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Question
How have negative perceptions affected Black Americans shaped their characters and reactions to racism, as shown in In the Heat of the Night?
Context
The amount of distrust and disbelief in Black Americans good intentions and skills during the 1960s has put U.S. society at risk of an open conflict. It is apparent that racism was a widely accepted behavior at that time, making cooperation with Black people nearly impossible regardless of circumstances. This tension was preventing communities from moving forward and integrating Black people into society.
Problematic
How racist views that were apparent in the 1960s in the American South led to further segregation of society and escalated hostility and how did Black Americans respond to them?
Analysis
The paper will discuss how rampant racism was preventing U.S. society in the 1960s from progressing forward as a nation.
Theory
As shown in In the Heat of the Night, racism was socially acceptable behavior at that time. This movie can be seen as a reflection of the reality in which Black Americans lived in the twentieth century. People in southern communities at that time had no experience working with Black Americans as equals, making encounters with Tibbs highly explosive. Discussions of this fact were not widespread, as racism was seen as an adequate worldview. The challenging topic that was raised by this screenplay is the detrimental impact of racial stereotypes. Discrimination puts other aspects of human lives at a disadvantage by pulling attention away from relevant topics. Moreover, such behavior causes the degradation of social bonds by disallowing any progress toward common goals.
The film was produced during a time of great changes regarding equality, which are reflected by the main characters appearance, posture, and behavior. The skills and expertise of Black Americans were severely underplayed, as they were not expected to achieve the same level of success as other Americans. The issue is apparent in the attitude of the locals in the movie, as the role of Black Americans was solidified in the minds of townsfolk as servants with no voice. Most of the advances of Black Americans in that era were abruptly prevented by social institutes and stigmas linked with a negative stereotype of a typical Black man.
From the movie, it is possible to see how Black Americans dealt with the issue. Despite his well-earned position in the police, Virgil Tibbs is met with aggression and false accusations when he arrives in a small town in a southern state. While townsfolk considered Black Americans a threat, they had to respond with the utmost caution. Crimes were easily pushed upon Black suspects without much deliberation or due process, which made Tibbs often respond with silence and reservation even against the most severe offenses. His answer to this issue was to act and prove his worth, despite constant aggravation and threats from the very people he was trying to help. His position in society was high, yet the respect that comes with it was absent. It is only possible to imagine how many opportunities were trampled by racism, as people like Tibbs were not considered to be worthy of respect and had to struggle to prove their worth.
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