Ahsen Jillani
The last several weeks have challenged us in complex ways by bringing issues to the forefront that just a year ago we would have scoffed at. The media is always accused of having an agenda. The large film production companies worldwide are frequently cited for being far left of morbidly liberal. So we debated our right to change our gender. We argued, all the way to the Supreme Court, if love could exist outside of the confines of gender.
We were shocked when innocent worshippers were gunned down by a madman in Charleston, SC. And, of course, we saw the media run with the news until first the Confederate flag came down from state buildings, and then defacing memorials became acceptable because the families of victims of rich Southerners were feeling angry. As of this writing, Southern states were digging up graves of Confederate leaders and moving them to secret and private locations. America has finally had enough.
Or is America what a ratings-oriented media wants it to be on any given morning?
For days I’ve been thinking about where these lethal missiles of stereotyping will land in this skirmish. In recent history, we united after 9/11, then we protested against the war in Iraq, then we rallied behind health care for the poor—then we went home and ate a hamburger in front of the TV. The news cycle simply switched, and newer and more exciting reality shows were on the roster.
America increasingly leans toward rights for the oppressed and the legal system here seems to follow it at a snail’s pace. We graduated from “The Little Rascals” to “Amos and Andy” long after the Civil War had ended. We then tackled racism in film classics like Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner? and In the Heat of the Night.
In TV shows ranging from “Good Times” to “The Jeffersons” to “Different Strokes,” we lived a sort of Hollywood fantasy about how exciting life could be even if we were a minority. “The Cosby Show” brought African Americans into the upper middle class and the audience across the board accepted that to be the new reality.
Looking back, the white man always had a sidekick, which ranged from a quirky American Indian in “The Lone Ranger” to an oriental in “The Green Hornet.” Blacks, who always numbered less than 13% of the US (and are now outnumbered by Latinos) slowly moved into the mainstream, followed by Orientals, and now, as voter (and viewer) statistics shift, the media is encouraging more Latino participation.
We can spend days arguing about how minorities were portrayed in the shifting tide of media and film. In the end, the moving image business is about money. There is a lot of science behind who is watching what, and how they perceive the characters as an extension of how they perceive themselves. Since Islamic fundamentalism swept across the Middle East starting in the late ’70s, characters gradually shifted from the heavyset, loyal, trade anything for anything types to potential terrorists who are manic and unreliable. The only survivor in this game of stereotyping is the Arab Sheikh, who remains rich in fantasy and reality, and the image has perhaps helped to blur the line between fact and fiction.
The South Asian community has come into its own in recent years. Many shows, most notably “The Big Bang Theory,” now feature a pleasant, head shaking, smiling, nerdy, and agreeable Indian guy. Presently, we are enjoying the exposure. Few of us are arguing that scores of multinational leaders, two US governors, and even the doctor who may save your life in the ER may be of Indian descent. Again, numbers and money talk. American audiences feel better with some light and fluffy humor provided by people they don’t perceive as being threatening.
Let’s just say, we provide a little “spice” in an otherwise vanilla show.
Of course, this will also pass. The Bush Administration’s attempt to divide the nation to justify a trillion dollar war had a backlash. That phenomenon is called Barack Obama. We get riled up and then seem to land solidly on American soil, with new laws, new attitudes, a deeper understanding of the human condition and the way news tends to divide us so we will stay glued to shouting hosts and their well-paid guests, hand-picked to joust and jest while we yank slices off of large pizzas in our dens.
A country in which the racial demographic is shifting at a stunning rate, it is hard to predict where we will end up in two or three decades. What color will we be? Who will our children marry? What will be our religion? What gender will our children be at age 30? The one fact is that if we manage to get real smart, we may pick up the remote and turn off the noise. Then we will be able to see real humans around us who love, raise children, work, cry, smile, and make the best of what hand is dealt to them.
Posted: Monday, August 3, 2015
