Blackness and Whiteness in the Works of Jefferson Pinder, Dave Chappelle, and Aaron Mcgruder
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W&M ScholarWorks Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects Theses, Dissertations, & Master Projects 2012 Real Talk: Blackness and Whiteness in the Works of Jefferson Pinder, Dave Chappelle, and Aaron McGruder Jeffreen M. Hayes College of William & Mary - Arts & Sciences Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wm.edu/etd Part of the African American Studies Commons, American Studies Commons, Fine Arts Commons, and the Theatre and Performance Studies Commons Recommended Citation Hayes, Jeffreen M., "Real Talk: Blackness and Whiteness in the Works of Jefferson Pinder, Dave Chappelle, and Aaron McGruder" (2012). Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects. Paper 1539623598. https://dx.doi.org/doi:10.21220/s2-ch9x-mz41 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses, Dissertations, & Master Projects at W&M ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects by an authorized administrator of W&M ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Real Talk: Blackness and Whiteness in the Works of Jefferson Pinder, Dave Chappelle, and Aaron McGruder Jeffreen M. Hayes Oviedo, Florida Master of Arts, Howard University, 2005 Bachelor of Arts, Florida International University, 2000 A Dissertation presented to the Graduate Faculty of the College of William and Mary in Candidacy for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy American Studies Program The College of William and Mary August 2012 APPROVAL PAGE This Dissertation is submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Committee Chair Professor Grey Gundaker, American Studies and Anthropology The College of William and Mary or Jennifer Germann, Art History Ithaca College ABSTRACT PAGE "Real Talk: Blackness and Whiteness in the Works of Jefferson Pinder, Dave Chappelle, and Aaron McGruder" will examine twenty-first century constructions of race by African Americans. I am interested in how visual artist Jefferson Pinder, comedian Dave Chappelle, and comic artist Aaron McGruder interrogate and incorporate race, particularly whiteness, into their respective works. Each artist challenges hegemonic constructions of race, utilizing technology and taking full advantage of our visualized culture to present their examinations of race. I selected the artists because of their intimate knowledge of their respective crafts, their use of popular culture, and their diverse perspectives on race in America. Additionally, the artists share a regional background in that they came of age while living in the Washington, DC metro area, which I believe heavily informs their racial views. Inside their world of the visual arts, comic strips, and television, I argue that the artists are examining blackness while re-defining what it means and inserting, visually, whiteness into the discourse. These black constructions of race have always existed; however, I suggest that the post-soul generation is expanding concepts of race by taking the constructions from the shadows of African American culture and situating them in mainstream culture. In this attempt to challenge homogenous notions of race, the artists cull from several disciplines, which call for an interdisciplinary approach. Employing an interdisciplinary method, I will use theories of race and theories of representation. Additionally, theoretical approaches from art history, visual culture, studies oftelevision, and film studies help frame and ground my research. This twenty-first century discourse from African American cultural workers makes my dissertation timely because it captures an important transition in American culture carried out through the combination of art, media, and racial discourse. Table of Contents DEDICATION ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS iii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS iv INTRODUCTION CHAPTER I: "LIFT THE VEIL AND SET THE PRISONED FREE": JEFFERSON PINDER 47 CHAPTER 2: "I'M JUST TRYIN' TO DO MY THANG": DAVE CHAPPELLE l 03 CHAPTER 3: "WE NEED MORE VOICES TO BE CRITICAL": AARON MCGRUDER 156 CHAPTER 4: WALK INTO THE LIGHT 235 BIBLIOGRAPHY 241 Dedication This dissertation is dedicated to my mother, Angeline D. Hayes, who has always believed in my dreams ii Acknowledgements I want to acknowledge a number of institutions and people who have supported my research. To begin, I want to thank the following organizations, institutions, and programs: College of William and Mary, American Studies Program for research and travel grants; the Arts & Sciences Graduate School at the College of William and Mary for research and travel grants supporting research on Aaron McGruder and conference presentations on Dave Chappelle; the Swann Foundation for Cartoons