Essay: Racial Prejudices – Native Son (Richard Wright), Fruitvale Station (Coogler)

Ever since the beginning of slavery in America, the existence of the black male population has been compromised and they had to live their lives under the power of white supremacy. Society’s institutions use systematic oppression to create the identity of black males. This “monstrous” identity is created to excuse the unlawful acts of the privileged. From the murder of Laquan McDonald and Michael Brown, black males often face harsh racial prejudices the moment they are introduced to the world. The bodies of black males has been taken advantage of, where the people accept this institutionalized racism.
The dehumanization of black men is used to empower and validate the identities of whites. In Native Son by Richard Wright, Bigger Thomas is characterized as an impoverished, violent, and uneducated black male. The book begins with a large rat that scampers across their apartment, which Bigger aggressively kills. The rat undoubtedly represents Bigger, for they are both physically repulsive and is seen as a threat to the outside world. The only way for him to survive is to kill the rat or be killed by it. The war with blacks versus whites creates the concept of racial stereotypes, against black males like Bigger. This forbids him to have true control over his life or aspire to anything more than a low class worker. This is also seen in Fruitvale Station when a white police officer unlawfully shoots an innocent black man for looking suspicious. Coogler’s movie created the theme of black masculinity being rooted in negative images. Both pieces of art shows the stereotype of black men as a negative figure, typically not a loving nor positive role model. Bigger and Oscar are both similar characters who are frightened and powerless figures created by systematic racism to make the audience see both of them as an individual, rather than a stereotype.
The birth of a black child is almost created like a scientific formula. The white population create this black identity consisting of 50% anger and hostility, 30% grotesqueness and stupidity, 15% ape, and 5% gentle and innocent. In Native Son Bigger is often exposed to violence and anger towards his friends, family, and even to his superiors. He acts resilient and stout around his friends to maintain his social quo as a domineering and aggressive black male. Specifically, Bigger wants to rob a store belonging to a white man, Mr.Blum. Stealing from a white man symbolizes Bigger’s want to escape his fixed identity and to go against white power to prove that he finally has as much opportunity and power as any other white man. However, Bigger is secretly too frightened to do so because he has never had any type of authority and going through with the plan would be his first time experiencing control over his life. Institutions have dehumanized his worth as a human being so much, that he is too afraid to step out of his comfort zone to do something for himself. However, Bigger has to fit his black, male stereotype so he buries his fearfulness deep inside. When Gus shows up, Bigger puts on an act to show his manhood and toughness for G.H and Jack. Gus blames Bigger for being too afraid to even rob Mr.Blum, which is why Bigger took his anger out on him. Overall, the cliché image that composes Bigger’s identity, creates a fine line between his emotions and the external world. The society’s creation of black males has forced Bigger to conform to the stereotypes, so he can fit into his community and fixed identity.
A double standard of whiteness is often seen throughout media outlets. When a black person commits a crime, networks often focus their attention on advocating for why he/she should go to prison and is guilty. However, when a white person commits a crime, the media tries to justify this white person’s actions. Fruitvale Station also develops multiple allusions and motifs to the idea of black masculinity and how it is portrayed through the media and other resources. In the film, a lost pitbull dog was attacked by a hit and run driver, while Oscar was at a gas station. In the media, pit bulls are portrayed as a vicious, cruel animal that is known for killing. It is never brought to the attention about a pit bull doing anything positive. Black men and pit bulls are similar by being treated with cruelty, portrayed as dangerous, savage and diabolical. So symbolically, the killing of the pit bull, or “black masculinity” was to represent the end of black stereotypes within the character of Oscar. Soon after that scene, Oscar went to the ocean and through away an entire bag of marijuana and even went back to his old job to attempt to regain his position again. Conclusively, the dog’s death was a representation of the termination of all the sins and crimes Oscar has previously committed, to allow himself to start a brand new chapter in life.
Black males are so used to these conventional images of them that instead of opposing these social norms, they promote it. “Between the World and Me” by Ta-Nehisi Coates, presents the hardships of being a black male and having to deal with racial discrimination everyday. Ta-Nehisi mentions the American history of black on black crime and the policing of Black youth. He states a situation where his life flashed before his eyes from a teenage boy who only wanted to show how tough he was. “The boy with small eyes reached into his ski jacket and pulled out a gun. I recall it in the slowest motion, as though in a dream. There the boy stood, with the gun brandished, which he slowly untucked, tucked, then untucked once more, and in his small eyes I saw a surging rage that could, in an instant, erase my body.”  This teenage boy’s need to show his power through a material object shows how the youth of young black boys are so ingrained in proving social status and how unacceptable this is. This is not just black on black crime, it is the beginning of a crime against everyone, despite age, sex, or gender.
Overall, Wright and Coogler’s concept consists of going against the racial profiling of black men, to help them recognize societies intentions of using black identities to justify the elites actions. If black males were to go against these labels, they would have the ability to be on the same social, economical, and political level as white males. Black men are systematically dehumanized and the only way to controvert this problem is by recognizing blacks as individuals, rather than an animal or stereotype.