The American Film industry, even in the 1940’s, was thought to be a progressive space full of liberal ideologies and access to diversity, but unfortunately, this was not the case for African Americans, especially pre-dating the Civil Rights Movement.“Classical Hollywood, in its role as America’s dream factory largely maintained the myth of Black inferiority while minimizing America’s long history of racial injustice.”African Americans were discriminated against in all areas of society, including films where they were underrepresented and often cast to play insignificant roles. The Civil Rights Movement was the necessary response to decades of segregation and discrimination within society. After the Movement, hard-working and talented African
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In Storm Warning (Stuart Heisler, 1951), a film about the Ku Klux Klan, the victims of the KKK”S cruelty are played by white women, incorrectly displaying who the real victims of violent white supremacy groups were. Hollywood missed a valuable opportunity to shed light on the dangers African Americans faced in American society. Also, in the film Ox Bow Incident (William A. Wellman, 1943), the main character is not played by an African American actor, he is played by a white actor, Henry Fonda, despite the subject of the film focusing on lynching. Nevertheless, Hollywood would sometimes provide necessary social commentary on the violence African Americans faced, but still lacked the knowledge to have a predominantly black cast, when the subject of the movie indicated the need for one. White actors had increasingly more opportunity within the film industry and African American actors had to work much harder to occupy similar or even lesser roles that they historically should …show more content…
The Civil Rights Movement shaped the way many Americans viewed African Americans, and it paved the way for social progress within society. African Americans sought to represent themselves within the film industry, and create accurate films, representative of their experiences. They became more dynamic actors that were highly sought after because of their talent and success. Within film, African Americans still face prejudice and disproportionate representation, but they have exponentially more opportunities after the remarkable events that transpired in the 1950’s and
In Storm Warning (Stuart Heisler, 1951), a film about the Ku Klux Klan, the victims of the KKK”S cruelty are played by white women, incorrectly displaying who the real victims of violent white supremacy groups were. Hollywood missed a valuable opportunity to shed light on the dangers African Americans faced in American society. Also, in the film Ox Bow Incident (William A. Wellman, 1943), the main character is not played by an African American actor, he is played by a white actor, Henry Fonda, despite the subject of the film focusing on lynching. Nevertheless, Hollywood would sometimes provide necessary social commentary on the violence African Americans faced, but still lacked the knowledge to have a predominantly black cast, when the subject of the movie indicated the need for one. White actors had increasingly more opportunity within the film industry and African American actors had to work much harder to occupy similar or even lesser roles that they historically should …show more content…
The Civil Rights Movement shaped the way many Americans viewed African Americans, and it paved the way for social progress within society. African Americans sought to represent themselves within the film industry, and create accurate films, representative of their experiences. They became more dynamic actors that were highly sought after because of their talent and success. Within film, African Americans still face prejudice and disproportionate representation, but they have exponentially more opportunities after the remarkable events that transpired in the 1950’s and