Marquita R. Smith Afro Thunder!

62 Afro Thunder! Michigan Feminist Studies 63 Marquita R. Smith Afro Thunder!: Sexual Politics & Gender Inequity in the Liberation Struggles of the Black Militant Woman Introduction “The position of women in SNCC is prone.”1 -Stokely Carmichael,2 1964 In the 1970s, on the heels of the civil rights movement and in the midst of a turbulent time in the radical movement of the Black Panther Party (BPP), a new film genre emerged. This genre—termed “Blaxploitation” as a combination of the words “black” and “exploitation”—featured black actors and actresses and targeted black audiences. Films of this genre were generally characterized by urban settings, which included drug use, pimps, and prostitutes. Because of the nature of the films, the genre was highly criticized for exploiting and reinforcing stereotypes about black people. The women starring in the subgenre of Blaxploitation films that focused on “strong female leads” were characterized as gun-toting, bullet-slinging, Afro-wearing women who often used sex as a weapon. Similarly, these characteristics were often attributed to many women of the Black Panther Party and other liberation movements of the era. Some prominent figures of the movements like Angela Davis were said to be the inspiration for the 1 Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee; SNCC was one of the principal organizations of the American Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s. Carmichael was quoted as making this statement, jokingly according to some, at a SNCC meeting in 1964. 2 Former Leader of SNCC and the Black Panther Party; also coined the phrase “Black Power” in 1966. Michigan Feminist Studies 63 Blaxploitation female characters. While some characteristics inspired by real life translate directly into film, the Blaxploitation genre skews some crucial aspects of the experiences of black women. While the “strong female leads” of films appear to wield power over their sexuality, this was not always true for women within the liberation movements. Male members who wished to challenge or remove female members from positions of power in the Black Panther Party often used women’s sexuality—once a source of female empowerment—as a weapon against them. Brothers of the party disparaged Elaine Brown, the only woman to lead the BPP, for her intimate relationships with men within and outside of the party. The similarities between these real life revolutionaries and the “strong female leads” of the Blaxploitation films are striking: for both, their power and “badassness” is acceptable, but only within distinct limits. By using female sexuality as a weapon, male figures in the BPP and both the men behind the camera and male characters in the Blaxploitation film Coffy (1973) were able to maintain a position of dominance over these com- manding women as their power was either thwarted or, at minimum, kept in check. This paper will explore these ideas in three parts: the emergence of the Blaxploitation genre; the historical context of 1970-1975 with an emphasis on the radical movement of the Black Panther Party; and a comparative critical review of the female lead in Coffy portrayed by Pam Grier and Elaine Brown’s experience in the BPP. Through analysis, emphasis will be placed on the conditions faced by black women in positions of power. The Beginning of the Blaxploitation Genre Although the range of films adhering to the conventions of the Blaxploitation genre spans from the late sixties to the mid-late seventies, I will concentrate on a more narrow scope. For my critique, I refer to films made between 1970 and 1975 that feature black leads with black narratives. The Blaxploitation genre reached popularity at a time when Hollywood was suffering from serious financial setbacks. Coincidently, Hollywood studios were also under intense criticism from black leaders 64 Afro Thunder! Michigan Feminist Studies 65 about the persistently degrading images of African-Americans in film. As Ed Guerrero succinctly notes, this “forced Hollywood to respond to the rising expectations of African Americans by making black-oriented features in order to solve the film industry’s political and financial problems” (70). Cotton Comes to Harlem (1970)—credited as the first Blaxploitation film—set out a framework of inner-city plot themes and stereotypical characterizations that subsequent films followed. Blaxploitation films generally feature a black hero or heroine who is socially and politically conscious, possessing the ability to “survive in and navigate the establish- ment while maintaining their blackness” (Lawrence 18). The lead characters are surrounded by a black supporting cast and white people are often portrayed as villains who “feel the wrath of black justice” (Lawrence 19). Novotny Lawrence writes that the heroes and heroines are in control of their sexuality and “dictate the circumstances of their erotic encounters” (20) as a testament to their independence. This may hold true for the male leads but the sexuality of the female leads is marked by an