MOVIES BlacKkKlansman Allows You to Laugh at the Ridiculousness of White Supremacy, Then and Now [View all]

One of the things this movie does well is that is allows you to laugh at the sheer stupidity of racism and white supremacy. Stallworth’s first contact with the KKK over the phone allows us to hear his over-amplified, white voice. And when he says the word “white,” he does so in a very breathy way and adds a “k” sound into the beginning. Say it with me: whyquite.

Every phone conversation Stallworth has is a hilarious revelation of the ignorances of white supremacy. Especially when it comes to Stallworth chatting with the Grand Wizard himself. They share anecdotes comparing black mammies to good dogs, what it means to be a true, good, whquite American and even get into the conversation about the differences between the way white and black people talk.

One of the film’s most profound moments is the retelling of the lynching of Jesse Washington by Jerome Turner, played by Harry Belafonte. This scene takes place at a Colorado College black student union meeting, while juxtaposed with a Ku Klux Klan initiation ceremony, where they exuberantly watch The Birth of a Nation. You can see the stark difference between both groups’ rallying cries: black power and white power. The former is a demand for equality while the latter is a proclamation of supremacy.

Throughout the movie, there’s the stress of hoping that white and black Ron Stallworth don’t get exposed for being cops. It leaves you worried throughout the movie, but it’s thrilling, almost like a rollercoaster coming around the corner and that moment before it hits the big drop.
https://thegrapevine.theroot.com/blackkklansman-allows-you-to-laugh-at-the-ridiculousnes-1828237417