Black History Month & Social Justice Issue March 2021

FILM REVIEW

Do The Right Thing

Jasper Harvey, 10 int

Spike Lee’s 1989 film “Do The Right Thing” remains one of the most relevant representations of racial tensions and struggle in cinema. The film takes place in Brooklyn, on one hot summer day where racial conflict was as blistering as the weather. The film follows Mookie, a pizza delivery man played by Spike Lee himself. When we are introduced to Mookie, he seems unlikeable. He doesn’t take his job very seriously at all, and hangs out with his friends when he should be delivering pizza. He works for a white man named Sal, and their relationship is quite interesting. While his sons do not treat Mookie well at all, one of whom even goes out of way to use slurs around him, Sal himself likes Mookie. At one point in the film he says that he sees him as a son. Despite the somewhat laid back and casual vibe for most the film, social commentary is evidently still omnipresent. It is no coincidence that the only successful businesses in the neighborhood are owned by nonblack families, despite the neighborhood’s majority black population. To combat this injustice in their own community, the neighborhood’s inhabitants rebel in their own ways. Mookie’s friend Radio Raheem protests by playing his music extra loud in Sal’s Pizzeria and the asian family’s store, while Buggin’ Out demands that Sal puts black figures on his store’s wall of famous people. Over the course of the day tension is slowly rising, and it reaches its breaking point at the climax of the film. Raheem and Buggin’ out go over to Sal’s pizzeria with Smiley, a mentally ill man who has been handing out pictures of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King for the entire film. At the pizzeria, they once again demand that some black people are put up on the wall of fame. Buggin’ out proclaims that they will boycott the pizzeria if Sal doesn’t do as they say. In response, Sal breaks Raheem's radio and calls Buggin’ Out the N word. Raheem replies by attacking Sal and putting him in a chokehold. The police are called to break up the incident. Instead of de escalating the situation, one of the officers chokes Raheem and kills him. An angry mob forms, and Mookie throws a trash can into Sal’s Pizzeria’s window. The mob follows Mookie’s lead and burns down the building.

In a moment of frustration at his inability to prevent racial violence in his own community, right and wrong go out the window for Mookie. He is consumed by the emotions he feels as a young black man in the time period. He has just seen his friend murdered by the police in front of him. He gives this community in the neighborhood a way to channel their frustration by attacking the racist shop, which he feels is responsible for Raheem’s death. Mookie was frustrated by the racial abuse he faced from Sal’s sons, so that certainly influenced his actions in the end.

Do the right thing is a story about the frustration an entire neighborhood feels about the systemic oppression they face on a day to day basis. It plays upon Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Junior’s contrasting ideas on how to go about revolting and societal change. Is peaceful protest the proper way to achieve reform, or are drastic revolutionary methods the only solution? The film makes us viewers ask ourselves what is the right thing to do. However, Spike Lee presents how those two ideals go hand in hand using imagery throughout the film. The first example of this is the rings that say “love” and “hate”. “Love” is a term very often associated with MLK, whereas “hate” is usually associated with the more radical philosophies of Malcolm X. Raheem says that the two go together, and cannot exist without each other. The second example of the two philosophies going together is with the image that Smiley sells. The image (seen above) shows MLK and Malcolm X shaking hands. This represents the idea that just as Malcom X and MLK coexisted and worked together, their ideologies can too to bring about societal change.

Some would critique Mookie for choosing to revolt the way he did, whereas others would see it as completely rational. Spike Lee has said that only white people ever ask him why Mookie threw the can, because they do not understand the frustration that Mookie and the members of his community felt. What is so important about this film to me is its timelessness. From remarks about the hot weather to the overall message, nothing about the film has dated at all. One could simply change the date and the film would make perfect sense if it was released in 2020.

