets, does not present a factual depiction of history, but instead takes the form of fiction to stir its audience. With stereotypes and parodies, including the anachronistic presence of cellular phones and televisions, the play blends modern elements and historical events to encourage contemplation about race relations.

Andrea Okruch (junior-psychology), who reads frames of the online play, said the content of the work could be problematic because people react on a personal level to discussions about race. Although she said she is not offended by the Web site's content, she believed the topic was not well suited to humorous presentation.

Trotman's play is the story of Jacques, a slave who escapes from his master, the Colonel, a parody of the fried-chicken mogul, Col. Sanders. As a fugitive slave, Jacques seeks assistance to obtain freedom. He escapes to New Orleans with the help of Leo, an immigrant who runs an operation to assist slaves by chartering planes for their escape. Romance enters the plot when Jacques meets Sacheen, a Native-American waitress who helps distract the slave catchers pursuing Jacques.

Feets! Don't Fail Me Now spares no ethnic group in its social commentary. With characters named Jemima, Uncle Ben and Col. Sanders, the play uses parody to satirize race relations in the United States. Kim Feld (senior-finance) said she thought the stereotypes in the piece might offend readers.

"I don't think the comments are right. I think if I was represented like that, by a box of rice or Aunt Jemima, I would be offended," Feld said. "I do not think it is necessary to prove a point."

Though Feld said she did not enjoy the stereotypes in the play, she said humor could be useful in portraying race relations if the work were done tastefully with members of each race in mind.

By presenting history with humor, Trotman said he hopes people are educated and entertained simultaneously.

"If people find something enjoyable, then they can learn something from it," Trotman said. "If Feets! provokes a couple of late-night discussions in somebody's dorm room, then I've done my job."