Black-ish Video and Image

Through this incorporation of sound, text, image, and video I wanted to tie in concepts that we have discussed throughout the semester so far. I chose my blog post dealing with representation and intersectionality because I believe the text and the image work well together: the image is eye catching and a picture many are familiar with playing off the “We Can Do It!” advertisement. I chose a clip from the popular TV show on ABC “black-ish”. This clip comes from an episode of black-ish that is in reference to the recent election of Donald Trump and how the main character Dre, addresses the topic at his job. I thought that these tied together well because they both deal with patriotism in the United States. In the video and the image, these minority groups are facing challenges and struggles in American society but they still will fight for their country and be proud of their country. The audio in the video is a reciting of the poem “Strange Fruit” which adds a powerful and eerie tone.

In the quote in the image, it addresses how just because white women are cast in a TV show, doesn’t mean they are being inclusive to all women. Women of all races and backgrounds need to be showcased for a program to be classified as “diverse.” Also, white women cannot be interchangeably cast with women of other races for a TV show to achieve diversity. I chose the popular show black-ish because it has been acclaimed for honestly showcasing the livelihood of a black family and representing their experiences accurately. The program addresses many issues that are represented in the image I chose as well. The people in the image are women as well as part of minority racial groups, thus falling into a category of intersectionality. Intersectionality is a topic discussed on black-ish, as one of the daughters Rhonda, is black and a lesbian. The mother Bow, deals with adversity in our industry as she struggles to be recognized as a black woman in the competitive medical field. Blackish is one of ABC’s most popular shows because it is a TV show that happens to be black not a “black TV show”, relating to the quote in the clip. It is relatable for anyone and is comedic, heartfelt, and modern which makes it superior television and not bound by the race of the characters in the show.