Ethnic Studies Journal # 4: Ethnic Notions & Obama Waffles
I suffered a melange of mixed feelings after seeing the film, but even more so after seeing the short clip about the "Obama waffles." I had studied the Jim Crowe laws in high school, but I learned more about how it came about and why, but I had never learned that Jim Crowe was actually a character along with Sambo, Pickininnie, Happy Sam and the Black Nanny.
My family and I have always enjoyed watching older films, the black and white classics, old musicals. But it always disturbed me, because in those films I saw how blacks, Native Americans, Chicano, Latina, Asians, etc were portrayed. It always bothered me. It bothered me how most ethnic groups weren't even there. But, it bothered me when I saw blacks and Native Americans portrayed in movies starring the Marx Brothers or cowboy westerns. I cringed when I saw movies like, "Cat Ballou" or "A Day At the Races." There was a scene in which "A Day at the Races" had a whole community of Happy Sams and Dancing Sambos, positively impoverished and searched by the police, but happily acted as victims or indulged in dancing. The scene concluded with the Marx brothers in black face. Our living room was very quiet.
"Cat Ballou" just made me furious. The leading woman played by Jane Fonda was obviously more romantically fit for her Indian co-star, portrayed by Tom Nardini, but she ended up with the lustful white male lead instead. The director actually stated that this was an intention and done purposely, because he wanted the audiences to see that Tom Nardini's character, Jackson Two Bears was the better man, but because of his color, he could not be with her, because that was "not how things were done back then."
I see little changes in the modern world. I look at shows, even shows that I enjoy like "FRIENDS" or the extreme TV shows like "Gossip Girl" and "90210." Completely white. I think about the Black Barbie theory I read for English and coupled with the "Ethnic Notions" films, I am beginning to see that our society is color coded and although the days of segregation are over, it still lingers. Blacks with blacks. Whites with whites. Asians with Asians. Latinos with Latinos. Occasionally there is some mixed couples, but it tends to be females of color with a white male lead. Sometimes, sometimes vice versa, but rarely.
Is it because women of color are considered exotic? We're exotic or promiscuous? Or both? Or are just easy? Whatever it is, I notice the trends in films. I was really surprised that how sexless the Black Nanny was made, despite the explanation that it was to make blacks seems backwards: men couldn't stand up to their women. I found that interesting, because the film I am reviewing for my essay, "The Slanted Screen" is about how media and society desexed the Asian male. After some more thought, I can understand why black females were made to be unappealing in caricatures, because it was a sort of "cover up" for white males who were sexually pursuing black females. If that makes any sense at all.
I was greatly disturbed by seeing the cartoon characters of horribly dis-proportioned buck toothed, gnarled haired blacks dancing wildly, abusing their children or succumbing to their gruesome deaths whether it was falling from a fifty story building or being sawed in half. I could not even glimpse at the pictures of the lynchings. I can't look at pictures like that. It destroys me. I have always been sensitive to gore and violence, although seeing ridiculously gory films like "Underworld" have desensitized me due to the fantastical element, but the stark reality of police or mob brutality, murder is real. It is real and far too real. I cannot imagine living in such horrific times such as those. It destroys me. It really does. How could people do such monstrous things to a living person?
There were times in the video that I wanted to cry and scream, "There are people! We are people! Why is it so hard to see that they are people?" I don't understand. I don't understand people. I don't understand what makes me behave in such inhumane ways.
What I really don't understand if after all that history, we have not changed at all. I know that change takes time, but it's shameful. I feared I'd never live to see a president of color or a female president be elected, but it happened. And the Obama waffles happened. I was utterly bemused. The two men were so ignorant. Unbelievably ignorant and incredibly insensitive. It was hilarious. They had absolutely had an answer for every question the cameraman asked.
"Well, there's Aunt Jemima isn't there?"
What sort of response is that? He should take an Ethnic Studies class.
My family and I have always enjoyed watching older films, the black and white classics, old musicals. But it always disturbed me, because in those films I saw how blacks, Native Americans, Chicano, Latina, Asians, etc were portrayed. It always bothered me. It bothered me how most ethnic groups weren't even there. But, it bothered me when I saw blacks and Native Americans portrayed in movies starring the Marx Brothers or cowboy westerns. I cringed when I saw movies like, "Cat Ballou" or "A Day At the Races." There was a scene in which "A Day at the Races" had a whole community of Happy Sams and Dancing Sambos, positively impoverished and searched by the police, but happily acted as victims or indulged in dancing. The scene concluded with the Marx brothers in black face. Our living room was very quiet.
"Cat Ballou" just made me furious. The leading woman played by Jane Fonda was obviously more romantically fit for her Indian co-star, portrayed by Tom Nardini, but she ended up with the lustful white male lead instead. The director actually stated that this was an intention and done purposely, because he wanted the audiences to see that Tom Nardini's character, Jackson Two Bears was the better man, but because of his color, he could not be with her, because that was "not how things were done back then."
I see little changes in the modern world. I look at shows, even shows that I enjoy like "FRIENDS" or the extreme TV shows like "Gossip Girl" and "90210." Completely white. I think about the Black Barbie theory I read for English and coupled with the "Ethnic Notions" films, I am beginning to see that our society is color coded and although the days of segregation are over, it still lingers. Blacks with blacks. Whites with whites. Asians with Asians. Latinos with Latinos. Occasionally there is some mixed couples, but it tends to be females of color with a white male lead. Sometimes, sometimes vice versa, but rarely.
Is it because women of color are considered exotic? We're exotic or promiscuous? Or both? Or are just easy? Whatever it is, I notice the trends in films. I was really surprised that how sexless the Black Nanny was made, despite the explanation that it was to make blacks seems backwards: men couldn't stand up to their women. I found that interesting, because the film I am reviewing for my essay, "The Slanted Screen" is about how media and society desexed the Asian male. After some more thought, I can understand why black females were made to be unappealing in caricatures, because it was a sort of "cover up" for white males who were sexually pursuing black females. If that makes any sense at all.
I was greatly disturbed by seeing the cartoon characters of horribly dis-proportioned buck toothed, gnarled haired blacks dancing wildly, abusing their children or succumbing to their gruesome deaths whether it was falling from a fifty story building or being sawed in half. I could not even glimpse at the pictures of the lynchings. I can't look at pictures like that. It destroys me. I have always been sensitive to gore and violence, although seeing ridiculously gory films like "Underworld" have desensitized me due to the fantastical element, but the stark reality of police or mob brutality, murder is real. It is real and far too real. I cannot imagine living in such horrific times such as those. It destroys me. It really does. How could people do such monstrous things to a living person?
There were times in the video that I wanted to cry and scream, "There are people! We are people! Why is it so hard to see that they are people?" I don't understand. I don't understand people. I don't understand what makes me behave in such inhumane ways.
What I really don't understand if after all that history, we have not changed at all. I know that change takes time, but it's shameful. I feared I'd never live to see a president of color or a female president be elected, but it happened. And the Obama waffles happened. I was utterly bemused. The two men were so ignorant. Unbelievably ignorant and incredibly insensitive. It was hilarious. They had absolutely had an answer for every question the cameraman asked.
"Well, there's Aunt Jemima isn't there?"
What sort of response is that? He should take an Ethnic Studies class.
posted by Chinny at
4:34 PM
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