Now that we are at the end of the semester, I want to say that this class helped change my perception of the Black Power movement, but I really did not know much about it beforehand. I think part of that is because, like we talked about in class, the BPM did not result in … Continue reading Final Reflection
“As Crinkly As Yours”
A lot of my past blog posts have been about movies and plays that tried to combat stereotypes of black people, so for my final topic-less blog post, I wanted to talk about the stereotypes that the Black Power movement attempted to get rid of. Out of all the reading we did, I think Eldridge … Continue reading “As Crinkly As Yours”
Minstrelsy in the BAM
I want to look back at two of the plays we read for class and discuss the use of minstrelsy in them and how they achieve anti-racist messages. The first play I want to analyze is Amiri Baraka's Dutchman. The main conflict arises from Lula's anger at Clay for his lack of "blackness." Clay goes … Continue reading Minstrelsy in the BAM
Hi, Mom! (1970)
As Ashley Clark points out in "Be Black, Baby! An Overview of Black Power on Film," most Black Power era movies that broached the subject in a realistic way were documentaries. One of the few exceptions, however, is Brian De Palma's Hi, Mom!. It is a loose sequel to Greetings, with both movies following the … Continue reading Hi, Mom! (1970)
The Spook Who Sat by the Door (1973)
If a movie was made with a mostly black cast during the late '60s and early '70s, if often got labeled Blaxploitation. That is certainly what happened to The Spook Who Sat by the Door, a film about the first black man to join the CIA. Despite the aforementioned cast, low budget, and action genre attributed … Continue reading The Spook Who Sat by the Door (1973)
Duane Jones and Black Life on Film
During the Black Power era, Duane Jones was the lead actor in two movies. The earlier of the two was Night of the Living Dead (1968), and the latter of the two was Ganja & Hess (1973). Ganja & Hess is a Blaxploitation movie about vampires, and it directly addresses a lot of the topics … Continue reading Duane Jones and Black Life on Film
Cite Black Women – Elaine Brown
A couple of my previous blog posts have touched upon the fact that black women were often excluded from the Black Power movement if they called out the misogyny they saw, even if they fervently supported other aspects of the movement. The belittling of black women's thoughts has continued well beyond the '60s and '70s … Continue reading Cite Black Women – Elaine Brown
Spike Lee on Black Power
We started off the semester with Amiri Baraka railing against Spike Lee, claiming that he is antithetical to what Black Power stood for. To be honest, Baraka is not exactly wrong. In Lee's Clockers, the main message of the movie is that black people should stop using guns (A belief that directly contradicts the one … Continue reading Spike Lee on Black Power
That’s the Way of the World (1975)
Ongiri mentions in Spectacular Blackness that "Earth, Wind and Fire—created film scores that were as much credited with creating and enhancing the film experience as the often sparse narrative and low-budget qualities for which the films are remembered." That sentiment is certainly true for That's the Way of the World, the eponymous movie for which Earth, … Continue reading That’s the Way of the World (1975)
Afrofuturism in The Wiz (1978)
Afrofuturism aims to envision a world where black people are able to overcome the constraints society has placed on them, allowing them to move from their past without completely erasing it and onto a brighter future. The Wiz is a retelling of The Wizard of Oz with an all-black cast, and having Dorothy and her … Continue reading Afrofuturism in The Wiz (1978)
L460: The Senior Capstone Blog at IUS 