One point of clarification: are you saying that you think systemic racism only involves Blacks? Or was that just an example?
> "Black people are overwhelmingly more likely to be portrayed as criminals and thugs and gangsters in the films and on TV. "
Gotcha.
I wonder how quantitatively true that is in recent films and TV? (Ie: while I accept that your example likely has been true historically, would it still be true today - to what quantitative degree would that form of systemic racism still be operative in recent films).
For example, if one were to go through Netflix or Amazon originals and catalog their films, to what degree would that still be true? It would be interesting if some academic wanted to assess this. (Although I suspect that it would likely be easier to publish if the answer was 'to a large degree'; if it was found to no longer have much weight, that might not fit The Narrative)
I think there could be questions of whether to count crime dramas set in urban areas. Would it be racist if some of the cops/detectives are Black and a good portion of the criminals are Black, or would that reflect reality in, say, Baltimore or Philly or whereever the film/TV series was set?
However, if science fiction or a films about rural life or sports or something were clearly showing Blacks overwhemingly as the bad guys or the thugs, that should definitely count. And I honestly don't know what the result would be.
"One point of clarification: are you saying that you think systemic racism only involves Blacks?"
No, definitely not. There are clear examples of systemic racism against white people and even moreso, Asian people today. But I do think that, given America's history, the people most affected by "systemic racism" are most likely to be black.
But a) I'd say the discrimination in the case of non-black people hasn't been as severe, b) impact takes time to accrue and the discrimination has obviously targeted black people for longer, and c) there are more examples of positive discrimination for white people than for black people to act as a counterbalance.
The example of this that always makes me chuckle is that affirmative action, almost universally seen as positive discrimination for black people (which indeed it is) has still benefited white women more than any other group (https://time.com/4884132/affirmative-action-civil-rights-white-women/).
As for films, yeah, it's tricky. I don't have data to support this, but if anything, I feel as if there are more films coming out at the moment that portray black people as criminals or on the fringes, because it jibes nicely with the "America is indelibly racist and life as a black person is always and everywhere a battle for survival" narrative.
Even "positive" depictions of black people being needlessly harassed by the police often show us looking angry and embattled, wearing hoodies and sagging jeans because that's just how black people dress and shouldn't be viewed as a sign of criminality by the police.
I'm still infuriated by the "gritty" reboot of the Fresh Prince of Bel Air. That took a funny, universally positive representation of black people and turned it into a violence and drug fuelled piece of oppression porn.
Thanks for your thoughts on the matter.
One point of clarification: are you saying that you think systemic racism only involves Blacks? Or was that just an example?
> "Black people are overwhelmingly more likely to be portrayed as criminals and thugs and gangsters in the films and on TV. "
Gotcha.
I wonder how quantitatively true that is in recent films and TV? (Ie: while I accept that your example likely has been true historically, would it still be true today - to what quantitative degree would that form of systemic racism still be operative in recent films).
For example, if one were to go through Netflix or Amazon originals and catalog their films, to what degree would that still be true? It would be interesting if some academic wanted to assess this. (Although I suspect that it would likely be easier to publish if the answer was 'to a large degree'; if it was found to no longer have much weight, that might not fit The Narrative)
I think there could be questions of whether to count crime dramas set in urban areas. Would it be racist if some of the cops/detectives are Black and a good portion of the criminals are Black, or would that reflect reality in, say, Baltimore or Philly or whereever the film/TV series was set?
However, if science fiction or a films about rural life or sports or something were clearly showing Blacks overwhemingly as the bad guys or the thugs, that should definitely count. And I honestly don't know what the result would be.
"One point of clarification: are you saying that you think systemic racism only involves Blacks?"
No, definitely not. There are clear examples of systemic racism against white people and even moreso, Asian people today. But I do think that, given America's history, the people most affected by "systemic racism" are most likely to be black.
But a) I'd say the discrimination in the case of non-black people hasn't been as severe, b) impact takes time to accrue and the discrimination has obviously targeted black people for longer, and c) there are more examples of positive discrimination for white people than for black people to act as a counterbalance.
The example of this that always makes me chuckle is that affirmative action, almost universally seen as positive discrimination for black people (which indeed it is) has still benefited white women more than any other group (https://time.com/4884132/affirmative-action-civil-rights-white-women/).
As for films, yeah, it's tricky. I don't have data to support this, but if anything, I feel as if there are more films coming out at the moment that portray black people as criminals or on the fringes, because it jibes nicely with the "America is indelibly racist and life as a black person is always and everywhere a battle for survival" narrative.
Even "positive" depictions of black people being needlessly harassed by the police often show us looking angry and embattled, wearing hoodies and sagging jeans because that's just how black people dress and shouldn't be viewed as a sign of criminality by the police.
I'm still infuriated by the "gritty" reboot of the Fresh Prince of Bel Air. That took a funny, universally positive representation of black people and turned it into a violence and drug fuelled piece of oppression porn.