Whiteness in America

Whiteness is a word that is hard to define. Whiteness in America is not just associated with the color of one’s skin but, unfortunately, with a long history of racism and prejudice. This prejudice is still present in our country today. According to the article “The Concept of Whiteness and American Film” white movie-goers tend not to see movies with non-white actors or movies that are ethnically based. The article’s author believes that people are only willing to watch movies that they can “relate” to. I personally don’t agree with that. Everyone has their own preference of what films they like and want to go see, it is not that they are prejudiced against the film. This, I feel is also true of what books and magazines we read. However, many would agree that “whiteness” sells. One magazine that has seen some racial controversy is Vanity Fair. Their upcoming March issue, which features who they call, “The New Hollywood of 2010”, has been accused of lacking diversity. While I would agree that it does lack diversity, considering it features nine white females on its cover, should it be accused of being racist or is just trying to appeal to its consumers? I am not trying to say that only white people buy Vanity Fair, because that would be unfair. But I doubt that a predominantly black magazine like Ebony would put white actresses on its cover with the idea of it selling to its intended buyers.