Movies and Video Games Present Racial Stereotypes

Professor studies portrayals of African Americans in pop culture. Washington State University Assistant Professor David Leonard has been studying and teaching the representation of racial groups in popular culture, and the picture is not pretty. 

In his book “Screens Fade to Black,” Leonard explains how the images offered within Hollywood since 9/11 are connected to images of the past and reinforce stereotypes and the inequalities of society. “Blacks are often represented as dangerous, criminals or products of welfare, drug addiction and single-mother households, as if welfare or growing up in a single-parent household results in criminality,” he said.

“Movies such as ‘Training Day’ or ‘Baby Boy’ depict blacks as dysfunctional and dangerous, offering a clear explanation of why 50 percent of today’s prison population is African American, erasing explanations of racism or state violence for the sake of blaming individuals for their own failures,” said Leonard, a comparative ethnic studies professor.

Video games do not fare better than movies in representing blacks, Latinos or women. “Movies are more sophisticated and subtle in the way they present the ‘new racism,’ while video games embody a more ‘in your face’ racism; there is no subtlety in virtual reality,” Leonard said.

During one of his lectures, Leonard will explain to his students that 52 percent of male characters and 78 percent of female characters in video games are white, while only 37 percent and 10 percent respectively are African American. Additionally, 83 percent of black characters are competitors in sports-oriented video games and more prone to aggressive behavior than white characters. Black women are more likely than any other group to be victims of violence and 61 percent of black characters are unaffected by violence, with only 15 percent showing physical harm and pain.

“Representing some people of color as criminals naturalizes the status quo and demands for increasing policing and jails,” Leonard said. “These representations reinforce long-standing racial ideologies that demonize communities of color.”

“What astonishes me is that our society increasingly finds enjoyment and pleasure through watching and consuming those communities besieged by contemporary; what does it say about a society that profits off and relishes the opportunity to play within spaces plagued by injustice. Rather than to seek to undo and challenge the many injustices facing poor communities of color, it is more common to see those living outside these communities used and abused for entertainment sake,” he said.

“I think Black History Month should focus more on the history and contributions of African Americans who challenged racism, such as Henry Belafonte or Paul Robeson, as a place of beginning for today’s struggle. Too often Black History Month follows the pattern of consuming the ‘other,’ whether with supermarkets offering special advertising during February of foods that are stereotypically African American or programs that offer a G-rated history of American racism and African American struggle. Celebrating a community by consuming cultural products or even the history itself does not reflect the spirit of Black History Month, or a means to challenge racism.”

Leonard can be reached at djl@wsu.edu or (509) 335-2605.