User:Cyrush1/Black Realism

Black Realism or African American Realism is the representation of African American social issues through the form of art. African Americans' creativity wasn't earning the fame or recognition that white people's creativity received due to the fact that African Americans' creativity stemmed from their problems, and how they turned their problems into art. Various art forms range from realism to modernism. Black realism wasn't considered an idea until the 1960s because the productions, art, or literature weren't believed by the masses due to the main film, which was created by white people, shifting the perspective, and creating an image where these social problems didn't exist. Famous black leaders such as Martin Luther King and Rosa Parks showed the world the problems that African Americans would go through on a daily basis, but there were many other leaders that paved the way for African American problems and bring light to the problems.

Black realism is practiced in film, paintings, drawings, literature, and music, and some of the well-known practitioners of this art form are Spike Lee, John Singleton, Albert Hughes, Langston Hughes, Zora Hurston, Richard Wright, Jordan Peele, and Billie Holiday.

History of Black Realism

Black realism uncovers the reality of African American life, as opposed to the presumable life African Americans live according to the White American perspective. Primarily focusing on African American rural southern daily experiences, the genre of Black Realism switched to the daily experiences of the African American northern urban lifestyle by the 1960s. Based on the United States migration trends at that time, African American families would move north to bigger cities, like New York City and Chicago, while White American families would move to suburban areas, leaving those big cities. The popularization of African American poetry in the 1940s due to poets like Langston Hughes, Sterling A. Brown, and pioneers Melvin B. Tolson, Robert Hayden, and Gwendolyn Brooks, brought attention to the success of African Americans in academically recognizable fields. Although those poets were nationally recognized and appreciated, the Chicago Writers (1930-1933), one of the first few African American newspapers, paved the way for those artists and others to come. The Genre of Black Realism grew immensely since the 60s, after the assassination of Malcolm X. With the help of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), they created a new movement in young African American artists, influencing a change in their perspective when creating artistic pieces. For instance, in Maya Angelou’s Caged Bird (1983), Highly influenced by the Civil Rights Movement created by SNCC, CORE, and other organizations like the NAACP, African American artistic creations and expressions have increased more than ever. The Black Arts Movement created a new cultural movement, connecting all African Americans and African American artists and creating a community to build up African American communal pride. One of the Black Arts movement leaders, Larry Neal, vocalized the movement’s “ goals as the promotion of self-determination, solidarity, and nationhood among African Americans.” (Britannica). Featuring interpretive pieces from essays, poetry, fiction, dramas, and theatrical performances, the movement received its recognition in Black Fire, edited by Amira Baraka and Larry Neal. The post-Black Arts movement came to the Renaissance of the 1970s. With the increasing presence and influence of African American women’s perspectives, the movement centered around the awareness of African American women in art. With artists such as Toni Morrison and Alice Walker, came some of the most culturally respected and influential pieces still relevant today. With all art forms-whether visual or interpretive- representing Black Realism, it allows for a broader outreach for the mutual understanding of the African American lifestyle.

Black Realism In Music

Black Realism in Music – a movement that emerged in the 1960s and the 1970s as a response to the Civil Rights Movement and the Black Arts Movement. Black realist music often dealt with themes of social justice, black pride, and the struggle for equality. The civil rights movement – was a nonviolent social movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized racial segregation, discrimination, and disenfranchisement throughout the US. The civil rights movement would provide an alternate way to protest for black rights. Activists used art forms to highlight the political injustices they were facing. By doing this, they gained more and more attention.

Black Arts Movement (BAM) – an African American-led art movement from 1965 to 1975. Through combining activism and art, BAM created new cultural institutions and conveyed a message of black pride. Stemming from the Black Power Movement and the Civil Rights Movement, BAM grew out of an ever-changing pollical and cultural environment in which Black artists, strove to create politically engaging work that studied the African American culture and history experience

For the Black community, music has always been a messenger, an outlet, and a space of freedom. Artists like Billie Holiday, Sam Cooke, Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five used their musical talents to express their messages for their community. However, they did it in a way that soften the blows of bigotry they received.

-	“Strange Fruit” by Billie Holiday – Released 20 APR 1939 Holiday’s song is a euphemism for the lynched bodies of African American hanging and Swaying in the trees. Holiday’s song has been sampled by countless artists, including Nina Simone, Jeff Buckley, and Kanye West.

-	“A Change is Gonna Come” by Sam Cooke – Released 22 DEC 1964 Cooke’s song was inspired by the struggles that he and those around him endured constantly being refused stay at white-only motels, brought upon them by the Civil Rights Movement. Cooke’s Song was quoted by America’s First Black President following the winning of the 2008 election: “It’s been a long time coming, but tonight, change has come to America.”

-	“The Message” by Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five – Released 01 JUL 1982, Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Fives’ song was a major contribution to the hip-hop movement. It embodied concepts of social justice of economic inequality, exposing the negative impacts and delivering the message about the stress of inner-city poverty.

