Act Four: Roxane Gay reminds artists that they have political power and shouldn't be afraid to use it

The best-selling author has pulled a forthcoming book to protest a contract for a right-wing provocateur.   Alyssa Rosenberg on culture and politics   (Grove Atlantic) On Wednesday, Buzzfeed broke the news that Roxane Gay has withdrawn a book from Simon & Schuster’s TED Books imprint in protest of the contract another Simon & Schuster imprint awarded to the alt-right provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos. Gay, as she’s noted, is fortunate enough to be in a position to do this. Simon & Schuster isn’t her main publisher: Grove Atlantic published her novel “An Untamed State” and her recent short story collection “Difficult Women,” while Harper Collins was her publisher for the essay collection “Bad Feminist” and will release her forthcoming memoir “Hunger.” But that’s actually the point. Gay has served a valuable reminder that artists who are in demand have power and that they can use their contracts to make valuable points and set important precedents. Imagine what would happen if the actresses who are the biggest pull at the box office wrote guarantees of pay equity into their contracts, or if they had their agents negotiate policies and procedures for handling allegations of sexual harassment that would benefit not just them, but everyone working on-set. Imagine what would happen if men who were starring in and directing movies and television shows did this, insisting that they would take financial hits in the name of equity? Gestures like this put a financial price on political values and guarantees of decency. And while conviction and morality have a worth that extends beyond pecuniary concerns, it would still make a real difference if both fans and executives saw that artists were willing to lose out on chunks of their salary or even entire professional opportunities to stand up for them. It would be a lot harder for Hollywood executives to ignore the serious allegations of sexual misconduct against Casey Affleck if they knew that such behavior might put the producers in breach of contract with one of his co-stars. Not everyone who is trying to publish their first book or sell their first novel can make this sort of gesture. But Gay can, and she has reminded other artists that they still have cards to play. ADVERTISEMENT   Yes, even an ‘Archie’ television show has to be gritty now The CW's "Riverdale" isn't as weird, or emotionally apt, as it ought to be. By Alyssa Rosenberg  •  Read more »   Americans need to relearn how to fight about politics. Sitcoms are ready to help. Shows such as "One Day at a Time," "black-ish," "Fresh Off the Boat" and "The Carmichael Show" remind us that we can disagree, even violently, and still love one another. By Alyssa Rosenberg  •  Read more »   Mary Tyler Moore taught us to face changing times with joy and spunk The gentle "Mary Tyler Moore Show" argued that women should both embrace new opportunities and acknowledge that it's hard to match your life to an ideal. By Alyssa Rosenberg  •  Read more »   How to celebrate Trump’s grotesque ‘National Day of Patriotic Devotion’ The administration doesn't get to define a historically unpopular president as the embodiment of "a new national pride." By Alyssa Rosenberg  •  Read more »   The Women’s March served notice that pop culture still has political power From funny signs to speeches that expanded the parameters of debate, pop culture gave protesters the language they needed to express themselves. By Alyssa Rosenberg  •  Read more »   ADVERTISEMENT   Recommended for you   Today's WorldView What's most important from where the world meets Washington, plus the day's most essential reads and interesting ideas. Sign Up »         Share Act Four:       Twitter      Facebook Trouble reading? Click here to view in your browser. You received this email because you signed up for Act Four. For additional free newsletters or to manage your newsletters, click here. We respect your privacy. If you believe that this email has been sent to you in error or you no longer wish to receive email from The Washington Post, click here. Contact us for help. ©2017 The Washington Post, 1301 K St NW, Washington DC 20071