Do The Right Thing is a film in 1989 written, directed by, and surprisingly enough, starring, Spike Lee. It is an influential film that explores themes such as race, social class, and social justice through the day in the life of a Brooklyn neighborhood called Bedford-Stuyvesant.
While watching this film, I came to focus heavily on the Korean-American couple in the film. Though I cannot say that their situations reflect my own, I could still sympathize with them to a certain extent, being a foreigner trying to settle in the US. Mr. and Mrs. Kim are a couple running a small convenience store near Sal’s Pizzeria(which is also run by an Italian foreigner).
The scene towards the end of the film where the neighborhood is filled with chaos following Radio Raheem’s death is an important scene. The angry mob, after “dealing with” Sal’s Pizzeria, turns to the Korean-owned convenience store. Mr.Kim, to defend his store, starts lashing out with a broomstick and shouts, “I am Black! You me same!” These few words save the store from disaster.
Not in high resolution, but this is the scene I mentioned.
The few words Mr.Kim shouted at the mob does not, of course, mean that their skin colors are the same. Rather, it means that both Asians and Black people have gone through discrimination, are in the same situation, and should not harm each other. His phrasing is certainly oversimplified, though it carries his desire to align with the rest of the neighborhood.
The mob’s inclination to target Mr.Kim’s store too shows the fragile unity between different racial or ethnic groups in one society. Though they are all in the same community, there are misunderstandings and tensions due to cultural/economic differences. Though Mr.Kim temporarily prevented more violence from happening that day, he did not resolve the tensions fully. This shows how superficial declarations of unity can fail in reaching to deeper and more systematic issues, and shows what we should NOT do for the blending of various communities.
Tony,
I really enjoyed reading your blog post. I agree, in that moment of desperation, Mr. Kim’s cry illuminated a much larger problem that minorities face in the US where they often end up pitted against one another. The root cause of this is in stereotyping – and Do the Right Thing paints such a clear picture of minority stereotypes. I saw this as proven by the scene where a Black man, White man, and Asian man each spend time on-screen ironically acting out their stereotype. I agree with your point that Mr. Kim’s temporary win definitely didn’t solve the larger systemic issues that Bedford-Stuyvesant is riddled with. And though I agree that the mob’s inclination to target Mr. Kim’s store proves the fragile unity between minorities, it could have also just been plain and simple frustration. They just watched the police murder Radio Raheem for nothing more than playing his music, which could explain why they were seeing red. I think they knew it would be most irrational to really trash Mr. Kim’s store. After all, turning around and fighting more would only fuel the flames that policemen use to feed their fire and kill innocent people. Because even though minorities don’t ask to be stereotyped, they are still burdened with the work of undoing these stereotypes.
Ria