Blacks should question white liberals’ motives
With the suspense thriller “Get Out” surpassing the $100 million mark last weekend, it’s safe to say that director Jordan Peele has successfully scared America into some serious reflection on racial politics and race relations. “Get Out” can basically be summed up as a horror version of “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner,” where the outcome is far from the sententious conclusion of the 1967 classic starring Sidney Poitier, Katharine Houghton, Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn.
The Armitages — the white family in “Get Out” — seem delighted that their daughter Rose (Allison Williams) has brought her black boyfriend Chris Washington (Daniel Kaluuya) for a weekend visit to their secluded suburban estate, but their true intentions are dreadfully revealed much later in the film. Unlike the Draytons in “Guess Who,” the Armitages are white liberals with a deadly fetish regarding blacks, more specifically the anatomical makeup of black bodies.
After watching “Get Out” one theme is particularly evident, which is the navigation of comfortable space along racial, social and political lines displayed through the eyes of a young African-American male. We would think that Chris would have a much smoother transition in interracial settings today than Dr. John Prentice, the accomplished physician Poitier played in “Guess Who,” right? Yet, even in 2017, Chris is apprehensive regarding the fact that Rose has not told her parents that he is black.
Rose keeps reassuring Chris that his race is no big deal and attempts to allay his concern by proudly stating that her father Dean (Bradley Whitford) would have voted for Barack Obama a third time if possible. When they finally arrive at the Armitage estate, Dean mentions his admiration for our 44th president as an ice breaker in getting to know Chris, but Chris begins to notice the eccentric atmosphere that encompasses Rose’s family household. During their evening at dinner, Rose’s brother Jeremy (Caleb Landry Jones) makes creepy references to Chris’ genetics, calling him a “beast,” and the Armitages’ black servants Georgina (Betty Gabriel) and Walter (Marcus Henderson) have docile, robotic personalities and are completely unaware of their black consciousness.
Rose’s mother, Missy (Catherine Keener), hypnotizes Chris, which transports him to a “sunken place,” a terrifying abyss where he is mentally controlled. The next day when Chris meets friends of Rose’s family, the Armitages’ baleful plan for him begins to horrifically unfold. One older white man tells Chris that being black is in vogue while another lavishes praise on Tiger Woods’ golf skills. The only normal conversation Chris has is with a blind white art dealer who is familiar with Chris’ outstanding work as a photographer.
Unbeknownst to Chris, all of these conversations are deliberate evaluations of his intellectual and physical abilities that will later determine who gets control of his body when Dean auctions it off in a bingo game, a scene eerily reminiscent of slavery. The art dealer wins the auction to trade bodies with Chris in a transplantation process, with the primary objective of seeing the world the way Chris does.
The political satire in “Get Out” is pretty damaging to the concept of white liberalism because it symbolizes the growing distrust that many African-Americans, especially those who are young adults, have regarding traditional political alliances. One can easily equate the “sunken place” to the “plantation politics” that many black Republicans and even progressives have accused white Democrats of, so from this perspective, having voted for Obama does not automatically translate into authentic concern for black people.
I’ve always thought the plantation argument is a little extreme considering the radical shift the GOP made regarding racial politics after the Barry Goldwater campaign in 1964; furthermore, a family like the Armitages is beyond extreme and we know that crazy comes in all colors. However, seeing our society through the anxiety of Chris’ eyes is potent and relevant.
Reflecting on my thoughts of Chris and “Guess Who’s” Dr. Prentice, young black men like Chris will find themselves mingling in interracial circles, but like Prentice, who would represent the generation of their grandfathers, they might not always feel at ease in these settings. This should cause all of us to critically think about the lens with which we view each other, because what seems like an innocuous encounter might actually end up being a harrowing experience.