Representation of Black Femininity in the Black Arts Movement
The Black Arts Movement was an African American led art movement that was active during the 1960s and 1970s. Through activism and art, the Black Arts Movement created new cultural institutions and conveyed a message of black pride. Yet while the Black Arts Movement has solely been focused on amplifying the voice of the black community in a white-driven society, it has also only been mainly vocalizing men's voices in this community and minimizing women’s voices. How have women in the black community also received a voice to be heard alongside the movement?
Cultural production in the media nowadays have become more expansive and more diverse in the communities the media decides to represent. The Black Arts movement had an impact on why it is like this now, but this exact issue of what the media can choose what communities to represent and what about that community they can represent can lead to several issues. It can give the public a false view of what that community actually is, leading them to create hurtful stereotypes of them or to mis-accurately represent their culture.
Just like in Thomas Allen Harris' film, "Goes Through Darkly Lens", he discusses how the media representing the African American community in America's history of archives represent hurtful stereotypes of his community. If it isn't a black person behind those camera lenses taking these images, then that is what leads to these hurtful stereotypes and for them to be discriminated against in a majorly white society. Representation matters and it is what shapes people's images of the black community. But representation can only matter when everyone in the community has a voice, whether they are men, women, young, or old.
As we have examined throughout this course so far, we have viewed and discussed various literary pieces and visual artworks that expanded our understanding of the history of the Black Arts movement and its effect on America’s media culture. The Black Arts movement had such an impact on today’s media representation that it has become mandatory for companies to go out of their way to represent various communities in their media to show the diversity of this “united” nation.
While these resources have provided extensive information and depth to the impact the Black Arts movement had on society’s media based culture and the recognition that black communities have earned from this, the pieces we have primarily focused on were done by black men. Such examples include “Through a Lens Darkly'' by Thomas Allen Harris and “The Sweet Flypaper of Life '' by Roy DeCarava and Langston Hughes. There is also the exhibition of “Soul of a Nation”, which does include various pieces from both black men and women, yet we haven’t really dwelled on the pieces made primarily by black women.
Such as how the black community fought against discrimination in society due to their race, there is still discrimination in their own communities due to their genders. Men have more of a voice in society than women in general, and the same could be said for these black communities. Having pieces to explore that are primarily focused on women and were made by women can give a different perspective in these black communities. This movement has focused more on black masculinity when black femininity is just as impactful.
Yet despite such a strong representation of black masculinity in this movement, several black women have equally left such an impact that their names are marked in history. One notable example is Nikki Giovanni. She is supposedly the most famous woman poet of the Black Arts Movement, with her early poetry providing a strong, militant presence. So much so, they dubbed her the "Poet of the Black Revolution." She has written several pieces such as “Black Feeling, Black Talk”, “Black Judgement”, and “Re: Creation”. Some of her poems focus on her childhood experiences and the difference between american and african american lifestyles. She describes the difference between each lifestyle and how the whites will never understand the importance of their ideologies of family over wealth as most whites grew up rich while their communities have been raised in poverty. She also makes several insights on the ideas of racism, poverty, and her own personal childhood experiences as a little girl.
Another example to explore is Sonia Sanchez and her poetry contributions to the Black Arts Movement with her pieces such as “Homecoming” and “We BaddDDD People”. Her pieces focus on topics such as the struggle of defining black identity in the United States, the celebration of black culture in society, and the everyday lives of black women and men. She has a certain piece called “I’ve__ a Woman” that gives more of a feminine approach in contributing to the Black Arts movement by providing her own personal experiences. This book particularly focuses on the experiences of being female in a society that “does not prepare young black women, or women period, to be women.”
One final example to explore is a visual piece done by Betye Saar. She is most well known for her piece, “The Liberation of Aunt Jemima”. This piece depicts radical Black Nationalist imagery of weapons, a raised fist, and a racist depiction of Aunt Jemima, the face of black stereotypes. Saar was appalled by the day to day racist depictions she found on everyday objects she saw in her daily outings. This inspired her to depict the destructive nature of these stereotypes in the form of a black female figure. Moved by the strength and determination of black women, Saar sought to recast a painfully enduring image of black female subservience as a symbol of empowerment.
In conclusion, women should have been given more of a voice in the Black Arts movement as men had. Yes, the movement made a great impact in representing their various cultural differences in order to be better appreciated by the majority white society, but it was mainly black masculinity that was represented. Black femininity did have a voice in the movement, but it did not have much of a spotlight as sexism was still present, whether or not you were black or white. It deprived the media to properly represent black femininity and their experiences, but various women have shown that it is possible and their voices can be heard and leave an impact on society for the better.
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