What was supposed to be a celebration of all thing Star Wars this past weekend has turned into a bitter reminder of the close-minded, ignorant way of thinking that still exists out there. Thousands of fans came together to enjoy all things Far Far Away in Anaheim, California for the annual Star Wars Celebration convention. Those who where unable to attend celebrated by watching the all-new Disney+ exclusive series, Obi-Wan Kenobi. Here we meet the villainous Inquisitor Reva, played by Moses Ingram. Her character is obsessed with catching Obi-Wan Kenobi and this has even caused friction with her fellow Inquisitors. No doubt she will be trouble for a now “Ben”, who is doing his best to stay hidden and keep an eye on a young Luke.

Most Star Wars fans have welcomed Obi-Wan Kenobi with open arms. But there are those who have decided to spoil a generally positive mood. Since the release of the series, Ingram has been subject of several hundreds of racist messages on social media. Via her Instagram she shared a variety of them on her story. These include uses of hateful names and claims that she was nothing more than a diversity hire. After sharing these messages Ingram goes on to say that really there is nothing anyone can do to stop the hate. But that she decided to take a stand in order to show her appreciation for those that were able to stand up for her in places that she cannot.

ALSO SEE: OBI-WAN KENOBI EPISODES 1&2 REVIEW – THANKFULLY SUBTLE AND POWERFUL | NO SPOILERS

“I really just wanted to come on, I think, and say thank you to the people who show up in the comments and the places that I’m not going to put myself. And to the rest of y’all… y’all weird.” Said Ingram.

Star Wars also responded to the hateful comments towards Ingram in a Tweet where they stated, “We are proud to welcome Moses Ingram to the Star Wars family and excited for Reva’s story to unfold. If anyone intends to make her feel in any way unwelcome, we have only one thing to say: we resist.” Then finshed off by saying, “There are more than 20 million sentient speices in the Star Wars galaxy, don’t choose to be a racist.”

There are more than 20 million sentient species in the Star Wars galaxy, don’t choose to be a racist.

— Star Wars (@starwars) May 31, 2022

The sad thing about this situation is that it was something that Disney and Ingram were both very aware of before the release of Obi-Wan Kenobi. She had been warned about the possible harassment that would happen by these so-called fans.  During an interview with The Independant, Ingram said that, “It was something that Lucasfilm actually got in front of, and said, ‘This is a thing that, unfortunately, likely will happen. But we are here to help you; you can let us know when it happens.’”

It’s very sad that in 2022 this is still such a topic of discussion. Racism has no place in anyone’s life. Especially in a franchise that celebrates the differences of a varity of speices and characters across the galaxy. These few are a mis-representation of a fandom that is generally very accepting. They just love everying about the lore that had been created by George Lucas. It’s ok not to like a character. It’s even ok not to like an actor/actress. But it’s never ok to attack a human being with racist remarks, as people we are better than that.

You can enjoy Star Wars’ Obi-Wan Kenobi exclusively on Disney+.