HW 4/14

As pro-equality publications, speeches and organizations began to influence change subsequent to the adoption of the 13^th, 14^th and 15^th amendments, a glimpse of peace had finally seemed to settle amongst once was a hostile environment in the United States. Nonetheless, it wouldn’t be for many decades until equality was viewed pervasively by every state. The hinderance of promoting equality would be partly due to the advancements in media and the film industry in the early 19^th century, accompanied by racist views of film makers and politicians that utilized media and film to their advantage. An example of this was articulated in the 1915 controversial film “The Birth of a Nation”. Although it would gain notoriety with the use of new wave filmmaking techniques like cross-cut editing, parrellel editing and iris, the film also glorified the KKK and indoctrinated racist ideology to millions. It was propaganda such as the “The Birth of a Nation” that would ultimately promote discrimination while unwittingly denouncing scholarly essays such as “Strivings of the Negro People”, famously written by W.E.B. Du Bois. Consequently, the film and media industry would captivate and influence millions with its blasphemous views against African Americans, which reinforced a belief that second-class citizenship should be viewed as the solution to the “race problem” in the United States.