Let’s talk about my view of racism in cinema. I watched a lot of TV and movies in my childhood. I used to be amazed by those historic or fictional characters we see on the big screen. But, I was always disappointed on how black characters were portrayed on film. The main reason was because the majority of them were depicted as robbers, servants, slaves, criminals or drug dealers. Black people always dying first in horror movies. It may be a joke for some but it reflects a reality of racism. It’s only when I started watching American TV shows that things were getting better. Shows like The Cosby Show, A Different World and Family Matters inspired me because stereotypes weren’t the focus anymore. It made me understand that cinema can affect your thoughts and behaviors. Like it or not, movies do influence society. Racism in movies will influence the opinion of people who never interacts with other minorities.
I understood that the majority of mainstream films are made by middle-age white males. So it’s obvious they won’t think of representing minorities. It hurts me to realize that we have to protest just for the purpose of gaining respect. We live in a multicultural society and it is important to demonstrate this reality in our films. Movies are not just the mirror of our lives but a tool to show our point of view. It should inspire growth with role models and heroes no matter what the color of their skin. I was so amazed when Blade came out in 1998 because it was the first black superhero that was well-made. There was Spawn in 1997 with Michael Jai White but the quality wasn’t there. If Blade was a game changer for me then, it explains why Black Panther worked so well. It was so refreshing to see an all-black cast in a superhero movie. The movie embraces proudly the African roots of the comic book character. I know what you are thinking, it’s all about money. Giving what the people want on the big screen. MCU didn’t expect to make a billion dollars with this film. They even released it in February which is usually for movies that won’t expect big money. Most white people don’t watch black movies so it was considered a risk for cinema theaters to have them.
Where I live, a lot of cinema theaters won’t play black leading movies unless it’s Denzel Washington, Samuel L. Jackson or Will Smith. I may be exaggerating a bit but you get the point. It has to be a well known black actor just to get a chance. BlacKKKlansman from Spike Lee is a great movie but I had to go far just to see it because only one theater was playing it, an Oscar nominated movie…
What I’m trying to say is that Hollywood as a responsibility to rectify their past mistakes. They allowed so much hate in movies they cannot deny it by removing or hiding stuff from the public. Those depictions will never be forgotten. Diversity is important and it is time for us to open our eyes. Cinema needs to evolve and become better mirrors of this world.
