At first glance, one might not think Black Like Me, a book with such real issues millions of people face daily, and The Truman Show, a movie about a man being born and raised all while being filmed by thousands of cameras without his knowledge, would have a lot in common. The latter can really only be relatable to few, if any at all, where something like the racism written about in Black Like Me can resonate to millions of people world wide. After digging deeper, however, the similarities between the two start to surface and become undeniable.…
In 1962 in the city of Baltimore, Maryland, a teenager named Tracey Turnblad dreamed to be on a TV show by the name of “The Corny Collins Show”. At school, she is placed in detention due to the height of her hair and meets some of the colored stars of the monthly “Negro Day” held on The Corny Collins Show. During detention, he shows her some dance moves which she shows off at the school dance. While dancing, she caught the attention of the host of the show and he gives her a place on the show. Tracy is invited to the “Negro Day” Hosts shop and joins a protest because blacks weren’t allowed on the show accept on the monthly Negro Day. She is then set on a mission to integrate the show which she succeeds doing in the long run. Racism was a problem…
The road begins with the end of the Civil war and the ratification of the thirteenth amendment, which was a straight road ahead at full speed. Then the road gets better when crossing the Freedmen's Bureau Bridge which transitioned freedmen from jobless and in poverty to the “other side of the bridge” which had employment and education options. However, soon after there was a road block, the Black Codes. The black codes limited the rights of blacks and tried to keep them from citizenship be they found a detour with full speed ahead. This detour was the 15th amendment which protected the right to vote for blacks. Then there was a slight turn away from citizenship and a bump in the road. The bump was the Jim Crow Laws. The Jim Crow laws separated…
The most popular shows on television such as Saturday Night Live, and Jimmy Fallon on the Tonight…
One of the most popular forms of entertainment in the United States is television. Whether it's used to spread news, watch sports, or watching a sitcom, television can be used to address the many issues of the period. Television shows such as Battlestar Galactica, The Twilight Zone, The Cosby Show, and Freaks and Geeks have reflected the many societal and political issues of their time period.…
Have you ever wondered why television shows lack people of color? Many people in the television business claim that diversity is a priority but many people who watch primetime television today, it isn't. Instead of focusing on a variety of ethnics, television shows choose to only present white people as the main character, the supporting cast member and every other relevant role in the television series. Television show producers do not seem to understand that ethnic diversity is important in order to get more ethnically diverse people to get invested into the television program. Caucasians are predominant during the primetime hours of television and are usually the protagonist in any televised program they partake in.…
The analysis of Traditional, Hegemony and Black masculinity the requirement for power is absolute. Power “is not a thing, but a relation.” (michel-foucault.com). Power is created by some entity generating a condition that overpowers another individual or group. The power creation generates different types of power. Sovereign power is the obedience to the law central authority (michel-foucault.com). There is a Sovereign powers display in every visual media piece. The sovereign power displayed in visual media is suppressive to the greater good. The Birth of the Nation film created or captured the narrative that Black men are dangerous. The danger is completely linked power. The power to take is the true concern. All the Black males at one point in time wanted to take something from the central power.…
In Black Like Me, written by John Howard Griffin, Mr. Griffin, a white novelist, experiences a treacherous journey throughout the Deep South disguised as an African American. He encounters racism, discrimination, and hate from various whites, but receives affection and hospitality from other African Americans. In this essay, I am going to explain Mr. Griffin's findings in his bold exploration in the Deep South during the 1959's.…
Baldwin’s book “If Beale Street Can Talk” is about a couple named Fonny and Tish who are said to have a kid together. Fonny is in jail and Tish is trying her all to get him out with a lawyer. Tish’s parents and Fonny’s dad are consistently trying find ways to get him out of jail while his mother has a different outlook on the situation. She believes that his current predicament is all within God’s plan, and time in jail will allow him to learn his lesson. She is blindly arrogant to helping free her son as well as accept the fact that Tish, the girl that she dislikes, is going to eventually have Fonny’s kid. Mrs. Hunt is arrogant because it’s a way to cover up her unbalanced life.…
For when the Wayans Bros aired, it honestly brought African American back to the comedic aspect instead of the severity of African American life. In this show Sean an amateur actor goes to an audition for a job but he always gets high before he is about to audition. In an Ebony magazine, it quoted “white producers are the majority behind the scenes, and it seems as though they think African Americans are not good enough for prime-time networks.” They continued stating that “in 1992 nearly one out every five characters on prime-time network entertainment programs was African Americans” (Ebony Magazine, 83). Lastly in Color Adjustment it stated that one main reason why black males are not in Caucasian shows is because there is no demand for them to integrate with them, giving executives the lack of effort to make integration.…
Television network ABC Family’s breakout comedy series, Modern Family, is a show full of life lessons and hidden meanings. Most television shows nowadays are all about sex, alcohol, and the dramas that occur because of them. Modern Family is not an exception, however it focuses more on the family aspect of life’s many dramas. On the surface, it is similar to the sex and drugs filled television shows that consume the media these days, but underneath that surface each episode has a moral to be learned, and the show overall represents many different assumptions America makes on what a “typical” family is.…
Black masculinity itself is a subject that in the recent years has come under scrutiny for its portrayal of the black male as violent, aggressive and oversexualised and disregarding them as emotional fully realised individuals. Due to the influence of the media in mainstream society these representations have become negative stereotypes attributed to African American men preventing them from truly discovering their identity out of the gaze of white America. With movements such as the Black Lives Matter movement (2013) created in response to the highly publicised killings of African Americans as well as their treatment at the hands of law enforcement ;also the BBDC 'Black Boys Don’t Cry "a project designed to deconstruct the ideals of black…
The film, “White Like me” is presented by author Tim Wise. I believe Tim’s main purpose for this film is to explain how white privilege damages people of color more than society is lead to believe. Also how damaging it can be to white people as well and how racial privilege shapes the lives and outcome of most colored Americans when it comes to institutions such as education, employment, housing, criminal justice, and healthcare.…
(A sign will be hung throughout Turner Inc. that reads): DO UNTO OTHERS AS YOU WOULD HAVE THEM TO DO UNTO YOU!…
The film Friday Night Lights (2004) is based on the real-life story of the 1988 Permian Panthers football team in Odessa, Texas. The film is a more fictionalized account of the book it’s based on, written by author H.G. Bissinger and downplays the more intense issues that plagued Odessa when Bissinger followed the team during the 1988 season. (Briley 1) The film follows Coach Gary Gaines (portrayed by Billy Bob Thornton) as he coaches the Panthers in the football obsessed town. The film portrays the societal pressures put on young athletes, especially in a town where one sport seems to be the dominating past-time. All that matters is football; academics are barely even mentioned. No matter where these athletes go, they can’t escape the pressures…