This research essay was my assignment, and I can’t lie about it.So, let me give you some background information.Beginning was an entire event!During the summer, I tried to find work to pay for college, and I ended up getting a part-time job.And when I first started college, I did well because I did my work on time every month. I might have missed a few assignments for class, but that shouldn’t matter, right?Because that marked the beginning of my procrastination, it was significant.And as a result of each, a gradual decline in interest in anything college-related and an increase in late work and absences.

  However, when something unexpected happened, I awoke one morning and told myself, “There is no time for excuses; only action is required.”Professor, I went to your office to explain the circumstances surrounding everything.I’m grateful that you gave me new opportunities.

This issue of procrastination has plagued me since the first grade and continues to this day.But the problem is that I usually find a balance between school and my needs, but I think my time management skills just disappear. My disappearance occurred during quarantine for the end of my 10th and 11th grades.Now that I really think about my senior year, I really struggle, and it’s not because of a challenge in my work mindset.I was lazy, and most of my classes failed.And since I was never able to overcome my weaknesses, I just let it go.

  During the process of writing this research essay, I found that writing notes distracted me.However, I was able to persuade myself to write.However, the week the first daft was due arrived quickly.I agree to write seven pages with seven sources, despite having only two paragraphs at the time.Therefore, the day before the due date, I worked until 7:30, returned home around 8:30, and eventually fell asleep.The following day, the due date was changed, but only half was completed.I only had three pages, not seven, but you told me on that day when it was due (Monday), so I put it off once more.I just got so used to doing it that I just kept going, not because I detested the subject.However, I was fortunate enough to complete at least five pages, earning a passing grade.

   Even though writing this paper was a hell of a process, the research wasn’t all that bad.I knew I wanted to write about the media, but after some thought, I decided to write about racism, which is how the rough outline of my thesis came to be.I mostly do my research on Google. I tried the Cuny Library website, but most of the documents were too long to read, so I didn’t bother with them.And led me away to locate two articles.

  I believe my procrastination rate has decreased by 0.1% overall.My research was, in my opinion, average, but it needed more.My intention is for my paper to advance self-awareness as a message.Movies and other forms of media are conveying specific messages to us.

11/8/2022

ENG 101

Jayson Oakman 

The Cultural Impact of Colorism & Racism In Film 

Media is the most significant thing to me but specific films. I personally loved as a child the modern day and  yet through my research of the film industry is the most significant contributor to this widespread lie and suffering. For example, The film “Birth of a New Nation” is a great example of spreading hateful beliefs to others. A quote from Albert Einstein “The world is not dangerous because of those who do harm but because of those who look at it without doing anything.” So many people don’t resist hating, which is why it still exists today. How do films like “Birth of a Nation” and negative stereotypes in those types of films influence their society in the media? Yet at same time, multiple black  filmmakers and films argue the importances of their culture.   

   History is the most significant aspect of human history, and we study it for educational purposes. With the big hit “Birth of a Nation,” Hollywood and the start of the film industry are great examples. Based on the book “Adapted from the book The Clansman by Thomas Dixon Jr.” (Website:How The Birth of a Nation Revived the Ku Klux Klan of pg 1), “Birth of a Nation” depicts the rise of the Ku Klux Klan and the reactions of two families to racial conflict in the South during the Reconstruction period. Due to the US civil war and its aftermath, the film became such a catchphrase. Many southern Americans were still salty about losing the civil war, so, rather than honoring their loss, they held onto their hatred of black people and produced propaganda of all types of media, especially in the film industry. 

     The play “Birth of a Nation” was a huge hit in theaters and helped spread misconceptions about blackface, how black people should act, how white southern men are heroes, and how black people like to rape white women. First of all, the film made blackface popular because the characters who were black were just white men with face paint on. Despite the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871 banning the Klan on a federal level, the film is responsible for the second Klan surge and its popularity for the better part of the 20th century due to its portrayal of the Klan as heroes who save white women from black men. In 1924 and 1925, the number of members of the Klan grew from 6 million to 8 million. The black men in the film were also depicted as “dumb”`  and “almost animalistic,” as well as not deserving of human rights (WebiPortrayal of Blacks and Stereotypes, pg 2 and 3). The characters were largely influenced by Jim Crow, a character that emerged in the south following Reconstruction. Even if they haven’t met a single black person, most audience members are so persuaded by propaganda that they don’t even blink an eye.

