Babylon (1981):
Young black youths, based in West London
A young black male gets beaten up by racist police and falsely charged, forced to go on the run, falling out with his girlfriend and finally stabbing a racist neighbour in anger and frustration. The film finishes with a posse of policemen smashing down the doors of a music hall.
The film revolves around racism from police and thugs, violence against blacks, poverty and disillusion and lack of opportunities.
This film is a positive view on black people being outcasts and being pushed towards being criminals as they have racist neighbours and society around them. They had lack of opportunities in the 80s led them to have the mystical fog around them, hiding reality (lenin, Marxist) – pushes the representations of black people to be negative as the film revolved around racism from the police and violence against them. Where the bourgeoisie are only showing a certain racist view on ethnic minorities for them to be react in a way which will prove their stereotypes, whereas, in TopBoy they feel as if they are being targeted because of their colour. Stuart Hall’s theory on black people being ‘troublemakers, entertainers and dependent’ which goes back to Babylon as they are being victimised by their neighbours they feel to be provoked to be ‘troublemaker’ , these view are socially contrasted and determined.
Channel 4 is a public service broadcaster which educated us on the representations of ethnic minorities and how TopBoy have challenged these by: Being united as a family to protect one another, as Ra’nell is looking after his depressed mother who just got out of a violent marriage. They want to educate us on how ethnic minorities being represented in other dramas are incorrect.
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