and Caricature at the Library of Congress for awarding me a Swann Foundation Fellowship in support of researching African American cartoonists and comic artists; and Ithaca College for a pre doctoral teaching fellowship in Art History which provided research and travel funds that supported my dissertation research. The following people are instrumental to my professional and personal development and helped to keep me focused during this process: Dr. Floyd Coleman, Dr. Raymond Dobard, Dr. Gwendolyn Everett, Lucinda Moore, Dr. Allan Wallach, Dr. Marian Demos, the late Phillip Bishop, Valencia Community College, Barbara Frazier, Sara Duke, Katherine Blood, William T. Williams, Donzella Maupin, Andreese Scott, Clenise Platt, Bennie Johnson, Dr. Lauren O'Connell, Dr. Shewanne Howard-Baptiste, Dr. Asma Barlas, Dr. Peyibomi Soyinka-Airewele, Dr. Sue-Je Gage, Zoe Charlton, Stefanie Fedor, and Rose Morgan. I would like to thank my dissertation committee: Dr. Arthur Knight, Dr. Michael Blakey, Dr. Jennifer Germann, and Dr. Grey Gundaker. A special thank you goes to Dr. Gundaker for the constant cheerleading, guidance, and conversations about academic and non-academic topics. I certainly would not be at this stage of my professional development with her unwavering support. Lastly, this group of people deserve all the recognition in the world because without their unwavering support, I would have completed this project: Sandra Atkinson and Wil Johnson, Tangela Rey, Gordon Connell, Julia Kaziewicz, Susan Harrison, and Darryl Atwell. Last but not least, I have to thank my family, my brother Marcus Hayes, my Great Aunt Theresa Lewis, and my wonderful, loving mother Angeline Hayes. iii List of Illustrations Figure I. Ernest Withers, I Am a Man, 1968, gelatin silver print 254 Figure 2. Glenn Ligon, Untitled (I Am a Man), 1988, oil and enamel on canvas 254 Figure 3. Glenn Ligon, Invisible Man (Two Views), 1991, oil and gesso on canvas 255 Figure 4. Glenn Ligon, Prologue Series: The Invisible Man (Black Version) #4, 1991, oilstick and graphite on paper 255 Figure 5. Jefferson Pinder, still from Invisible Man, 2005. 256 Figure 6. Unknown, Old and New at Utica Miss, 1900 256 Figure 7. Jefferson Pinder, still from Invisible Man, 2005 257 Figure 8. Jefferson Pinder, still from Invisible Man, 2005 257 Figure 9. Jefferson Pinder, still from Invisible Man, 2005. 258 Figure 10. Still from "Wayne Brady's Show" sketch, Chappe//e's Show, 2004. 258 Figure 11. Still from "Reparations" sketch, Chappe//e 's Show, 2003. 259 Figure 12. Still from "Reparations" sketch, Chappe//e 's Show, 2003. 259 Figure 13. Aaron McGruder, The Boondocks, debut strip in The Diamondback. 260 Figure 14. Aaron McGruder, The Boondocks in The Diamondback. 261 Figure 15. Aaron McGruder, The Boondocks in The Diamondback. 262 Figure 16. Aaron McGruder, The Boondocks, national syndication debut. 263 Figure 17. Elmer Simms Campbell, Cuties. 263 Figure 18. Oliver Harrington, Bootsie. 264 Figure 19. Brumsic Brandon, Jr., Luther. 265 Figure 20. Aaron McGruder, The Boondocks. 265 Figure 21. Aaron McGruder, The Boondocks. 265 Figure 22. Brumsic Brandon, Jr., Luther. 266 Figure 23. Brumsic Brandon, Jr., Luther. 266 Figure 24. Aaron McGruder, The Boondocks. 267 Figure 25. Aaron McGruder, The Boondocks. 267 Figure 26. CD cover for Ice Cube's "AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted" 268 Figure 27. Aaron McGruder, The Boondocks. 268 Figure 28. Aaron McGruder, The Boondocks. 269 Figure 29. Aaron McGruder, The Boondocks. 269 Figure 30. Aaron McGruder, The Boondocks. 269 IV Real Talk: Blackness and Whiteness in the Works of Jefferson Pinder, Dave Chappelle, and Aaron McGruder Real Talk is perhaps a strange title for a body of academic research on three Black men in their thirties and forties. Urbandictionary.com has several definitions of the slang term real talk. Some of the definitions include the use of real talk to emphasize a fact, make a point, and mean what you say. 1 The most common definition is speaking the truth. This idea of speaking the truth, speaking candidly and openly, shapes this research. It also serves as a creative framework for the three cultural workers under consideration: Jefferson Pinder, Dave Chappelle, and Aaron McGruder.2 Complementary to this street perspective of real talk as truth is a scholarly approach which Melissa V. Harris-Perry sums up in her text Sister Citizen: Shame, Stereotypes, and Black Women in America, "Literature crafts a specific story to reveal a universal truth."3 Harris-Perry makes this claim as support for using literature to understand the roles of Black women as citizens and in politics. The book is not typical of most writing in Harris-Perry's field of political science, which often employs statistical models. She uses the arts to offer a cultural perspective on how Black women used a number of avenues,