Film response

Ghossen

Kayla Ghossen

Sarah Burgoyne

603-101-MQ s.88

27 November 2020

The American Nightmare: The Fight for Racial Justice in Tracy Heather Strain’s Lorraine Hansberry: Sighted Eyes/Feeling Heart and Raoul Peck’s I Am Not Your Negro

After watching Tracy Heather Strain's Lorraine Hansberry: Sighted Eyes/Feeling Heart, I found Hansberry's story inspirational since many people, such as an African American, a gay or lesbian person, or a theatre lover, could connect with her story in different ways. This film was also eye-opening because of Lorraine's passion for tackling racism, women's sexuality, and human rights. It empowered me to make a change and taught me that our responsibility is to take action for our country to live up to expectations. Also, Hansberry wants to bring a social and political change for black civil rights with the work of art, more specifically, with theatre. This helps me understand the play A Raisin in the Sun because she draws inspiration from her own experiences formed by her childhood's influence on her thoughts and beliefs. For instance, in the 1930s, her family moved into Woodlawn's white neighborhood, where they experienced violence and oppression, just like how the Younger family wants to move into a white community and are warned that if they do, they'll get attacked. Lindner also manipulates them to give up the house, demonstrating segregationist behaviour based solely on their race.

Watching the movie I Am Not Your Negro by Raoul Peck taught me harsh lessons and painful historical truths. The information presented weighed on me because it was a story whose message was sadly as relevant today as it was in its era. I found it interesting how James Baldwin, one of the most influential figures of the Civil Rights movements, was a double character in the film, making the importance of his words more powerful and terrifying. Thus, the fight for racial justice was explored through a narrator and an observer's eyes, demonstrating this film's strength. In addition, Raoul Peck's movie explores racism's history by Baldwin's reflection on his world events’ observations. His life is significant in Hansberry's play because he provides an insightful interpretation of American history and culture, which is essential to understand her work. I believe historical and social contexts are critical to the understanding of a piece of literature because it is the basis to give meaning to the characters' attitudes and the events in the work itself. It is overall an advantage since it will help the reader understand the author's message and purpose of his work. It also enriches the reader's knowledge and culture since it provides them with experiences that they may not have faced in their own lives, therefore, deepens their understanding of history and social issues. For example, Baldwin remembers a moment in history where a young black student was spat on and attacked on her way to school. Therefore, throughout the movie, these scenarios reveal the despairing truth of black people's lives. Hansberry exposes this truth on stage, making a powerful statement through art that has never been done before in order to prioritize justice, equality, and prejudice searching for the American dream. Thus, the film and her play rest upon words' power, bringing realization to black people's struggles in the world.

Both movies have memorable moments that have impacted my way of looking at things. In Lorraine Hansberry: Sighted Eyes/Feeling Heart, the narrator quotes James Baldwin reflection on Hansberry's life at 1 hour and 50 minutes where he states that "every artist, every writer under the hammer, but the black writer lives under something much worse — the strain can kill you." This line struck me because being an African American writer is a challenge since they have to express themselves in a way for society to understand the problems they face, which was difficult in that era because racism and discrimination were severe issues. The fact that Lorraine was courageous enough to take that challenge and was able convince people with her words truly amazes me. In I Am Not Your Negro, Peck showcases many pictures displaying marches led by Martin Luther King Jr. and Black Lives Matter protests, where police officers are hitting black people with their sticks and white men are holding signs with the "n-word." The use of visuals of police violence and hate strikes of American history and modern footage strikes me with sympathy. It reminds me of how much work there is to be done to solve the problem of racism. In addition, when Baldwin says around 44 minutes that "it is not a racial problem. It's a problem of whether or not you're willing to look at your life and be responsible for it, and then begin to change it," these words impact me by making me rethink race because of Baldwin’s exposition of the issue of race as more of a social problem of self-reflection and compassion.

Overall, books and plays are a way that the dead communicates with us by teaching us lessons. It has made the acquisition of knowledge something gradual instead of something that we have to learn repeatedly. It also informs us on how humanity has advanced and why things are the way they are today; therefore, books and plays benefit the reader or the audience since they can take advantage of the transmitted knowledge in order to turn that knowledge into action. For example, in A Raisin in the Sun, the reader takes what Hansberry communicates with them and compares it with today's society to acknowledge the struggles and oppression people of color have to face in this world. The author is trying to communicate the injustice of the gap between the American dream and the Black American reality, where the achievement of dreams entirely depended on race and social position. She addresses this issue by using the Younger family, who, as well as both movies, shines a light on desiring social and political progress, moving beyond segregation, and combatting racial injustices.

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