“The other [scene that stands out above the rest] involved a handsome man, asking a dancing couple if he could cut in. The female partner, expecting his attention, agrees, only to see him dance with her male partner. Jolson then flaps his wrist and says, “Boys will be boys. Woo!”. This scene almost caused the Production Code to reject the film, and was featured in the opening scenes of the documentary film The Celluloid Closet (1996).”
I’m very very sure the “uncle” title was indeed a racist throwback. I have no sources or anything to back it up because its like 2am and im not gonna go find one but, im very very sure.
There are... so many things in the modern day that seem innocent to even the most accepting of white folk. Myself included, i didn’t know where the song “zipadeedoodah” even came from, i only knew about it from the section of my extended family with roots in the southern US and this little robotic bird my great aunt had that would sing it.
Keep learning, keep listening. and keep your eyes peeled. Racism isn’t always as obvious as you think, this is some subliminal messaging shit. I’m still learning. And the more i learn the more i realize that even my own family is far more racist than i had previously concieved. One time I showed my dad a character design i did for a short film we want to make about this ghost wife who wants to reunite with ehr husband and he asks me “who’s the dumpy black lady?” (My dad is... probably my closest and most racist relative. particularly towards indigenous folk, i discovered last time i visited him.) Today my family and i were watching a show about barbeque, and one of the contestants was a little old black lady and the guy next to me (not my father) goes “who’s aunt Jemima over there?” without even realizing what he said. He’s not mean and he doesn’t hate people of other ethnicities, but he has been lead to believe that saying things like that is ok. or that we’re in a phase of society where it’s okay to joke about that now. but the thing is, it’s not. not at all.
Keep. Your eyes. Peeled.
Listen, learn, and research.
You can barely even say “since Trump, racism has risen.” because it simply isnt true. Trump is nothing more than an enabler for a problem that had already existed quietly in the minds of americans, and even canadians by extension. (im actually canadian by the way. Canada is not exempt.)