AA 4950 Blog #3 - Imitation of Life : African Americans and Art

The arts in all of its forms has always been a vehicle by which African Americans have been able to tell their own story. Reflecting back on the major Black Arts Movement which was the creative leg of the Black Rights Movement, African Americans were given a voice to shape and represent a more accurate representation of themselves and their lives.

Cinema, literature, music and art provide a platform for interpretation of the Black experience. Depending on the storyteller, the end product can often be controversial. From the Blaxploitation era we see a group of people who purposely take an extreme approach to the Black life, highlighting all stereotypes of that era turning them almost into caricatures. During the same time, more conservative Blacks frowned upon this art form and felt it showed us at our worst and played right into what Whites thought of us; as pimps, hustlers, drug dealers, promiscuous and socially deviant.

Today we still find ourselves torn over the proper representation of Blacks in the media, cinema and television. Movies created by our own show inflated stereotypes of mammies, irresponsible black fathers, crack addicted and over sexualized Black women. We struggle with this for two reasons; one, does this merely represent the cold, hard truth? Or, does it in someway glorify a minority of activity and perpetuate the continuation of it.

Some also believe Black producers, directors and screenwriters have some sort of responsibility to the African American community to demonstrate but not exploit the illnesses of our communities. When serious, devastating and detrimental behavior is shown in a comical, satire-like way through movies or staged reality television, it desensitizes the audience both Black and White. There seems to be a common trend in the representation of African Americans that is consistently negative and inferior.

A deeper concern lies in the conversation we have amongst ourselves in the Black community. With or without these art forms and representations, we would not still have these deplorable realities? Can art really perpetuate lifestyles? Does life really shape and bend around artistic mediums? I find more than likely that art has always been an imitation life. Lifestyles vary from person to person and while we find influences of art in everything, if all art forms stopped, African American communities as a whole would still find itself dealing with the same issues. The responsibility of art is to tell the story, not attempt to celebrate and condone the adversities we deal with.

A further responsibility is given to African Americans who are behind the scenes in the cinema world especially. We rely on them to tell our stories more accurately and with more sensitivity. It is acceptable to use comedy as Blacks have used comedy for years to cope with our experiences but we should at all costs avoid mockery and complicity.

It is a delicate balance of interpretation and creative freedom. African Americans also deal with the additional challenge of being held accountable for everything that is represented of us. This makes the decisions of Black art creators even more critical when determining what they will and won't allow the legacy of Black art forms to be.