Is Chicago Chi-Raq? "By neglecting to include a storyline that illuminates
root causes or draws parallels between this country’s
racial and ethnic inequalities and the state of
emergency we find in our cities, Lee leaves the
audience to draw its own conclusions."
We finally went to check out Spike Lee’s latest offering, Chi-Raq
- the only film on my “2015 must see” list. Based on the ancient Greek
play Lysistrata, Lee’s story is situated on the south side of
modern-day Chicago where two fictional warring gangs are wreaking havoc
in the lives of the community. The story’s premise is that the
senseless killing of a child sparks the neighborhood’s women into
action. Like Lysistrata, the women organize and pledge to withhold sex
until their men agree to put down their guns.
The title sparked controversy because it brings attention to the real
or perceived parallels between Iraq and Chicago. According to Spike
Lee, before the film was released, Chicago’s Mayor Rahm Emanuel asked
Lee to give it another name, saying he thought the negative image would
impact commerce and tourism in the Windy City. Lee insisted on keeping
the name that many South Side locals use.
Based on police cam evidence that continues to be released, residents
on the South Side have expressed concerns that Chicago’s law
enforcement is used as an occupying force – one whose mission is far
removed from protecting and serving. Chicago’s South Side,
the backdrop of movie provides Lee with a heckuva lot of issues—gun
violence, certainly, but that’s merely the tip of the iceberg that is
the plethora of societal ills that find expression in the ’hood.
My interest was piqued when I saw Chi-Raq’s official trailer. It
offered hints that Lee might address some of the underlying causes of
the social problems that plague the urban cores of our cities. The
trailer suggested that the sex strike premise might be used to fill
seats while the film itself would incorporate storylines exploring
deeper issues. I hoped that Lee’s intent was to entertain while
educating. If I was right, Lee’s movie could deepen the national
conversation sparked by the current #BlackLivesMatter movement, which
builds on movements dating back decades.
When the opening scene splashed
across the wide screen, I knew entertainment seekers wouldn’t be
disappointed. Like every other Spike Lee movie, the visuals are
compelling, artistic, and captivating. I have no doubt that as the
final credits roll and viewers leave the theaters, many will be
pleased. But for me, the film fell short.
In a nutshell, Chi-Raq is yet another film that puts the
life-shattering consequences of unaddressed social ills on display
apparently for no other reason than to entertain. By neglecting to
include a storyline that illuminates root causes or draws parallels
between this country’s racial and ethnic inequalities and the state of
emergency we find in our cities, Lee leaves the audience to draw its
own conclusions. Yes, the film includes discussions of other inner city
woes—out-of-control unemployment, lack of education funding,
overincarceration, and absent healthcare, for example—but those scenes
seem tacked on, not integral to the main entertainment line.
Speaking of the portrayal of blacks in modern day films, noted author
and professor bell hooks recently remarked that she was not happy with
Twelve Years A Slave. hooks said, “As a black woman, when I see images
like myself, abused, beaten, raped, tortured… I don’t feel entertained…
If I never see another naked, enslaved, raped black woman onscreen as
long as I live, I’ll be happy.”
Like bell hooks, I don’t find misogyny entertaining. The commodifying
of the female body sickens me. If I never see another gang-banging,
hypermasculine, womanizing black man screwing a sister on screen, I’ll
be happy. If I never see another black mother crying her eyes out
because her child has been senselessly gunned down, I’ll be happy. If I
don’t see another young brother gunned down over misplaced gang
allegiance, I’ll be happy.
All I ask is if these stories must be told, tell it all. These
conditions don’t exist in a vacuum. The Chicago Reader ran a story that
said, “People all over Chicago smoke pot—but almost everyone busted for
it is black”. Policies that go unchecked or are covered up produce
disparate outcomes with the south side invariably getting the short end
of the stick.
After seeing the film, I had a discussion with a black sister who had
also seen it. She enjoyed the movie. When I told her that I had issues
with several aspects of the story, especially the violence and
misogyny, she responded, “Well, he only told what is really going on.”
I believe that her reaction will be common and is the main reason I
have issues with the movie. I don’t argue that the lives portrayed in
Chi-Raq aren’t being lived. My issue is that we consistently neglect to
place these stories in a social context.
Until we couple these stories with stories that explore the root causes
and offer real solutions, they don’t serve us. Without cogent
explanations, we’ll continue to live in a society that lacks meaningful
public discourse on the state of our cities. We simply make bad matters
worse by subscribing to this type of “entertainment”—entertainment that
does nothing more than normalize the insanity, and worse, solidify the
notion that black life itself is pathological.
BlackCommentator.comEditorial Board member and Columnist,Sharon Kyle, JD, is the Co-Founder and Publisher of theLA Progressivean
online social justice magazine. With her husband Dick, she publishes
several other print and online newsletters on political and social
justice issues. In addition to her work with the LA Progressive, Ms.
Kyle holds aJurisDoctorate,
is an adjunct professor at Peoples College of Law in Los Angeles, and
sits on the board of the ACLU Pasadena/Foothills Chapter and the
Progressive Caucus of the California Democratic Party.Clickhereto contact the LA Progressive and Ms. Kyle.
