timmykam Productions: July 2020

The film, Sorry to Bother You, aired in 2018 is a revealing film that tackles the controversy of normalized whiteness. The issue of racism is explored throughout the film, as the main character, Cassious attempts to move up in the world. This, mobilization requires him to abandon his stereotypical black position in society in favour of being whiter. In his attempt to implement, a “white voice,” the main character goes through an internal conflict in which is reminiscent to the ethical dilemma of democratic racism. This film is very enlightening as it depicts the adjustments blacks employ to assimilate into western society.

Race is defined as, “an idea created by human beings in certain historical and material conditions and is used to represent the world in certain ways, under certain historical conditions and for certain political interests” (Chan et al., 2014, 4). Race is evidently a social construct created by people in order to be able to organize their actions and thoughts so that they may support or reject certain views. In the Film, Cassious, the main character, is depicted as a stereotypical black man who is living in poverty. There is a great emphasis placed on his race which therefore the movie instils a negative view of him by the audience. This falls in line with what is said in Tater’s literature as he mentions, “media in general, produce a negative view of marginalized groups” (Tater, 2010, 260). The stereotype that is created causes the audience to think that he may resort to innovation to rectify his poverty problem. Cassious lives in his uncles’ garage and is late on rent. His desperation evidently gets him to seek a job that pays commission only. Through this depiction, we can see and contrast blacks against the concept of, “whiteness,” especially as Cassious starts to do well in his job. Whiteness is defined as characteristics and experiences which depict membership in the white race and having white skin color. According to Barbara Perry, “whiteness,” is a marker for privilege. This is because those that are white have historically dominated society. Through this domination, whites have what seems to be more physical and social power (Perry, 2011, 59) when compared to other races. This is then where whites, ascertain their privilege. For example according to Tator when in relation to the Criminal Justice System in Canada, “white accused are twice as likely as black accused to be released by the Police” (Tator, 2010, 130) when in relation to drug offenses. Moreover, according to the same text white accused [are] more likely to be released by the police and less likely to be detained after a bail hearing. These are examples of the, “privilege,” that whites experience which is why the film depicts Cassious using a, “white voice.”

The, “White voice,” allows Cassious to be able to move up the hierarchy in his job. Through this, conflicts occur in which he is challenged. This, “white voice,” verifies the belief that deferential treatment takes place in the society in which the film is depicted. According to Tator, “one-third of the white population … believe that judges do not treat blacks the same as whites” (Tator, 2010, 130). This is why the film depicts Cassious using a, “white voice,” so that he may be able to take advantage of the privilege whites experience. The film also depicts Cassious using his regular voice and he is met with failure. Therefore, he gradually starts to abandon his identity in favour of the, “white voice.” The normalization of whiteness depicted in the film through this, “white voice,” is satire for what takes place in contemporary society. In the film, the use of this, “white voice,” depicts success, wealth and prosperity. It also depicts the ability to move up the social ladder in which is constructed through capitalism. Cassious, as the movie progresses, experiences class conflict. His peers begin to protest against the management of the telemarketing firm. Cassious is forced to, continue to move up the employment hierarchy as he was able to ascertain a promotion due to the use of the, “white voice.” As he progresses, he begins to loose a part of himself or his identity because he is conforming or assimilating to the status quo of the company. In fact, there are times in the film, in which his girl friend informs him to stop using the, “white voice” in their conversations. Detroit, the girl friend, is an artist who is trying to promote African art. She is very against the telemarketing company and rebels against what they stand for. It is later depicted in the film that Cassious is desired by the top executives of the, “Worry Free,” employer, a client of the telemarketing firm. It is then shown that this company was selling slave labour. Cassious is then invited to an event in which these executives would be present. At one point in the film, Cassious is infront of a crowd of people who urge him to rap. This incident is an example of racial profiling. Racial profiling could be defined as targeting a person of a certain race based on observed characteristics. In this case the characteristic is that black men can rap. The crowd of white people cheer him on based on the presumption that he was able to utter, “black nigger shit,” repeatedly as a rap. Although he lacked the actual ability to rap, the crowd praised his performance.

Through Cassious’s efforts and interactions with the executives, he begins to see the injustice that is being inflicted on the society as what he stands for is selling slave labour. His internal conflict is consistent with the conflicts of democratic racism. Cassious is in conflict because on one hand he has his new, “white,” persona which helps him to move up the social ladder but on the other hand he is against the beliefs of his employers who support slave labour. When in relation to democratic racism, it is similarly egalitarian values such as liberalisim, justice and fairness (Tator, 2010, 6) on one side and racism on the other. Democratic racism is a problem in contemporary society as many Canadian hold racist values. In fact, according to Tator, on a survey done with Canadians, 16 percent of those surveyed were bigots, 35% intolerant views, 30% were tolerant and 20% extremely tolerant. The conflict that Cassious experiences causes him to reflect. He then begins to rebel and evidently Worry Free’s agenda is revealed. This film effectively created a satire for which the history of African slave labour could be looked at. It does it by taking abstract concepts such as the, “white voice,” and hybrid human slaves to symbolize what has transpired in the past. Viewing this film from a historical lens, allows viewers to grasp the totality of the black slave labour that happened in the past. Through this film, the history of western society is seen through a figurative depiction of symbols.

Based on all the findings specified herein, this movies aim was to enlighten via satire its audience towards the development of the western world. It was very effective in doing so because they symbolically used vivid imagery in their depictions of the, “white voice,” which then could be contrasted to Cassious’s race. Moreover, the class conflict in the film further represented the contemporary tensions in a capitalist system. From the lens of criminology, democratic racism can be compared to the Cassious’s values as he enacts the, “white voice.” Both are ethical dilemmas in which require critical analysis to be able to form an equitable response. This film depicts the assimilation that minorities take to be able to fit into modern western society, a task that requires a lot of consideration and reflection. Although internal conflicts arise, one must have a value system to overcome the allure of inequity.

REFERENCES

Boots, R. (Director). (2018) “Sorry to Bother You [Motion Picture]. U.S. Significant Productions. DVD.
Chan, Wendy and Dorothy Chunn (2010). Racialization, Crime and Criminal Justice in Canada. Toronto, Ontario: University of Toronto Press.
Henry, Francis and Carol Tator (2010) The Colour of Democracy: Racism In Canadian Society 2009 4th Edition. Toronto: Nelson Thomson.
Perry, Barbara (Ed.) (2011). Diversity, Crime, and Justice in Canada. Don Mills, Ontario: Oxford University Press.