Introduction
In the Heat of the Night, racism was socially acceptable behavior. This movie can be seen as a reflection of the reality in which Black people lived in the twentieth century. At that time, people in southern communities had no experience working with Black folks as equals, making encounters with Tibbs highly explosive. Discussions of this fact were not widespread, as racism was an adequate worldview. The challenging topic raised by this screenplay is the detrimental impact of racial stereotypes. Discrimination puts other aspects of humans’ lives at a disadvantage by pulling attention away from relevant topics. Moreover, such behavior causes the degradation of social bonds by disallowing progress towards common goals.
The film was produced during significant changes regarding equality, which are reflected by the main character’s appearance, posture, and behavior. Virgil Tibbs is a skillful detective, and his help was crucial in the resolution of the case for the movie. He has great expertise, much of a surprise and disdain from southern folk of the town. His actions were professional, tactful, and respectful, even when presented with hostility. In a town full of racists, his journey with the local sheriff is marked by obstacles made by ignorant people. However, the role of Black people was solidified in the minds of locals as servants with no voice. The movie makes it possible to see the primary barriers to cooperation. With his high salary, Tibbs was seen as an extraordinary man solely because he did manage to achieve it as a Black man in the United States. This view was not shared by the majority of the townsfolk, who considered him a threat, an insult to one’s worldview, and a second-class citizen. Moreover, crimes were easily pushed upon Black suspects without much deliberation or due process. Unable to be met with reason, Tibbs can only continue to convince local citizens of his competence silently. It is only possible to imagine how many opportunities were trampled by racism, as people like Tibbs were not considered worthy of education or social privileges. This paper will discuss how rampant racism prevented U.S. society in the 1960s from progressing forward as a nation.
Context
The Crow laws that existed before the Civil Rights Act had caused racial segregation in the country. Some neighborhoods were predominantly white, and others were primarily black. People of different races could not freely move and do business in an area occupied by another race. In In the Heat of the Night, when finding out who had paid for the abortion, Tibbs tells the police chief that he is going “to the place where whites are not allowed (Jewison, n.p).” This segregation affected society’s ability to work towards a common goal. If a black man were not in the case, the white police officers would not have gone to the black neighborhood, and the case would remain unsolved.
This physical segregation exists even in this day. Although today it is not by law, the effects of the Crow laws left a divided society, and it is still divided to this day. Data from the United States Census Bureau shows that most southern states are still predominantly black, while northern states have fewer black people (KFF, n.p). The physical separation of the races evident in In the Heat of the Night is still present today. It hinders societal development in different aspects, such as social and economic.
Another way that racial stereotypes affect society is by putting barriers on black professionals. In the film In the Heat of the Night, Tibbs is a skilled homicide detective, but most people in the Southern state did not welcome him to work on the case. Tibbs had to prove his expertise silently and still faced resistance until the end. Colbert’s widow commanded the police chief to give Tibbs a free hand to work on the case. Similarly, today Black professionals face various challenges that affect their productivity and efficiency in the workplace. Current research shows that one in every four black and Hispanic employees have experienced racism and discrimination in the workplace (Assari & Maryam, 139). The prevalence of discrimination in the workplace sets barriers for minority races to perform at their full potential. Again, just like many people could not believe that Tibbs was a qualified homicide detective, the stereotype still exists today. Many black professionals will face discrimination by being termed as diverse hires. Some people who have not yet come into terms with black professionals will always assume that every black person in a professional position is a diversity-hire or did not deserve to be in that position (Dupree et al.,13). Although this school of thought is not as big as it was in 1967, it still impacts the productivity and confidence of black professionals, and like Tibbs, they have to prove their expertise silently.
Everyone that met Tibbs in the Southern state was surprised to find out that he was a police officer. It was not believable that a black person would become a police officer in Sparta. Even other black people could not believe it (Jewison, n.d). This shows the systemic racism that was present in the community. There were jobs for black people and jobs for white people. Policing was considered a white person’s job. It was even unusual for black people to help police in their work, as was noted when Tibbs went to the lady supposed to carry out an abortion, and she asked why he was helping the police.
Similarly, when Tibbs went to the Endicott cotton farm, all the workers working on the farm, and the butler, were black. The division of labor in the community shows a form of systemic racism in society. This form of racism limited the recruitment of talent into top jobs. It is probable that if Tibbs had grown up in Sparta, he would not have had the chance to become a police officer.
Problem
The racism that existed in America in the 1960s led to the segregation of society and increased hostility. As the black people were fighting for their rights, there were widespread tensions in the country (Assari & Maryam, 139). The evidence of these tensions is shown by events such as the Newark Riots that arose after a cab driver, John Smith, was killed by police in 1967. These riots, that lasted for four days, left at least 26 people dead and hundreds of others seriously injured (Dupree et al.,13). The riots led to the destruction of property, such as storefronts and other business premises. The Newark riots show how racism had created tensions and created a community that was like a ticking bomb waiting to explode in the event of any minor disturbance.
Racism led to further segregation between the white and black populations. The white people, who formed the bourgeoisie class, felt that the civil rights movement would mean losing the cheap labor they were getting from the black population (Assari & Maryam, 139). Again, there was fear that eliminating structural racism would lead to the white population losing their jobs to the black population. This fear led to significant resistance to the civil rights movements. The opposition was so high that it led to the assassination of the movement’s leaders, such as Martin Luther King (Dupree et al.,14). This assassination worsened violence and segregation and resulted in further riots, injuries, deaths, and property damage.