     I’d like to know how you feel about the black reaction to this movie.“The NAACP was forming around the time that The Birth of a Nation came out, and they, like the rest of the black community, thought the movie was awful and glorified their oppression. In cities like New York, Boston, and Ohio, there were protests to ban the movie after it was released (Portrayal of Blacks and Stereotypes, page 5). The fact that members of the Black community gather to protect one another and to express opinions that denigrate black people. These stereotypes have persisted throughout time and space. These stereotypes are no longer used in movies in the modern era, but they are still documented, such as YouTube, which used to show old movies but has since removed them. As a result, deleting is preferable to learning from the film and realizing that it is incorrect.  

    The film industry in the 1900s was ruined by a male caucasian only through decades. While big changes are happening over the world like women’s rights, technology advances, opening of sexuality and positive outlook of black community. About the black community, there was something interesting that was happening in the early to mid 1900s of an increase of race media.  

“As African American audiences grew tired of seeing themselves portrayed in such stereotypical and racist ways, they decided to take matters into their own hands. Race movies made it a priority to combat the stereotypical roles usually made available to black actors and actresses.   Instead, they specialized in portraying black actors and actresses in a way that black viewers could actually relate to (How the Camera Sees Color paragraph 11)”. For as long as the early film industry was thriving black community had enough of all the disrespect and decided to make our own path of culture representation. 

    There was one man who stepped up to the plate and changed what a filmmaker can be, that was Oscar Mitcheaux. “Oscar Micheaux, a pioneer in the race film industry, directed and produced over 40 feature films throughout his career, gaining support from black people across the country. Race movies such as The Homesteader by Micheaux depicted African Americans in a more realistic way. Micheaux founded the Micheaux Film and Book Company in 1918, to produce films focused on African American audiences (How the Camera Sees Color paragraph 12)”. Oscar Micheaux was a man who flipped the film industry and paved a way for other black filmmakers like William Greaves, Gordon Parks, Melvin van Peebles etc. Of course this path led to presented day cinema which is way better now than before. For example many 20th century films have black actors and actresses as side or main characters or historical films about black men and women. 

   In this modern era there are three films: Get Out, The Hate U Give and Black Panther that demonstrate the issue of black community. Get Out about “A young African-American visits his white girlfriend’s parents for the weekend, where his simmering uneasiness about their reception of him eventually reaches a boiling point”(IMDb). The Hate U Give about “Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Now, facing pressure from all sides of the community, Starr must find her voice and stand up for what’s right”(IMDb). Black Panther about “T’Challa, heir to the hidden but advanced kingdom of Wakanda, must step forward to lead his people into a new future and must confront a challenger from his country’s past” (IMDb). All three these films are celebrated as each in their own film represents a type of black culture. But all of them do have in common the effects of racism on society. Each main character must learn about their past in some way or shape of form and due to misinformation that does tell them. But out of all films “The Hate U Give” , while based on a book, the movie had an even better ending than the book. So in the film Starr (main character is being attacked by antagonist, he has a gun but Starr’s father tries to stop him with his gun but Starr’s little brother takes the gun and cops roll up to stop them and everyone in the scene stops. The kid pointing their gun at the antagonist and Starr stops him by jumping in front of him and the kid puts the gun down. That whole ending summons up the issues of hatred and how the next generation takes on and keeps going until we stop. It doesn’t justify the action others take but that doesn’t mean much.    

     So, you finally arrive at the end. This whole essay I’ve asked a simple but important question: Why is it ok for other races to use the media to oppress other races for their own satisfaction?  And at same time discussed these beliefs The film shows me a way to express myself that I can’t put into words. At the same time, these filmmakers have the ability to teach viewers about life. Any film can have positive or negative messages, but how viewers interpret them is entirely up to them.