Oscar Review Part I

As we approach the 79th Annual Academy Awards, what better way to pay tribute to Black History Month, than take a look at all of our wonderful nominees. In the Best Actor Category are Will Smith for Pursuit of Happyness and Forest Whitaker in The Last King of Scotland. For Best Supporting Actor we have Djimon Hounsou for Blood Diamonds, Eddie Murphy for Dreamgirls, and for Best Supporting Actress, Jennifer Hudson for her role in Dreamgirls.

As momentous of an occasion as this is, we can not fully appreciate this years nominees without first taking a look at the History of Blacks in film. In order to keep the integrity of this piece, I decided to focus primarily on black actresses for the first section of this report.

I. The Mammy, the Jezebel, and the Sapphire
From the institution of slavery, three recurrent sexual stereotypes of Black women came about: the sexless, but nurturing Mammy, the Jezebel, or sexually “loose” Black woman, and the emasculating Sapphire.

The Jezebel stereotype was used during slavery as a rationalization for sexual relations between White men and Black women, especially sexual unions involving slave masters and slaves.1 The Jezebel was depicted as a Black woman with an insatiable appetite for sex. She was not satisfied with Black men. The slavery-era Jezebel, it was claimed, desired sexual relations with White men; therefore, White men did not have to rape Black women.

Most commonly portrayed as heavy set, having dark skin and traditional African features, the Mammy has been characterized as unattractive, asexual, and unsuitable as a sexual partner. Created to justify the economic exploitation of house slaves and sustained to explain Black women’s long-standing restriction to domestic service, the Mammy image represents the normative yardstick used to evaluate all Black women’s behavior. By loving, nurturing and caring for her white children and family better than her own, the Mammy symbolized the dominant group’s perceptions of the ideal Black female relationship to elite white male power.2

According to this well constructed myth, outside of mothering, Mammy has no desires or needs of her own, and is quiet content in her subordination.

Similarly, the most salient features of the Sapphire myth of Black female sexuality are her lack of femininity, her sexless, harshly aggressive nature, and her inclination to emasculate the Black male at any chance she gets. She is portrayed as evil, bitchy, stubborn and hateful.3 In other words, Sapphire is everything that Mammy is not. She is a twisted take on the myth that Black women are invulnerable and indefatigable, and that they always persevere and endure against great odds without being negatively affected.

Ernestine Ward popularized the Sapphire image in the Amos and Andy television series. Ward played a character known as Sapphire, and her husband, Kingfish, was played by Tim Moore. Sapphire’s spiteful personality was primarily used to create sympathy in viewers for Kingfish specifically and African American males in general.4 As a result, many African American women suppress these feelings of bitterness and rage for fear of being regarded as a Sapphire.

The characterizations of African American women as asexual Mammies, promiscuous Jezebels, and antagonistic Sapphires reaffirm society’s belief that African American women are less individualistic than white women.

These stereotypes, which evolved during slavery, continued to exist after the end of slavery and still contribute to the unique harassment experiences of African American women today.

II. Films Influence on Perpetuating Negative Images of Black Women

Films are often reflective of social stereotypes and standards. It is no surprise then that the social stereotypes and standards for Black Women reflect almost in entirely the roles they play in movies. Since they first started getting roles, Black Women were often type- cast, as well as minority men, into roles and situations that perpetuate myths about sexuality and embodiment.

The transition between mammy/jezebel and more complex images of Black Women in film was not a swift one. Gone With the Wind, directed by Victor Flemming and released in 1939, is seen as a “classic” in the eyes of many critics, despite the fact that it plays into many negative preconceived notions about gender, race, class, age, etc.5 The Mammy character in this film is actually called Mammy. This version of mammy has embodied the stereotype perfectly.

Played by Hattie McDaniels, Mammy of Gone With the Wind is the essential mother to her master’s white children. Mammy is the rock of the family,6 she is happy and humorous as the world crumbles around the O’Hara family during the civil war. Not only does Mammy manage to raise what is left of the O’Hara family, she is there as the third generation is born and is ready to raise them as well.

By the 1970s Black moviegoers had tired of cinematic portrayals of Blacks as Mammies. Thus the birth of a new film genre, Blaxploitation, came about. The term Blaxploitation is a contemporary term applied to the B-rated flicks of the 70s that boasted black stars. These films supposedly depicted realistic Black “experiences,” however many were produced and directed by Whites.7

No longer Slaves and Mammies, they were complex individuals lashing out at the system that still was filled with social injustice. The Blaxploitation era depicted a different image of both Black Men and Women. Although, they were now both given lead roles, they were primarily depicted as pimps, drug dealers, prostitutes, and whores. The only reason Black patrons supported these films was because they showed Blacks fighting the “man.”8 Black actors and actresses unable to find work were forced to be subjected to these roles.

The change during this era was very crucial in the black community and particularly so for the Black woman. The female centered Blaxploitation flicks portrayed Black women as sexually aggressive deviants. Few will argue that Pam Grier was probably the most notable actresses of this period and film genre. Grier made a total of ten major Blaxploitation films that changed the face of Black female representation in film.

III. The Present
“Oh my God. I’m sorry. This moment is so much bigger than me. This moment is for Dorothy Dandridge, Lena Horne, Diahann Carroll. It’s for the women that stand beside me, Jada Pinkett, Angela Bassett and its fore very nameless, faceless woman of color that now has a chance because this door tonight has been opened. Thank you. I’m so honored. I am so honored and thank the academy for choosing me to be the vessel from which this blessing might flow. Thank you.” - Halle Berry at the 2002 Oscars

In 2002, actress Halle Berry made history by becoming the first African American to ever be awarded the Oscar for best actress, for her role in Monster’s Ball (2001). Although this was a triumphant day in the Black community, it would be naïve to believe that the days of the negative portrayal of Black women were over. As a reminder it must be noted that Halle Berry’s role as Leticia was arguably that of a broken down Black woman who prostituted herself for a White man.

The Oscar for best supporting actress, which runs secondary to the best actress award, was also only won once by a Black actress, Hattie McDaniel in Gone With the Wind (1939). And as already noted, in this role McDaniel’s played a Mammy. Unfortunately, Mrs. McDaniel’s could not leave us with an Oscar speech as eloquent as Ms. Berry’s, since she was not allowed to attend the award show,(thank you Nas).

So although the Jezebel has replaced the Mammy as the dominant image of Black Women in America, nothing has really changed the perception of these Women in the eyes of a male dominated society. These women are still seen as willing, sexual deviants who will fulfill any and all sexual fantasies. Thank the Academy for that. As a result of this depiction of Black women, the male harasser whether white or black still views her as his own personal sexual object. All one can do is continue to press filmmakers to think outside the box and challenge these negative images and stereotypes.