Hitch

There are many shows and movies today that depict different types of races in a different way than what is commonly seen in reality. This is often referred to as what Sut Jhally calls, enlightened racism. Enlightened racism promotes the myth that blacks who don't "make it" have only themselves to blame. One of the first movies that came to mind when I was trying to think of an example of enlightened racism was the movie Hitch, starring Will Smith. In this movie, Alex Hitchens (played by Will Smith) is "The Date Doctor" of New York. He makes a living off of helping men land the women of their dreams with just three dates. Below, I attached the trailer from Hitch.



This movie provides us with two specific aspects of enlightened racism to talk about. First, Alex Hitchens is depicted as being a successful business man merely because he helps men get dates with the women of their dreams. This is not essentially realistic. Will Smith's character in this movie hides and distorts how most black people live. His character could also possibly distort how any person lives. In today's world, it would be almost impossible to be a "date doctor" and be necessarily well-off. While watching this movie, you can see that Alex Hitchens has a nice home, dresses well, provides for himself, and leads a lavish lifestyle. This is not very logical.

Second, because Alex Hitchens is depicted as being a handsome, successful man of New York, it makes his character easily relatable to viewers. His character is portrayed to be "like us".This is another common aspect of enlightened racism. The fact that he's a smooth-talking and good looking resident of New York is very aspiring to some people. Smith's character is the portrayal of the idealistic man. Smith's character is portrayed as upper middle class.  This potentially obscures the connection between race and class.

So, what can we do about enlightened racism? What do we do when we see it?

It's important to remember that enlightened racism is something very commonly used in media devices when it comes to different races and other various groups of people. It's important to stay aware of the use of enlightened racism in the media. When you see examples of enlightened racism, don't just acknowledge it, think about how the use of enlightened racism completely changes the scenario of how things really are. It's important as consumers of media to be aware and be able to discuss our findings within the media. You should know that just because a person or a group of people are depicted a certain way within the media, doesn't mean that all people/groups of people are like that, too. There's real hardships and struggles that are placed throughout people's lives and with the use of enlightened racism, these hardships can be overlooked. There's a false front to what, in reality, is really happening.