illusion of control because of the overarching patriarchal system they must navigate. Despite various shortcomings and constant criticism, the Blaxploita- tion genre does provide a source of cultural value to the black community and American popular culture at large. During its height of popularity, the genre provided an opportunity for African-Americans to make money in the film industry. One notable cultural contribution comes in the form of soundtracks from the films, which match the plot themes or—as in the case of the soundtrack for Superfly (1972) written by soul artist Curtis Mayfield—challenged them. While Superfly glorifies the storyline of a flashy drug dealer, the message in Mayfield’s music paradoxically speaks of the dangers and consequences of drug abuse. The new genre also offered a slightly differing view of black women in the film industry at the time. As Yvonne Sims explains, “Blaxploitation movies provided alternative images of black femininity that signified empowerment and liberation for many African American women who were tired of viewing filmic images of black women as maids or seduc- tresses” (5). As Sims points out, the representations of black women in Michigan Feminist Studies 65 film were lacking, to say the least. Historically, the representation of black women in film has been as the matriarchal figure or mammy, the comical domestic servant, the tragic mulatto, or the sex object (Sims 5). Yet, with these archetypes in mind, it is easy to see how the female leads in many Blaxploitation films—despite their flashes of power—do not stray far from the consistent characterization as a sex object. Many of the Blaxploita- tion films with male leads make no attempts whatsoever to break away from the sex object archetype when characterizing black women within the plot. Lawrence glosses over this point when he mentions that films featuring black heroines “either challenge or work in direct opposition to these portrayals” (81) but then concedes that very few of the films attempted to explore the tensions and aspirations of black women or to examine the dynamics of sexual politics within the black community. In order to explore these tensions in detail, my analysis will be limited to the film Coffy featuring Pam Grier, a highly recognizable female star of the Blaxploitation genre. I chose Coffy as the vehicle to explore these tensions because it is Grier’s first starring role and one of the earliest Blaxploita- tion films with a female heroine. Aspects of the plot also lend themselves to comparison with the personal life experiences described by Elaine Brown. Historical Context of 1970-1975 By the time the Blaxploitation genre emerged in 1970, the major civil rights movement of the sixties had ended and black people frustrated with the inadequate fulfillment of equality in American society had moved towards a discourse of black liberation. The Black Panther Party (of Self- Defense) was founded in October 1966 in Oakland, California by Huey Newton and Bobby Seale. The stated purpose of the party was to establish revolutionary economic, social, and political equality across color and gender lines through the use of militant self-defense. Its members, according to the rules of the BPP,3 were to be trained on how to use firearms as a measure of protecting themselves and their community. The party was one of the first organizations in the history of the United States to use militant measures against the government in the struggle for equality 66 Afro Thunder! Michigan Feminist Studies 67 (Basgen). The party did not go unheard or unnoticed. On June 15, 1969, J. Edgar Hoover, director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, declared that the Black Panther Party “without question, represent[ed] the greatest threat to internal security of the country” and pledged that 1969 would be the last year of the its existence (Media Resource Center, University of California - Berkeley). Despite Hoover’s threat, the BPP did not cease to exist but it suf- fered many setbacks as some of its members faced legal issues and others denounced the party. The rules outlined according to party documents called for members to refrain from things like drug use, alcohol, swearing, stealing, hitting people, and “taking liberties with women” but many of these rules were frequently broken by members of the party, including those in leadership positions. By 1970, Founder and Leader Huey Newton had faced trials for the murder of a police officer and kidnapping with other trials still pending. By then the party had begun to move from a solely black nationalist movement to a more inclusive intercommunal movement for equality for other oppressed people of color around the world. During that same time period Angela Davis, a former professor in the philosophy department at the University of California at Los Angeles, befriended three black inmates of the Soledad Prison in California referred to as the Soledad Brothers (George Jackson, Fleeta Drumgo, and John Clutchette).

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