Birth of a Nation
American society has indeed been met with many challenges with time. One of such problems was the issue of slavery and white supremacists. During the 1800s slavery was abolished but the issue of racism continues in the modern-day United States. Recently the country has been rocked by ‘me too’ and ‘black lives matter’ social justice campaigns which serve to remind us of the issues of racism and gender disparity are still tolerated within the country. A film that brings the light this issue is Nate Parker’s film, “Birth of a Nation?” having been dubbed by some critics as the most racist film ever made. It is good to review the cultural context of this film to know why it was such a controversial film, and it is still today with a hundred years have passed since its inception.
The film “Birth of a Nation” when examined in its cultural context perspective it comes out as racist and misogynistic even for the majority of the white people who subscribe to the White supremacist school of thought. The cultural context for these films by Griffith is one encompassed by White supremacists who belong to the upper class. This class is predominantly protestant, possesses a sense of white and wrong with the beliefs that people of color are different inferior species in comparison to them. To these White supremacists, they share very little of their existence with blacks They believe in having a status quo within the society.
Nate brings out the American culture which has persisted for so long, a culture that is coupled with social gender issues and racial disparities. The cultural context of the film is one that acknowledges and values the experience of the people of color. It portrays the historical injustices which have been perpetrated over generations with no hope of abating.