This collection delves into the complex history of stereotyping and discrimination in media.
These videos and essays aim to foster a deeper awareness of the importance of accurate and respectful representation, encouraging reflection on how we can learn from the past to create a more inclusive future.
Unladylike2020Anna May Wong, the first Asian American woman movie star, had a long and varied career spanning silent and sound film, stage, radio, and television, while resisting racism and typecasting in Hollywood, and the practice of having white actors in yellowface play the roles of Asian characters.
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The racist legacy of yellowface, brownface and Asian buffoonization go beyond comedic mimicry and can still be felt today.
ARTICLE#OscarsSoWhite creator April Reign writes about the state of racial equality in entertainment, especially for Black women.
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Filmmaker Blake Edwards was fascinated by the odd, restrictive, utterly made-up rules society has placed around the idea of gender.
From the killing of an iconic American hero to critical perspectives of how Indigenous people were portrayed in early children’s cartoons, Thunder’s art prompts viewers to take a critical look at our shared mythologies.
“I really was very often treated like a sex object.” Rita Moreno recalls the sexism and power abuse she suffered at the hands of big Hollywood moguls.
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ARTICLEPrinceton professor and writer Imani Perry reflects on the power of representation in popular culture.
ARTICLEUpon reappraisal, some cultural artifacts reflect an ugliness that once went unnoticed due to accepted bias and racism.
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Kristen Lopez, TV Editor at IndieWire, shares her thoughts on the legacy of Helen Keller and disability media representation.
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Author Stephen Graham Jones writes about carving space for Native representation in media, inspired by Lily Gladstone’s standing ovation at Cannes.
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Maya S. Cade is the creator and curator of Black Film Archive and a scholar-in-residence at the Library of Congress. In this personal reflection, she shares her journey to creating a new space for Black cinema and her connection to the artists and histories before her.
SHORT DOCUMENTARY
Lights, Camera, Acción
Discover the candid perspectives of Latine actors, writers, producers, directors and showrunners across generations as they dissect the ever-evolving issue of Latine representation in Hollywood.
Discover the candid perspectives of Latine actors, writers, producers, directors and showrunners across generations as they dissect the ever-evolving issue of Latine representation in Hollywood.
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Author and journalist Abby Ellin reflects on the legacy of Groucho Marx—acknowledging his brilliance, shortcomings and influence on a new generation of female comedians.
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Lena Horne fought discrimination and helped improve standards of representation for Black performers, becoming a civil rights icon.
LAURA INGALLS WILDER: PRAIRIE TO PAGE
Roxane Gay, Louise Erdrich, Pamela Smith Hill, Linda Sue Park and others discuss Wilder’s racist depictions of American Indian and Black people in the “Little House” series.
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Filmmaker and scholar Frances Negrón-Muntaner explores how Moreno redefined the meaning of stardom for Latinas.
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Lawrence Carter-Long looks at the influence of Helen Keller as a celebrity during her lifetime and today.
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When Poitier started out in Hollywood, he lamented the negative portrayals of Black people and “chose not to be a party to the stereotyping.”
Actor and director John Leguizamo and Felix Sanchez, co-founder of the National Hispanic Foundation for the Arts, discuss the “digital segregation” of Latine people in the media.
ARCHIVE INTERVIEW
Phyllis Diller reflected on how her comedy was a response to years of “take my wife” jokes.
Jean Malin was one of the first openly gay performers in the Prohibition era during the “pansy craze” of the early 1930s
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