Jason 4The African in Film
February 16th 2007 00:05
I got two books Black City Cinema by Paula J. Massood and Slaves on Screen by Natalie Zemon Davies. The interesting part is to actually see what we commonly observe in mainstream filmmaking intellectualised on an academic level: the fact that the African is still under represented or grossly misrepresented in films and media.
To be fair we can also say that almost all other races exclusive of whites have been under represented. We can even go in to the hegemonies of Anglo American, Western philosophical Eurocentric thought and identities but all those long words and high end thoughts hurt my head.
The African is an essential concept to me, not only because it is a part of my roots but also because my mainly catholic upbringing alienates almost everything inherently African. By African I mean the race, both native to the continent and those belonging to the diaspora. I say African because terms like Black and Negro represent the stripping of culture and identity from the slaves who endured the passage.
However, in Jamaica people are particularly colour conscious. Many stereotype you based on your colour. It happens everywhere, but Jamaica has an added socio-political landscape for colour identities. For some it leaves behind a bitter taste. For everyone else its just a part of everyday life. And here some call me "Indian" and "Brown Man" because of my light complexion and curly hair. Although in Trinidad I'm a "red man' I only realised recently how deep the colour thing is for Caribbean people. Some would love or hate you for that alone.
Being less "black" for me is an absurdity. but for some it is the cornerstone of their existence. This attitude turns me off because it is one of the main reasons African peoples divide among themselves. This bring me back to film and why film like Hotel Rwanda, Blood Diamond, Malcolm X, Do the Right Thing, Menace to Society and Boys in the Hood are significant not only for their obvious messages but between lines and images where African consciousness and identity constructs comes out. It all depends on how best we can question and analyse the reality of these constructs.
My Rastafarian Professor said it best today in class: "From long time the early films started depicting Egyptians as light skinned. So much so that some people cannot think of Egypt as African."
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