Blog Post #5

 One of the most shocking things in the content we covered this week was the use of

homophobic slurs in Blacula. Because of the time the movie came out, I am not surprised that the

word was used, but rather the intent of using the word. In the lecture, Professor Due discussed

how homophobia is used in the film as a way to show that all discrimination/oppression is

harmful, not just things directed towards black people. In an effort to display intersectionality, I

believe the film missed the mark and could have achieved this goal without using the word.

However, I am aware that I am looking at the film through a more progressive lens, and at the

time, that type of rhetoric was pretty normal to hear.

What surprised me about Blacula was learning about the segregated funeral homes.

While I have a decent knowledge of the Jim Crow Era and the laws surrounding that, it did not

dawn on me that even funeral homes could be segregated as well. To me, this was surprising

because, in my opinion, in death, race does not matter. But seeing the scene where the couple can

not be at the funeral home together because they are different races, highlighted just how high

racial tensions were. It is interesting the ways segregation is highlighted in this film, but I think

the funeral home scene was the most impactful in displaying how heinous and how far Jim Crow

laws actually went.

I also found the discussion of attraction negating bias to be interesting. In lecture,

Professor Due discusses how the film uses attraction to other races to negate bias. I find this

topic to be fascinating, especially nowadays because many people believe they can not have bias

because they are willing to date outside of their race. I agree with Professor Due that attraction

does not mean you can not have bias and that it is not a good measure to check for your bias. In

the film, simply because he is attracted to a white woman, does not mean he can not have bias

towards white people. I feel like this is a trope that needed to be brought up and while the film

does not attempt to discuss this trope in the way I am discussing it, I feel that it is good that it

was brought up. Especially looking at the film from a more modern lens, having discussions on

things such as attraction relating to bias, is important because people still have debates about it

today.

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