Representation of African Americans within Cartoons

10 Little Nigger Boys, Looney Toons, and Scrub Me Momma

The Ten Little Nigger Boys had blatant racism in its story, and even though it is currently unacceptable, such stories were highly conventional during the cartoon’s production. The cartoon perpetuates a twisted love affair America had with racist ideology, and it denied the racial provocation at the time. On the other hand, the 1938 Looney Toons movie is less racial, but more about depicting the African (not African American) culture whereby their day-today lives are different from Americans. Through comic and witty amusements, the Looney Toons perpetuates the need to have a better understanding of African indigenous people; hence, this passes as a fun-filled experience. Finally, regarding the Scrub me Momma, the cartoon is a representation of the African American culture as consisting of people who love dancing and would love to have to take a clean bath. Someone might translate to mean that they need a “scrubbing” because their skins are dirty, which can cause a racial misunderstanding.

Impact on Black and White Children

No doubt, racial bias among children, however subtle, is uncontrollable and inevitable in most cases. With cartoons like “Ten Little Niggers”, the impact had little impactful effects on Black children at the time, mostly because such racial depictions were a norm. However, if today’s children watch the same cartoon, then effects can be very negative, because the use of the word “nigger” is a legal offense and can result in a drifting friendship with a white child. On the other hand, such stereotypes must have remained entrenched in white children, which would be transferred into adulthood Panko (2017). Although the cartoons such as Looney Toons illustrate casual racism, children developed racial bias very early in life, and this can have negative effects on day-to-day interactions, some of which might be damaging unto others.

References

Looney Toons (1930–1969). Dir. Chuck Jones et al. Warner Bros. Retrieved from https://bit.ly/2Ul52Zt

Panko, B. (2017). Racism Harms Children’s Health, Survey Finds. Smithsonianmag.com Retrieved from https://bit.ly/2Srwgf0

Ten Little Nigger Boys (1949). Dir. Kevin Sheldon. British Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved from https://bit.ly/2PmI4NL