My head is spinning, catching up on this thread. I haven't read much SF/F in a gazillion years, so I can't comment on the trends or characters.
I also haven't been around AW enough to know who's male, let alone who's white, so I'm definitely not going there.
I can say that in romance, there has to be more to the plot/story than the romance. The too stupid to live heroine is not a character that attracts a positive response from anyone anymore. External and internal conflicts have to have more to them, and the goal is resolving those conflicts >>>only then clearing the way for the HEA. Is the concept of HEA a worthy debate unto itself in today's world? Sure it is, but for now, there are a lot of women out there who believe in the possibility, or plain old enjoy the fantasy.
For myself, my soapbox is women who tear down other women, are intolerant of different choices, and look at others as "less than" for choosing traditional/nontraditional roles, having children/not having children, single/married, etc. IMO, it grows from the same weed patch of writers who put down other writers for genre fiction...or literary fiction...or anime...
An awesome female character? Miss Rumphius, by Barbara Cooney.