African-American Imagery Essay

Introduction

Slavery and racism in the US led to the emergence of various African American stereotypes, which were used in media, marketing, cartoons, and even in the decoration of household items. The most prevalent stereotypical imagery of African Americans was the mammy, coon, sambo, pickaninny, and uncle Tom. This paper will explore this imagery and parallel it to the stereotypes related to the depiction of ethnic white immigrants. It will also discuss the long-lasting impacts of African-American imagery and the way it appears in modern media, marketing, and movies.

Main body

African-American imagery is perfectly described in the documentary Ethnic Notions, directed by Marlon Riggs. According to the film, the mammy was depicted as “fat, pitch-black, and happily obedient to her master and mistress,” and she was “an antithesis of the white lady” (Riggs). This stereotype served as the defense of slavery since it represented a Black woman happy with her enslaved status and finding her value to society in serving her masters.

Male stereotypes were numerous, but most of them depicted African-American men as idle. The coon was depicted as a lazy Black man unhappy with his slavery status but unwilling to change anything (Knight 8). The sambo resembled the coon in his laziness but was happy with his life situation, “reveling in the easy pleasures of food, dance, and song” (Riggs). These two stereotypes defended slavery in different ways: the coon was “proof of blacks’ ludicrous failure to adapt to freedom,” and the sambo was “the fantasy of happy darkies in their proper place” (Riggs). Uncle Tom can be considered a male equivalent of the mammy since he was depicted as a “faithful, obedient, and happy domestic servant” (Knight 9). He differs from the coon and the sambo since he is happy to work for his masters.

Stereotypical imagery existed not only for African-American men and women but also for children. Black children were depicted as savages: they had large red lips, uncombed hair, and dirt all over their bodies (Knight 10). They were portrayed “hanging from trees, crawling on the ground or by the river, partially clothed or even nude” (Knight 10). A frequent attribute of pictures of African-American children was their eating of large pieces of watermelon. This animal-like imagery of African-American children was called pickaninny, and it was necessary to justify white people’s violence against them.

Not only African-American people were subject to stereotypical imagery in the US. Ethnic while immigrants were also depicted in a derogatory way. Cartoons created in the 19^th century portray immigrants as unwanted, destitute, and criminal individuals who threatened America. The cartoon “Where the Blame Lies” clearly shows Americans’ negative attitudes toward immigrants, labeled as “German socialist,” “Russian anarchist,” “Polish vagabond,” “Italian brigand,” “English convict,” and “Irish pauper” (Mueller). These attitudes are difficult to justify because Americans themselves were immigrants from Europe at some point in the past.

African-American stereotypes have had a lasting impact on the racial relationships in the US and African-American people’s self-perception. Stereotypical imagery leads to erroneous representations of racial and ethnic minority groups, which results in racial prejudices and even refusal to support race-based policies (Ramasubramanian and Sousa 2). Moreover, racial stereotypes cause a lower sense of belonging, depression, and anxiety in women and the criminalization of African-American men (Butler-Barnes et al. 117). Thus, no matter how innocuous stereotypical imagery may seem, its consequences are always negative.

Although there is a struggle against racial stereotypes, stereotypical images of African Americans can still be found today in contemporary movies, marketing, and cartoons. For example, the uncle Tom imagery is common in American films, such as Die Hard, where “the white hero is accompanied by a black sidekick” (Merskin 5). The Aunt Jemima brand uses a picture of a smiling Black woman that is similar to the mammy imagery, but since it is racist, the company considers rebranding (Ward and Wiley). Apart from that, movies, advertisements, and TV shows often feature African Americans with lighter skin, which is also a manifestation of racial stereotypes (Merskin 6). Thus, the African-American imagery developed to justify slavery is still present in modern media.

Works Cited

Butler-Barnes, Sheretta T., et al. “Stereotypes of African Americans.” Stereotypes: The Incidence and Impacts of Bias, edited by Joel T. Nadler and Elora C. Voyles, ABC-CLIO, 2020, pp. 109-127.

Knight, Wanda B. “Black Image and Identity in the US Curriculum.” The International Encyclopedia of Art and Design Education, edited by Richard Hickman et al., John Wiley & Sons, 2019, pp. 1-17.

Merskin, Debra. “Media Representation: Minorities.” The International Encyclopedia of Media Effects, edited by Patrick Rössler et al., John Wiley & Sons, 2017, pp. 1-10.

Mueller, Paul R. “Immigration and Urbanization Visuals.” Sutori, 2020. Web.

Ramasubramanian, Srividya, and Alexandra Sousa. “Media and Ethnic Stereotyping.” The International Encyclopedia of Media Literacy, edited by Renee Hobbs et al., John Wiley & Sons, 2019, pp. 1-7.

Riggs, Marlon, director. Ethnic Notions. California Newsreel, 1987.

Ward, Marguerite, and Melissa Wiley. “14 racist brands, mascots, and logos that were considered just another part of American life.” Business Insider, 2020, Web.