BOOK REVIEW

March

Flora Haberman, 8A

Sure, we’ve all read comics throughout our lives. Even if not, it’s certainly not every day that you read one written by a congressman. March, the first book in the "March" trilogy, written by Congressman John Lewis and Andrew Aydin, illustrated by Nate Powell, is a black and white graphic novel about the Civil Rights movement. In this captivating read, Lewis recounts his life and tells of his struggles as a civil rights pioneer. The book opens with the Selma to Montgomery March in 1965, where we are shown a scene of peaceful protesters greeted brutally by armed police and then are savagely beaten and attacked without provocation. The story shifts further in time to 2009 where we see Barack Obama’s inauguration as a kind of contrast to show the progression the movement has made over the years. This is where Lewis begins narrating his autobiography, starting with his life as a child. Although there is more narrative text in this graphic novel and not much dialogue, the art and descriptions make up for it and manage to bring warmth and energy to the page. Because of its unique, illustrated format, readers are able to take in this compelling story of bravery and persistence with even more detail and intensity compared to simply reading a usual novel. I absolutely recommend this book as it is not only educational but also does a great job of depicting a chaotic time of uncertainty in America and the courage it takes to prevail in a world of hateful discrimination. From what I could tell by just glancing through the second book is that it gives us a glimpse of the time when Lewis discovers the true power of nonviolent protest and how it fuels the Civil Rights movement as he shares the method with countless others. The novel also tells of a specific incident in which he and his fellow Freedom Riders board a bus into the heart of the deep south and are tested like never before. Reading this, we are better able to understand the profound fear felt during this time and how much bravery it took for the Freedom Riders to relentlessly keep putting themselves into harm’s way, often getting arrested or beaten, just for the sake of their rights and liberty. I can’t wait to learn more about Mr. Lewis’s experiences and delve even deeper into this wonderful series. I hope you find the time to take a look- you will not be disappointed!

Living During the 1960s Civil Rights Movement

Ethan Cho, 7C

"The Watsons Go to Birmingham" (1963) by Christopher Paul Curtis starts at the beginning of the 1960s Civil Rights Movement, and it takes place in Flint, Michigan. Kenny Watson, the protagonist of the book, is ten years old. His older brother, Byron, 13, is a delinquent. Their younger sister, Joetta, is five years old. The parents are Wilona and Daniel. The Black family discusses visiting Grandma Sands to change Byron’s foul behaviour. They go way south towards Birmingham, where Grandma Sands lives. They meet the sweet old lady, and stay for a while. They visit a lake one day, Kenny goes in, starts to drown, and Byron saves him. Joetta goes to church for Sunday school, but the church gets bombed. Right before the church is bombed, Joetta hallucinates seeing Kenny, and avoids injury. When they move back to Flint, Kenny has a nervous breakdown, and Byron helps him relax. "The Watsons Go to Birmingham" (1963) is a bildungsroman.

At the beginning of the book, Byron is a cocky, rebellious, mean bully, and he has a cynical attitude. He bullies his own brother, plays with fire, and never listens to anyone. He wrongfully abuses the special deal the grocery market owner has with his father by taking many cookie boxes without having to pay. Then, when they decide to go to Birmingham to change his attitude, it somehow works. They visit Grandma Sands, and a few days later, Kenny goes into the lake with a whirlpool, and starts to drown. Byron helps him out of the whirlpool, which shows the reader a new side to him, the new strong older brother who saves his younger brother from the monstrous Wool Pooh. This shows maturity, as Byron did not have to save Kenny, and this also shows that Byron values Kenny more than he lets on. Then, after the church is bombed, Kenny has a nervous breakdown, and Byron notices. He notifies their parents, and helps Kenny calm down with his old sarcasm and a good talking session. This shows that Byron is now a well-behaved adolescent and a caring older brother. Kenny grows up in the sense that he realizes that some humans have no qualms about killing other humans over racist reasons. After realizing that fact, he starts to freak out and he cannot take it. While the reader is oblivious to what happens to the main character after then, it is implied that he eventually recovers, and it is almost assured that he becomes much more mature in the end.

Christopher Paul Curtis’s thrilling tale is definitely a coming-of-age novel since Kenny and Byron grow up by the end of the book.

Caste - Isabel Wilkerson

Oliver Grouille, 10 Int

When discussing racial justice in the United States, many books come to mind. Arguably the most controversial and yet insightful work that comes up is Isabel Wilkerson’s "Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents". The book is based upon the idea that the United States is a society with a caste system. In the book Wilkerson is very clear in distinguishing caste (or rank in the caste) from race and class. She explains that your class is defined by external characteristics such as the way you dress or your accent; in others words things that can be altered. Race is determined by your skin, but your caste is a bit more arbitrary. Caste, like in India, places you on a scale that determines access to opportunities and availability of the most basic thing like education or healthcare. She explains that unlike in India, your ranking is and has historically been determined by your race in the United States. In the beginnings of the novel Wilkerson talks about the nation as an old house that is inherited: “when you have an old house, the work is never done. You must look at the foundation: That is the basis of the building being able to stand.” Wilkerson elaborates by going into depth on the everlasting effects of slavery and how the are the outdated structure still keeping the “house” up.

