Prevalence of Systemic Racism and White Supremacy: A Critical Race Analysis of Get Out.
“Racism is the rejection of our common humanity”- Antonio Guterres
Jordan Peele’s Get Out utilises symbolism to unveil the horrifying truth of systemic oppression hidden under the mask of staunch liberalism and societal diversity, which ultimately perpetuates the dominance of white supremacy in the modern-day. To begin, Peele presents the deer as defenceless prey to symbolise African Americans in their struggle against an anti-black society. In more detail, Rose uses the confrontation with the police officer to hide her true intent behind introducing Chris to her parents at the estate. She exclaims, “[Chris] shouldn’t have to show you his I.D. because he hasn’t done anything wrong”…show more content… As a starting point, the family's commodification of black bodies for white patrons enforces racist values. One of the party guests mentions, “Take this country”. Fairer skin has been in favour the first couple of hundreds of years, but the pendulum has swung back.Black is in fashion!” (49). The guest compares the value of black bodies to a piece of clothing or an accessory to flaunt wealth and prestige; ignorant of the historical relationship between skin colour and oppression. Peele parallels the guest’s proposition to the ideals of white plantation owners, where they not only would purchase slaves as laborers, similar to the practical use of clothes, but also as a symbol of status. The Armitage family continues to contribute to this objectification of black individuals by leading auctions in which the black body is the main item, analogous to how colonists sold slaves for monetary gain. The idea of African Americans as solely an expendable commodity to the white elite forces them down in society while upholding white supremacy. To add, the setting of the sunken place only furthers the racial divide and cements the god complex of the Armitage