As black music continued to emerge and combat politics and society, the message never changed. Black artists continued to spread awareness by bringing the injustices into the limelight. Whether it helped you escape the troubles of reality or straight told you about the oppression in the roughest most aggressive way possible, black artists were at the forefront. One genre that experienced the biggest shift was rap. When it started out it was braggadocious songs about women, parties, drugs, drinking, and alcohol. As politics grew stronger the oppression grew with it. Rappers took it upon themselves, being one of the most listened-to forms of music, to speak out.

-	“Alright” By Kendrick Lamar released on 30 JUN 2015, Lamar’s song raises awareness and expresses the ideas of hope amid the personal struggle of those within the black community. Telling them that no matter how hard or how afraid, they are going to make it out.

Black Realism in Film

When filmmaking began it was dominated by white people. The first Hollywood blockbuster film came out in 1915 called “The Birth of a Nation.” The film portrayed African Americans as unintelligent and the Ku Klux Klan as a heroic force. This film has been called the most controversial film ever made in the United States and the most reprehensibly racist film in Hollywood history. American film and black people in black cinema has been overlooked, black Americans have been discriminated against, represented in a negative light, and stereotyped since the beginning of American cinema.

In the 80s filmmakers Spike Lee and John Singleton were emerging and presenting through film black lives. Some examples of the movies Spike Lee did was “Do the Right Thing” which was about racial disparity and if certain things are not addressed or handled properly that can lead to social tension and violence by people who don’t necessarily have a voice. Spike Lee is known for a variety of movies; “Malcolm X”, “Bamboozled”, “Blackkklansman”, and many more. John Singleton directed “Boyz N The Hood”, a film that came out in the 90s, as well as the film “Menace II Society” which was directed by Allen and Albert Hughes. The role of Spike Lee, John Singleton, and many others at the time was huge for African Americans in cinema. They are famed for the role they played in the exploration of African American experience, racial stereotypes, and addressing controversial subjects that contributed to and paved the way for up-and-coming black filmmakers like Jordan Peele and Ava DuVernay.

'''Black Realism in Literature '''

During the 1920s, black creativity was soaring to the top of the charts in every aspect of entertainment. While the culture and art of the black community were finally receiving some recognition, the Great Depression occurred. This caused a major shift in the way black people expressed their stories, which was becoming deeply engaged in literature. Although the depression deteriorated the political and economic situations that black people were in, critiques were being presented by emerging writers and poets. During the time of the Great Depression, several black writers such as Richard Wright, Langston Hughes, and Zora Hurston wrote books and poems about the struggle of living life as a black person in a white world.

Richard Wright was a black author that was known for his literary works on discrimination and injustice against black people in the 20th century. His opposition to the way white people treated black people in the United States was actively described in his novels and poems. Langston Hughes was an important black figure during the Harlem Renaissance period, known for his poems and novels on black life in America in comparison with authentic black culture. Zora Hurston was known for her short stories and novels on issues of racial division and life as a black woman. These figures are a few of the several black creators that utilized black literature and realism to express and protest the injustice against black people during the 20th century. Literary works such as Not Without Laughter (1930), Their Eyes Were Watching God (1937), Uncle Tom’s Children (1938), and Native Son (1940) engaged in highlighting the racial injustice that black people had continued to experience. These literary compositions paved the way for black writers to be more engaged in the political and social revolution that was taking place.

African American literature often has a theme of developing storylines pertaining to the existing racial history and the role of black people within such societies. The distinct cultural and social practices of African Americans despite the impacts of enslavement are expressed through the perspective of an individual amidst the oppressed. Black realism in writing introduced a way of exploring these themes through literary discourse. Oftentimes, black literature is considered original when the writer identifies themselves as black. This narrative is supported by the concept of black realism, which focuses on representing black people as they are. By highlighting life’s perception through the lens of black people, realism in writing has been used by several black authors to open opportunities for other black artists. After the decline of black works during the Great Depression and World War 2, the Jim Crow era revived a time of black expression through writing. African American literature became the foundation for the black community’s sense of identity while being subjected to blackface and racially prejudiced mimicry.

In modern contemporary culture, black realism in literature remains a key aspect of black voices. Authors of African American novels and poems dedicate their platforms to speak on the experiences of the black community. Not only were these artists eager to spark up a discourse on topics of injustice, but they were also able to highlight the significance of such times in writing that will last for generations to come. These writings were not meant to appeal to only the black community, but to help others understand the stories of black people themselves. It is important to recognize the impact that literature had on the rights movements that lead to defeating injustice in America. Writers such as Toni Morrison, Angie Thomas, and Octavia E Butler are one of the greatest black authors of 21st-century literature. As they compose their literary pieces, they address the most crucial topics regarding race and identity.