I thoroughly enjoyed the book, but before I started to read I had difficulty accepting the word caste in this new context, because in the caste system that comes to mind, I had never studied any sort of rebellion. Compared to the current turmoil happening in the US, this would have been a completely different situation. I was under the impression that in India, where the Dalits, or the Untouchables, are on the bottom, there had been no sort of rebellion. I always thought that there was no fight against the system in India; that the Dalits accepted their place in society and continued to stay at the bottom. Wilkerson addresses this in the 7th chapter and resolves all confusion immediately. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to educate themselves and understand more about the problems of our time. The troubling events we see everyday will not begin to resolve themselves when so few people really realise the real situation at hand. As Wilkerson says in an interview with the Harvard Gazette, “You cannot heal what you have not diagnosed. You cannot repair what you do not see.”

Art Review

Obnoxious Liberals, Jean-Michel Basquiat (1982)

Catalina Haberman, 10 Int

The extraordinary work of Jean-Michel Basquiat has always been immediately recognizable. Whether it be the abstract shapes, distinct objects, or written words camouflaged behind the Picasso-like figures, his artistic expression is unlike any other. Born in New York City in 1960, Basquiat grew up surrounded by racial injustice given his Haitian/Puerto Rican descent. The kind of oppression he witnessed at such a young age filled him with the determination to stand up and fight against the inequity that continues to infiltrate African American communities to this day.

He began spray painting graffiti as a teenager and eventually went on to produce some of the most influential and unique works of art ever studied. While his work is greatly admired by the general public as well as other prominent artists, what many fail to note is its profundity. Upon closer observation, it is clear that Basquiat’s art is deeply political, however his technique to convey such complex themes causes people to underestimate his talent and voice. This piece, titled “Obnoxious Liberals'' (1982), is considered by critics to best demonstrate Basquiat’s rebellious stance. It depicts the power of capitalism and its disenfranchised victims as well as the vulture like nature of the art world. The dark-skinned figure on the left represents the oppressed part of the community that Basquiat was born into. The surrounding details reflect the systemic despotism inflicted upon communities of color, while the dominance of rich, white America is portrayed on the right. The cowboy hats, dollar signs, and Uncle Sam figure symbolize the corruption of White American culture caused by corporate greed. This was the genius of Basquiat: the amount of thought he put into what to include on his canvases. His goal was to bring the viewer closer to what he saw; what he, himself was experiencing and what his community was going through. Given his background as a street artist, critics initially believed that there wasn’t much thought put into his paintings. On the contrary, however, he pondered carefully about the messages he wanted to convey and used specific colors, words, and shapes to do so. For instance, we see the word “Asbestos” written numerous times in the upper left corner, representing the hazardous living conditions that black and brown communities were subjected to. Basquiat made a great effort to present such topics in his art.

At first glance, this work may come across as childish, with its scribbles and random splashes of primal tones, but it is in reality so much more. Basquiat used the voice he had through art to shine light upon significant issues such as police brutality and black identity in a way that was never used before. His brilliance is shown in every one of his paintings, and what a gift it would be to see what he may have contributed over the decades, especially in this moment in time.

Music

An Unlikely Grammy Nominee

Catalina Haberman, 10 Int

Jimmy “Duck” Holmes doesn’t read music. He doesn’t write music. He doesn’t even write lyrics. Yet his album, “Cypress Grove”, was nominated for a Grammy as the Best Traditional Blues Album this year. The seventy-three year old has played his guitar right outside the Blue Front Café, in Bentonia, Mississippi, for decades. It was only recently that he was invited by his friend and manager to travel to Nashville with the goal of recording a few songs with producer Dan Auerbach. Holmes is known as one of the few lasting Bentonia bluesmen, a type of blues that separates itself from others with its spellbinding melodies and evocative style. It’s incredibly refreshing to have a different artist share their gift with us during such a momentous time in history. To learn more, take a listen to Steve Hartman’s visit with Holmes on the CBS News Sunday Morning show: https://www.cbsnews.com/video/blues-man-meet-an-unlikely-grammy-nominee/

Poetry

A girl is born…

Flora Haberman, 8A

A girl is born to the world

Dark and beautiful,

Soft brown skin shining like pearls

A boy is given life

Laid gently in his mothers arms

All melanin and infantile charm

Both will grow, steady and high

Like new seedlings sprouting towards the golden sky

Emerging from their womb of rich soil

The girl will learn all numbers

The boy will learn to write

They’ll be up at night, past their bedtimes,

Reading joyously in secret by flashlight.

