In Cara Caddoo’s book “Envisioning Freedom”, chapter 6, titled “Mobilizing an Envisioned Community”, examines the inspiring black communities, mainly during the years 1915-1917, and their fight for racial justice with endless campaigns to terminate the film “The Birth of a Nation”. D.W. Griffith created this photoplay with the vision of creating a story of the civil war and the KKK nightriders fighting to protect white women and their safety. The play turned out to be incredibly racist and depicted many black men as rapists and other misrepresentative roles. Campaigns and protests launched all over the nation, beginning with the launch in Los Angeles in 1915. Many campaigns were led by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. The association’s progression and success throughout the campaign made them the most influential civil rights organization of the time. However, in late February of 1915, the film premiered in Los Angeles. Protests ignited all over the country, especially in New York where the play way expected to be released next. Over the course of the campaign, the NAACP’s membership grew immensely. The association started off with 5,000 members and escalated to 10,000 by the end of 1915, and then 90,000 by the year 1919. As the spirit and dedication of people in the black community grew, the awareness for the misrepresentation of African Americans in the film industry grew as well. This led the way to the emergence of a new black film production industry.<\/p>\n
I think what Cara Caddoo is hoping to show her audience in this chapter is that with all the hurt and devastation that came with this time period, there was also hope for a brighter future for this “envisioned community”. The mass protests and progression as a community towards a common goal created an envisioned community for modern black life and the rise of the race film industry.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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