Another representation of racism in the 1960s is the incarceration levels for black people at the time. Being black was enough reason for one to be suspected of a crime as big as murder. In the film In the Heat of the Night, Tibbs was peacefully sitting at the train station when the police officer, Sam Wood, arrested him for murder. Wood made the call without any other probable cause (Jewison, n.p). If Tibbs were not a police officer, he would have gone to jail for the murder of Colbert. In order to understand how severe the black incarcerations were at the time, statistics show that in the 1960s, there was 262 incarceration for every 100,000-white people. In contrast, there were 1,313 incarcerated for every 100,000 black Americans (KFF, n.p). These statistics show that a black person was five times more likely to get incarcerated than a white person. The high levels of incarceration affected the black community and prevented society from moving forward.
There was violence against black people deemed to be violating their norms. In the film In the Heat of the Night, Tibbs was attacked by a group of white supremacists who felt he had no right to work on a case in their town (Jewison, n.d). Even when the police chief found out about the incident, he did not take any action against the attackers. The failure to take any measures shows that such attacks against black people were common.
Analysis
This analysis aims to show how rampant racism was preventing U.S. society in the 1960s from progressing forward as a nation. The first sign that we will use to show the impact of racism is the effects of high incarceration, as explained by the racism theory (Fornili, 66). In the 1960s, there were high incarcerations levels of black people. When incarceration levels are high, the people who mostly go to jail are males. This incarceration level meant that many young people in the black community grew up without positive male role models. Research has shown that the presence of positive black models is crucial in shaping the behavior of young men in the community (Johnson et al., 416). The high incarceration levels left the young black population without these models, which affected their behavior. As a result, there was an impact on their behavior, which led to more involvement in crimes and drug abuse (Johnson et al., 416). As a result of the business that existed in the 1960s in arresting and jailing black people, the United States justice system still hurts today. Current statics show that one in every 106 white men aged 18 years and above are incarcerated, while one in 15 black people will be incarcerated (National Institute of Justice, n.p). Again, the incarceration rate of black people is still five times higher than that of whites. Today, black people account for more than 58% of the total prison population (Federal Bureau of Prisons, n.p). The fact that incarceration levels for blacks are still insanely high compared to other races shows how the rampant racism of the 1960s prevented the nation from progressing forward. The incarceration levels create a vicious cycle in the black community. When the older generation is incarcerated, the younger generation is more likely to get into drugs and crime and increase their incarceration chances. In order to break this cycle, the nation will have to make serious changes in the justice system and many community-based empowerment programs.
For any society to achieve its full potential, every individual has to be assured that their hard work increases their chances of success. For example, in The Help, the maids, including Minny and Aibileen, worked hard as nannies taking care of white children and succeeding in their work. There should be equality of opportunities without discrimination. The rampant racism in the 1960s created a community where some people could not rise to the highest level no matter how hard they worked. The ideal society for economic and community development should be a meritocracy. A meritocracy refers to a community where every individual has the opportunity to succeed, irrespective of their background (Garrison, 81). In a meritocracy, organizations will be assured that they get the best talent possible for every position. The rampant racism in the 1960s affected this setup by denying some people the chance to be involved in some jobs and careers. The lack of opportunity for parts of the community meant that the organizations operating at the time were not getting the best people for their jobs. Some black people would have helped make society better but did not get the chance. Again, just because racism is not as rampant as it was in the 1960s does not mean that black people now can quickly rise to top positions. There are societal obstacles resulting from the effects of the past systemic racism that many black people have to overcome to get top professional jobs today (Crozier, 1242). In this sense, the rampant racism of the 1960s prevented the nation from moving forward by denying talented and hardworking black citizens from getting involved in community building at the highest potential.
For any community to progress forward, all the citizens must work together towards a common goal. In countries where this is not achieved, things such as war and clashes become common. The rampant racism of the 1960s put the United States of America in a situation where it felt like some communities were alienated from others. This led to many civil unrest. The civil rights movement was started by the black community to be involved in building the country through equal opportunities. The lack of equal opportunities in the first place affected the community because many years were lost in fighting for civil rights (Assari & Maryam, 139). For example, one can only imagine what talents such as Martin Luther and Malcolm X would have done for the community if they did not have to spend their whole lives fighting for civil rights. Much talent and time spent fighting for civil rights meant that productive time was lost that could have been used to build the nation.
The rampant racism of the 1960s caused much damage to the society that the country has not yet recovered. According to the racism theory, there should be changes in the justice system, laws, and institutions to address the effects of racism. Similarly, as the Film Hidden Figures showed, Black people have to be given credit for the job they did in the past and the obstacles they had to overcome (Jewison, n.d). Incarceration rules can be reviewed to reduce the number of black people incarcerated for minor offenses. Again, State and federal governments need to work closely with community-based organizations to empower young blacks and prepare them to reach their full potential. Some progress has been made, but there is still more to be done to recover from the effects of racism.
Conclusion
There was rampant racism in the United States in the 1960s. Black people did not have the same rights as white people. This racism was manifested through high incarceration rates of black people, unequal job opportunities, and physical segregation. As a result of the racism, there were problems such as violence, racial tensions, deaths, crime, and drug abuse. These problems led to further segregation. The civil rights movement helped in advocating for equal rights. Despite having the Act passed, the country had assuredly been injured by the effects of racism. Time and productive human resources were lost in the civil rights movement. Tents were lost to crime and drugs. Similarly, the incarceration levels for blacks are still five times more than those of whites today. Racism prevented the country from progressing forward as fast as it should have. In order to address the effects of racism, there should be changes in laws, prison reforms, and investment in the community-based empowerment of blacks.
Works Cited
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