Front and Center: Bill Robinson Steals the Scene
For nearly a century, Bill Robinson’s cinematic image has been equally celebrated and maligned. But even in some of the most objectionable films, the combined grace and force of his dancing resulted in profound moments of resistance. In nearly every role, he manages to subvert the racism inherent in Hollywood’s cinematic climate by way of the very talent that defined his legacy—tap.
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Feminine Power in the Iranian Countryside: The Wind Will Carry Us
Abbas Kiarostami’s The Wind Will Carry Us opens in transit, as a Tehrani film crew seeks out the remote Kurdish village of Siah Dareh. The ensuing narrative follows journalist Behzad and his colleagues as they attempt to document the villagers’ mourning rituals following the death of a prominent matriarch.
James Baldwin on Loving Your Enemies in The Fire Next Time
Consisting of two letters, James Baldwin’s The Fire Next Time identifies a stark divide between the Church’s theology and its practices. Love and what it means to love others are critical questions for Baldwin; they are directly linked to his fractious relationship to God and the Church, and his equally complicated relationship to white Americans.
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Deaf Culture in Hollywood: American Sign Language on Screen
Prior to 1965, the term “Deaf culture” was primarily recognized within Deaf communities. The hearing world viewed deafness simply as the condition of hearing loss, and wondered how a group who did not claim particular geographical space, religion, literature, or cuisine could be called “cultural.”
Satirical Sitcom: Till Death Us Do Part and All in the Family
Johnny Speight’s Till Death Us Do Part (BBC, 1965–1975) and Norman Lear’s American remake, All in the Family (CBS, 1970–1979) introduced two of the first antiheroes in television. Ratings soared on both sides of the Atlantic, but the shows were also met with considerable criticism for their possible contribution towards, and justification of prevalent racist attitudes.
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Beauty Redefined: Black Women in Civil Rights Photography
As one of the most powerful mediums during the height of the Civil Rights Movement, photography featuring Black women often probed the effects of Black beauty on the intended (white) viewer’s consciousness, illustrating the psychological fissures they created within the average pre-civil rights spectator.
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