(ThyBlackMan.com) It is no secret the recent exploitation of Nate Parker’s sexually irresponsible adolescent (19) behavior is a ploy to discredit his character in effort to create a cloud of suspicion around his new work, Birth of a Nation, a film centered around freedom fighter Nat Turner. In discussing the inception of the film, Nate mentions he adopted the title from G.W. Griffith’s 20th century movie that sought to depict African men (ex-slaves) as salvages post civil war. Thus justifying the founding of the ku-klux-klan. However, the object of this article is not to decode the psychosis behind Griffith’s film or the ku-klux-klan, but to acknowledge the attack on Nate Parker as just that, and to express the need for heroic depictions of African men such as Nat Turner.
I am a playwright who believes art shapes the mind and perspective of the public. It begins passively as what we see (in our immediate mind/thought). Then, after penetration, it aggressively influence
s how we see (our perspective/point-of-view). In fact, if we are not careful to moderate, art and images determine who we become. Just think of the amount of money spent on advertisements. The art of imagery alone is powerful. Imagery alone is art. For the purpose of this article we will define art as the compilation of images, movement, and sound that make up the environment (agriculture, neighborhood, school, etc.) and world of entertainment (theater, film, television, etc.) surrounding the human race. Thus art is everything around us that is not us. Furthermore, we create art to reflect our existence.
Only 101 years ago (1915), when G.W. Griffith’s Birth of a Nation screened, we had no power over our mainstream image. The result is a distorted knowledge of self and potential. This morning I visited the local comic shop to find myself and did not succeed. All of the popular superheroes in America are non-African. Limited images of African heroes communicate limited potential to African boys. From the inception of Griffith’s Birth of a Nation onward, African boys (and men) are met with disparaging images of their existence. We try but do not see ourselves in the non-African superheroes so we are forced to look elsewhere.
Thus many African boys aspire to be athletes, rappers, and even criminals (e.g. dope boys) because of the constant bombardment of such self-reflective images. ‘Arguably’ the three most popular (commercially successful) superheroes today are: Batman, Superman, and Spider-Man. In the aforementioned characters, the non-African (White) boy is seeing himself as (to name a few) billionaire/philanthropist, journalist, and science-whiz. Ultimately all three exceptional characters will discover he also has superhuman abilities to fight crime AND protect his community/family. The result is a confident boy who believes he can grow to become the self-reflecting fictional superhero that is indirectly communicating the characteristics of a responsible adult male/patriarch.
The question here is: how can we expect our African boys to become what we are failing to show them in a comic book? Yes, President Barack Obama has served two terms; but long before a boy can appreciate the color of his president he is learning to admire superheroes. We have to look at this. If the act of slavery is unlawful then it is criminal behavior. Therefore, Nat Turner was fighting crime like the aforementioned superheroes. He was an African hero. This is an image we need to crystalize and continue to reproduce in the form of comic strips, cartoons, and the like so our sons can see their skin on a ‘leading’ superhero.
This is not about segregation or war. The civil-war is supposedly over. This is about equal opportunity and providing a fair amount of self-reflective heroic images for all boys to identify with in order to see their potential. Now, with Nate Parker’s Birth of a Nation, African men (boys) can see in Nat Turner the ability to rebel against oppression in effort to protect and provide for their community/family the way God intended. We have to understand why skeletons are being thrown from Nate Parker’s teenage closet. If not, we will miss the birth of a nation. Wear rose colored glasses to see this film because we do need another hero.
Staff Writer; TS