3 chapters across the catalog
The 1949 film "Pinky" depicts a fair-skinned black woman who passes for white while living in the North but returns to her grandmother in the South. The film explores the tension between the grandmother's pride and the granddaughter's desire for the "human" treatment she received while passing. The story illustrates how passing often happens by accident when others make assumptions about an individual's race.
Film historian Charles Woods analyzes the 1971 film Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song, noting its support from Huey Newton and the Black Panthers. The film's plot—a Black man on the run after killing a cop—is identified as the direct predecessor to Queen and Slim. Woods argues that these films often serve as a "nigger on the run" trope that repeats across decades.
Ava DuVernay on the Power of Cinematic Images and Propaganda
Filmmaker Ava DuVernay discusses the power of cinematic images to either nourish or distort the human mind. The hosts argue that media is frequently used as propaganda, and they question why black actors continue to accept stereotypical roles as criminals that reinforce negative caricatures.