Small, curious, itching to grasp

She wants to know more about constellations and the moon

While he begs his mother to let him skip school

“Can we please go to the natural history museum soon?”

Innocent discovery, wanting to explore

Still shielded from what they don’t yet know

Mama thinks it’s a blessing

Because there’s so much harm in what’s left to learn.

You see what the boy doesn’t know

Is when his father goes to work

The drive is sometimes tense, uncertain, nearing perilous

The ominous meaning of a police car trailing him from behind apparent.

10 mph over the limit

He just didn’t want to be late

Prays that the officer takes mercy

That he hasn’t landed into hands stiff with hate

And what the girl doesn’t know

Is that she’ll endure days

In which her halo of black, glorious hair

Feels no longer like the gift her family says it is

But more like a curse flung upon her

Like the angry names spat in her direction

Bruising her soul

By people without hearts in their chests

And instead gaping holes.

So mother and father

Do their best to spread wings of protection

Like dark curtains, an attempt to hide the cruel infection

But sadly what truly lays beyond

Cannot be masked for long

As it is simply everywhere

Inequity taking up every inch of air

And suffocating cries for unity full of despair.

The girl will get wiser and older

The boy stronger and bolder

And both will have to watch with unfaltering eyes

The reality of their world unfold,

With no more disguise.

Button-up

Nessi Girard, 6A

There was a clear sheen to it

A whitewash, careful buttons

The sleeves clung to my arms

Like memories to my mind

The shirt was new, fresh off the rack

Its clear buttons shone under the light

The room's yellow lamp made it seem…

Well, perfect

It was cool, new, and best of all-

It wasn’t a dress

All my fancy clothes

They were long, and felt like billowy chains to femininity 

They were intricate, interesting

They were beautiful and delicate 

But this was new

New in form, new in color

New in texture, new in feeling

New in interest, and new in my mind

The shirt made me feel new,

New and brave

I walked to school the next day, proud

Shirt buttoned, standing tall

The teacher passed me by,

And from her mouth,

I heard one of the phrases that made me reconsider everything

“Who is he?”

One Ripple, One Change

Frida Gerhardt, 6B

A ripple in a pond

A pebble in a bucket

Each Kindness

Each memory

The child new to school

The child who has been there for life

Wearing Chanel

or shopping a thrift store

Makes no difference to me

A book at the library

that always reminds me

to be kind to everyone I meet

First read when I was young 

last read when I was a tween 

A story that will haunt you

and make you think

Think about friends 

think about school

Sitting in my room

Atop a bookshelf

Making a new ripple 

everyday

Books and ideas

are a change waiting to happen

In the midst of these unsettling and uncertain times, the country is watching the trial of Derek Chauvin, the police officer charged with murdering George Floyd. I turned on my television to witnesses, young and old, reliving the trauma of seeing a black man being slowly suffocated to death on the street. The new videos being presented as evidence are jarring and utterly heartbreaking. While we hold our breath waiting to see if this will be yet another officer acquitted, so many are praying for a different result this time. There is no good outcome in this case, as a man’s life was lost. We continue to be frustrated and outraged by the repeated exoneration of bad actors in the police force, seeing so many cases in which officers merely receive a slap on the wrist for abusing their authority and never the adequate punishments. What will hopefully take place are immediate reforms like only hiring qualified individuals to take these important positions in our communities and properly training our cops to be the responsible, fair, and protective figures we all look up to. The tragedy of this story is that it has changed the lives of those who witnessed it and the family of George Floyd, but has made the rest of us take a deep look at the role we all play in how we treat others in our fractured society.

Contributors:

Catalina Haberman

Ciel Patterson

Ethan Cho

Flora Haberman

Frida Gerhardt

Jasper Harvey

Nessi Girard

Oliver Grouille