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[tylerjunk]

I came upon this impressive website that contains a vast wealth of information regarding African American History. Having an online reference to guide users through historical material housed in one online location is super convenient when investigating topics of the African American race in America. The website itself contains over 4,000 historical entries that range anywhere from speeches to current news articles. Following my theme centered around black history, this website was super informative when researching events relevant to our MultiCultural America course. The education provided by this website is also impressive. In its mission statement, BlackPast.org states “It (BlackPast.org) also makes every computer, regardless of its location, a classroom in African American history.” This site is an easy tool for educators of others or self-educators to use when researching this topic. BlackPast has also received several honorable awards and distinctions such as the National Education Association’s Carter G. Woodson Memorial Award in 2015 and the MARS Best Free Websites of 2011.

A piece that specifically interested me involves my very own city, Milwaukee. The photo above pictures the results of a large riot centered around police brutality in regards to black citizens of Milwaukee. Titled “Milwaukee Riot”, this 2016 event was in reaction to the death of 23-year-old Sylville K. Smith, a black Milwaukean resident. What makes this story unique is that Smith was shot and killed by a black Milwaukee police officer of 24 years of age. The event began when Smith and another male of the same age were pulled over by two police officers in the Sherman Park area (a predominately black occupied neighborhood of the city). Smith and his acquaintance fled the scene on foot after pulling the car over. Smith, while holding a handgun, turned around to face the black police officer when told to put the gun down. Refusing to cooperate, Smith was shot and killed on scene.

Mere hours after the death, a riot quickly formed consisting of around 200 people and 150 police officers in full riot gear. Violence soon broke out, sending several to the hospital in critical condition, burning vehicles and buildings and smashing windows. Around 7:00 P.M., this BP gas station (pictured above) was set on fire. Firefights, reporters and film crews were struggling to perform their duties due to the intensity of the riot. The riots escalated so quickly from protestors using social media to gain traction and support that Governor Scott Walker alerted the National Guard, although they did not end up deploying. The next Sunday morning, volunteers began to clean the damages even after receiving threats from protestors. The riot lasted 3 days and ended on the following Monday with 17 arrests.

This article makes me link back to our section concerning Milwaukee’s constant struggle for Civil Rights, even today. The fight between #BlackLivesMatter vs. #BlueLiveMatter has been a recent trend in the past few years. To have the death of a black man caused by a black officer really threw the black community into a rampage. Emotions were high and tension was building, leading to the damage to physical property and community morale, both on the Black and Blue ends. It’s situations like this that can avoided through education and recognition of social injustices and racial concerns.

Photo 1 source:

BlackPast. “African American History: Research Guides & Websites • BlackPast.” BlackPast, https://www.blackpast.org/research-guides-websites/

Photo 2 source:

Brodsky, Megan. “Milwaukee Riot (2016) • BlackPast.” BlackPast, 21 Apr. 2019, https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/2016-milwaukee-riot/.

[tylerjunk]

The Help

Not only did I fall quickly in love with this 2011 film because of my obsession with the lead actress, Emma Stone, but also because the message portrayed is a strong hitter. The Help, directed by Tate Taylor and derived from Kathryn Stockett's 2009 novel with the same name, is a powerful movie that highlights the challenges black domestic workers faced in 1960s American society. Emma (pictured above, top left) plays the role as Eugenia "Skeeter" Phelan, a young, progressive, white, aspiring journalist of her time. Her unique relationship with the two maids, Aibileen Clark and Minny Jackson, (pictured above, right) is followed as she decides to write a story on the experience of these hard working women in a heavily classist and racist society during the Civil Rights Movement in Jackson, Mississippi. 

Skeeter’s intentions of sharing the story of black maids were fueled by her frustrations regarding the mistreatment and clear racial inequality of black people by the white class in which the maids worked for. These maids were referred to as “The Help”. Nearly ninety percent of black women in the South worked as domestic servants during the ‘60s. Some critics of this black domestic working culture referred to the concept as “modern slavery” given the maids were held to high standards, poor pay and less than satisfactory working conditions. These workers were thought of as uneducated, poor and unreasonable people. In a time where sexism existed heavily amongst all colors of people, black women definitely were amongst the few who had it the toughest.

Pictured above, Skeeters white, female, socialite acquaintances look to her with dismay as she often voices her loud and progressive opinions. These women come from wealthy families who possess these domestic workers and have a long line of family history with racist attitudes. One of the families even built separate bathrooms for the help to use. This highly unregulated industry of the exploitation of domestic employees played a hidden yet effective part of the Civil Rights Movement. 

This film highly relates to the content of the MultiCultural America course in its emphasis on inherent class and racial structures through the workforce and American society. Having black domestic workers was a very common thing in Southern, white American culture. The mistreatment of these workers also came hand in hand with this culture. The contents of this film remind me of the readings by Richard Dryer, specifically On the Matter of Whiteness, where black imagery was used to foster racist culture. During a time and geographical location where blacks were misconstrued as inferior in terms of ability and intelligence, these stereotypes supported the concept of having black domestic workers who were subject to discrimination and abuse by their white employers.

The movie is excellent. From the storyline to the actors to the “special” pie served, I highly recommend anyone with an interest in race to take the time in watching. Thank you.

Photo 1 source: 

Honeycutt, Kirk. “'The Help': Film Review.” The Hollywood Reporter, 10 Aug. 2018, https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/help-film-review-219915.

Photo 2 source:

Potter, Tony. “'The Help' Proves That Emma Stone Can Do It All.” Standard Journal, 26 Aug. 2011, https://www.rexburgstandardjournal.com/entertainment/movies/the-help-proves-that-emma-stone-can-do-it-all/article_4be58e60-cf88-11e0-b349-001cc4c03286.html.

[tylerjunk]

Dear White People

This American comedy-drama TV series on Netflix, Dear White People, has been shedding light on current instilled racist attitudes of our country. The show does a phenomenal job at calling out excused racism and race relations. The main characters, black Ivy league college students, face issues on campus and in their own black community when it comes to racial education. This show relates heavily to our Multicultural America course content and the topics we’ve been exploring in relation to race and systematic racism. The students face challenges on campus from black face parties to riots. The main character, Samantha White (the irony), is a black student who hosts a campus radio channel titled “Dear White People” where she exposes racist acts and attitudes in the community. Between the black student organizations and the radio channel, this sparks a lot of conversation around race in a predominantly white and wealthy college campus full of conservative mindsets. 

Similar to the readings in the Apollon article, the show discusses the ideas behind a post-racial America. The black student organization at the fictional Winchester University battle discrimination and beliefs that racism does not exist. The main challenge is the label that these students face. Their skin color comes into conversation more often than needed and their race is used against them when they face conflict with other organizations and even campus representatives. The show does a great job of balancing comedy and entertainment with sincerity and intention to educate. The sensitive topics are displayed through college students who are trying to make something of themselves. The elements of whiteness and wealth interfere with the goals and opportunities of these students, and the battle with campus administration clearly reflects the systematic racism of our country. I appreciate how the producers are able to create the content with ability for white people to understand. Watching the characters develop their identity has made me so much more interested in the effects on discrimination amongst young black Americans who are caught in a society that is being pulled in two different directions of “post-racial” and “escalating racial” attitudes. 

Ukoha, Ezinne. “Why The Second Season of ‘Dear White People’ Is Definitely Not For White People.” Medium, Medium, 17 May 2018, https://medium.com/@nilegirl/why-the-second-season-of-dear-white-people-is-definitely-not-for-white-people-57aa709bb0b5.