The documentary film, 13th points out and describes the many ways in which the media has contributed to anti-Black racism in America. In this post, we will look into the historical events that took place in the film that perpetuated anti-Black racism and we will discuss how the media feeds into anti-Black racism today. We will also look into how the media can care for Black bodies in the future and actively work on being anti-racist.
The film begins by explaining the events that happened after the end of the civil war, and it was that former slave owners went through an economic crisis, and so, America needed Black bodies working to keep the economy going. The plan was to enforce a law that made everybody free in America except criminals. The solution was to criminalize African Americans to legally have slaves again after the civil war. The film mentions the movie, Birth of a Nation, which showcased African Americans as animalistic, rapists, and cannibals. The goal was clear, they wanted the American people to accept and normalize putting Black people in prison. Fast-forward to a time when saying racial slurs and being openly racist was no longer accepted, political consulted, Lee Atwater, was showcased in the film because he mentioned tactics to use on the public to make the public continue to hate African Americans. He came up with the words ‘forced-busing, ‘states rights’, and to talk about ‘cutting taxes’ to get the public to put Black people in prison. Media in many ways used words and fear to criminalize Black people.
Furthermore, news on television and journals were written about Black rapist and criminals to continue to raise more fear towards African Americans. Popular culture took part in criminalizing African Americans by showcasing them as such in movies and in television shows. For decades they made it look like more Black people were in prison than there actually was, and as a result, the public believes in the narrative.
The media has a responsibility to care for their audience. In the past we have witness the lack of empathy and care towards African Americans in the media, and as a result, many people got used to the messages and began fearing African Americans. The racism in media affected the lives of Black people, by encouraging segregation to separate Whites from Blacks, denying criminals to vote, legally enslaving criminals which affected Black, Brown, and Latino individuals. Many microaggression and prejudices still exists today because of the negative portrayal of the past.
Today, the media should take accountability and be responsible for the type of messages they put out there about Black people, to mitigate and heal the pain and suffering they inflicted on the Black community. The media needs to proactively enact an anti-racist agenda in the news, in movies, television shows, music, podcasts, and more.
