The Struggles of the Black Americans in Civil Rights Movement, a Book by Michael Ezra Essay Example

the point where a violent fight broke out between Sal, the Italian pizza shop owner, and Radio Raheem who was backed by several other black community members.

However, Ezra says most black Americans felt that non-violent methods were the way to go and had the overarching goal of "legitimizing the black presence in American cultural... institutions" (Ezra xiv). This goal was depicted in the film in one scene where several characters are spitting different aggressive racial slurs at each other, the character Mister Senor Love Daddy snaps “Y'all take a chill! Ya need to cool that shit out!”” because tearing down other races is not what the black power movement was about, it was about fundamentally changing the thoughts and actions of a nation of people (Lee). Continually, the character Radio Raheem talks about how he got hand rings saying “love” and “hate” and how “left-hand hate KOed by Love” meaning that love overcomes hate (Lee). This message attempted to be emphasized in the movie, similar to how in most movements non-violence was the preferred approach.

In the end of racially charged movements that turn violent, there is an oversaturated response to the actions which resulted in the death of one of the characters: Radio Raheem. Radio Raheem was always blasting hip hop music while walking around. In his article, Boyd notes that "you might get a better read of what's going on in the word of Black people today by listening to DMX... [over] Martin Luther King speeches”' (Boyd 1). Hip Hop music and cinema encompasses the real social issues that are happening and changing with the times in a more artistic and unique

manner than social speeches—something depicted by Radio Raheem carrying around a stereo and rarely speaking to anyone. He let the hip hop music speak for him.

Boyd claims that "hip hop is much more active...aggressive...militant” than a speech. Possibly because music and cinema is able to be transferred coast to coast at a much quicker speed than a speaker is able to, and is a powerful, but non-violent, way to convey the feelings of a whole community (Boyd 1). Furthermore, Boyd continues with "hip hop is much more immediate and much more relevant" to the changes, successes, and failures happening within black Americans struggles (Boyd 1). Hip hop music and cinema “connected local struggles to global ones” on a level as well because of the ability to connect the struggles of one community to so many others with the increasing popularity of the music and film (Ezra xiv). In “Do the Right Thing" the community is a relatively small one, but is still full of racial tension mostly between the Italian pizza store owner and the black community members.

The message it sends is of the everyday struggles of being a black American to depict to those outside of their community what it is like. In the introductory chapter of “Perspectives in American Social History” Ezra quickly, but thoroughly, explains the history and reality of black Americans every day struggles outside of the civil rights movement that help to explain the significance of the film “Do the Right Thing" as well as points Todd Boyd makes in his article about hip hop music.