Racial differences are a part of our everyday society. Because of these differences, we establish stereotypes of people who we consider dissimilar from ourselves. The media plays a role in enforcing these stereotypes and can create misrepresentation based off of overgeneralization of groups. However, the media can also play a positive role in presenting these issues to society because we have an opportunity to become aware of the existence of these stereotypes. We want to take the medium of movies and highlight the different ways they portray racial differences using this website that could possibly be used as part of a curriculum to educate students of the issues that result from racial difference through movies. We want to generate awareness of these issues and receive any opinions and thoughts from those who visit this site.
Why did We Choose Racial Differences in Movies?
The reason why we chose to focus on racial differences is multi-faceted. First, racial differences trigger a domino effect of eliciting other problems. Most notably, the problematic nature of racial differences can result in the creation dominant groups. These dominant groups consequently become the privileged members of society, and according to Johnson (2006), “[w]e live in a society that attaches privilege to being white…regardless of social class” (p. 8). Power coincides with privilege, and these prevailing groups have the majority of the power and use it to portray their perceptions and thus, reinforce their views to the public. In Shah’s (1999) article on the topic of minority coverage in the media, he recognizes how
[i]deas about inclusion and exclusion from the nation are often based on conception of racial superiority and inferiority derived from the perceived sociopolitical, economic, cultural and other needs and passion of a nation at a given historical moment (p.251).
Using the media and the issue of creating stereotypes of groups according to how the dominant group perceives them results in the creation of gaps and misunderstandings in our society. The topic of stereotypes is brought up numerous times with exposure to ethnic groups, and we realize that it is our responsibility to be aware of them in order to control how they circulate in the general public.
Besides causing misunderstandings, racial differences can create walls and boundaries between groups. Movies also run the risk of producing misrepresentations of groups of people, often in the form of a generalization characters who are non-Caucasian. Groups victimize themselves and create excuses for their actions because of these portrayed impressions. By pointing out these generalizations, misrepresentations and stereotypes from movies will assist in relating to the issue of racial difference to students.
Who is this FOR?
"A student's college career is one of the few stages in life devoted almost entirely to developing the mind in an engaging, thought-provoking setting where all views are welcomed and contested" (Blake, 2006).
We chose to create this website to have something out there for the public to put their thoughts and opinions. Although this site is open to all who stop by, we wanted to focus on a younger demographic, those finishing up on high school, college and starting out in their careers.
Statistically, 74% of American college students have access to the Internet and use it on the average of 4 or more hours a week, while 86% use the internet, according to Pew Internet Public Survey Analysis (2001). Because of this fact, putting information in a format that is most accessible to this group made sense.
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Percentage of College Students Who Use the Internet |
||
|
|
COLLEGE STUDENTS (n) |
GENERAL POPULATION (N) |
|
All RESPONDENTS |
86% |
59% |
|
Men |
87% |
62% |
|
Women |
85% |
56% |
|
Whites Blacks Hispanics |
90% 74% 82% |
61% 45% 60% |
| Pew Internet & American Life Project Survey, June-July 2002(N) 2001(n) | ||
Awareness should be out there because movies are a popular medium of communication of our media today. Pointing out racial differences in movies to college-age students is important because movies can have a great impact on people. This works well with our target audience, because of the popularity of cinema with young adults. The public, particularly younger people, is influenced by what they see. It is necessary to point out that what one sees is not always what one should believe; there is more substance beyond what is being portrayed on the surface by the media. Johnson states that one of the main reasons that difference is a problem is because people are afraid of the unknown (13).
"Movies…allow viewers to vicariously experience other cultures, locations or settings, or even lifestyles. Consequently, movies do influence our attitudes on a variety of levels. Viewing a single movie or exposure to a specific media message may be sufficient to produce effects on people's beliefs, thus forming a perception." (Jeffers, 1997)
Johnson points out that “of all human needs, few are as powerful as the need to be seen, included, and accepted by other people” (55). The answer to fear is education. The goal of this project is to create awareness among impressionable youth so that they might be able to cultivate an open view of racial backgrounds and revolutionize society’s current position of racial differences. This is because “anyone who allows awareness of that to their consciousness is bound to feel something about it” (75). If we acknowledge racial differences by identifying stereotypes and misconceptions of groups of people, then there is a possibility to break down barriers and promote a greater understanding of our society and figure out the best method to break down the issues created by racial differences.
Racial Difference in Movies 