Diversity in the Movie World Seeing a wider option of reflections on screen.

The world is full of diversity in color and race. Movies should reflect that, and many do.

Movie/TV watchers are able to see their selves reflected on the screen.

"We can't deny the fact that media has an influence when they're spending most of their time -- when they're not in school -- with the television." - Nicole Martins, assistant professor of telecommunications in the IU College of Arts (Science Daily)

University, Indiana. "TV Viewing Can Decrease Self-esteem in Children, except White Boys." Science Daily. Science Daily, 30 May 2012. Web. 17 Feb. 2017.

Many movies reflect the world's diversity, but a few still don't.

Frequently casting an African American actor/actress as the antagonist in movies - or not even casting them at all - is bad representation.

Commonly casting an African American actor/actress as the antagonist in movies, or not even casting them at all, also affects how people think toward a certain race.

Why not always cast African Americans as antagonists?

Although the question is somewhat casual, constantly seeing an African American as the antagonist in movies can affect the way people see them. Some people may think of African Americans as only bad or horrible rather than looking at them as good or heroic.

Take the 5 min Take Look Different's Implicit Association Test and see the preference or bias you have toward certain races. (If you do have a bias, it doesn't necessarily mean that you're a bad or racist person.)

Did you take it? If so, think about how you got that bias, and if you don't have bias, great news! (Remember, if you have a bias, it doesn't necessarily mean that you're a bad or racist person.) Media such as TV can affect your bias. If people only watch a majority of TV shows or movies with a person of color as the antagonist and many white characters as the main protagonists, they may have some bad feelings toward the race. We need more diversity on screen.

Heroic and brave.

No scenes of color?

Not casting African American actors/actresses at all can show that they are not worthy for a role. People also need to see more African Americans on scene because they need to see and be accustomed to the diversity of the world. The article, "Inequality in 700 Popular Films" by Dr. Stacey L. Smith stated that African Americans/people of color did not get featured at all in 17 films of the top 100 films of 2013 and 2014.

Smith, Dr. Stacey L. "Inequality in 700 Popular Films: Examining Portrayals of Gender, Race, & LGBT Status from 2007 to 2014." USC Annenberg. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Feb. 2017.

When Avatar: The Last Airbender was converted into a movie, fans went crazy for it. The few but important flaws of it were that not only did the antagonist role go to the only person of color cast, the movie also got white-washed.

In the 2016 film, Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, actor Samuel L. Jackson was the only person of color to be cast in the movie. He, similar to Avatar: The Last Airbender, was also the antagonist.

Movie directors need to begin casting more actors or actresses of color, making scenes more open to Mirrors and reflections.

Start casting African Americans as protagonists.

Diverse world, diverse screens.

Credits:

Created with images by makamuki0 - "vintage tv tv old" • ColiN00B - "planet earth globe" • Free the Image - "Stormy weather." • Drew Coffman - "Superman & Clark Kent" • anime.com.br - "The Last Airbender - 3D" • Shingo_Nono - "sunset sun landscape"

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