Race Relations in Movies Through the Years

Say what you will about the current crop of political candidates, but they have opened anew some old debates regarding our diverse society and how we view each other. The Democrats have restarted old dialogues on America’s views on race relations and equality for women. Even John McCain is spurring discussions about aging as average lifespans continue to increase.

Hollywood has long been a prism – and often an uncomfortable or embarrassing one – through which we view our culture, and it likely holds some lessons for us. Issues of race relations in particular can be viewed across the history of Hollywood from the earliest “talkies” until today. Movies were already a very popular form of entertainment back in the 1930s and 40s, in a time long before the civil rights movement when the country’s social landscape would likely not be recognizable to younger viewers today. Al Jolson was one of the earliest “blackface” performers and became an entertainment sensation because of it. Such shows were considered normal fare in that era, though today it is considered the height of offensive behavior. (Just ask Ted Danson about that one.)

Following the advances of the civil rights era, Hollywood has continued to deliver a number of great (and many not so great) works which examined how Americans struggled – and continue to struggle – with questions of racial integration. From “To Kill A Mockingbird” and “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner” up through “Blazing Saddles” and “Driving Miss Daisy”, the movies have left us laughing, crying, proud or shamefaced as we observe our evolution as a single, yet fractured, human race.

If you would like to pursue this topic further, I will be talking to Betty Jo Tucker of Reeltalk Reviews and Movie Addict Headquarters at 1 pm Eastern, 10 am Pacific, on our radio show to get some historical perspective. Betty Jo is an author, film critic and Hollywood historian who was there in the theatre seats going back to the 40s. You can join in by going to the Mid Stream Radio home page near the show’s start time. We also have a lively web chat every day, and if you would like to participate you just need to sign up for a free user account at the BTR homepage and grab a nickname.

See you at the movies!