I hadn’t even heard of this movie, being under my rock as usual, but I just watched the trailer, prior to reading Antoine Allen’s take on it, and it’s high tension, and manages in seconds to make you hope with all your being, that for once in a horror film, the black person gets to come out alive, and maybe a hero, too. So I’ll be watching this, to be sure. It seems it has white people rather riled up though, who tend to get riled up about some absurd stuff, like claiming the show Luke Cage is racist because the cast is primarily black. Uh…does it really have to be pointed out the 99.9 of all television shows and movies in uStates and other places have casts which are all white, or mostly white? Why is it okay for people of colour to have nothing else to watch for not only their lives, but whole generations of people of colour having no choice there? This extends to books, too. Trust me, white people, you can cope with one or two shows which don’t primarily feature white people. It won’t kill you. Think of every superhero, in comics, television shows, and movies. How many of them are white? Yeah. So you can be quiet now, okay?

The thriller and horror genre has pretty much been drained of all originality. However, Get Out strikes out to bring a new twist to the genre; we are calling this ‘Racism Horror”. Get Out is about an interracial couple going to ‘meet the parents’ for the first time. However, the Black boyfriend is confronted with more than just some ‘Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner” level of racial tensions. He becomes trapped in a town that seemingly has a more sinister agenda towards young black men.  The film is directed by Jordan Peele from the Key and Peele show.

There has been even more shock and social media outrage by a section of the white community and probably a minority of Black people who do not ‘get’ the trailer either. Namely, both of those whom are not or choose not to be aware of the history of racism in America. Yet, there are also some who are aware of the somewhat sensational point this horror film is making. Watch the trailer so you can gauge where their outrage or misunderstanding may have been born from.

The trailer ends with a one-liner that will no doubt be filling meme across the internet before and after people are glued to their seats fearfully watching this thriller:

If there is too many white people I get nervous– Get Out.

As expected this line and the general premise of the film has produced complaints from some people. Some people have been shocked by the trailer and others have said it portrays the genuine fears that black people sometimes have.

But remember, the old adage, it’s ok to be quasi-racist as long as you have a member of the opposite race as a close friend. Jordan Peele is already Black, so he can’t say “my best friend is black”. On the other hand, Peele has more than a best friend whom is white, he is married to a White woman ie he has a super best friend. But, in all seriousness, it can be argued that the film portrays the fear that Peele subconsciously had when he first met his wife’s parents. Are those fears only limited to interracial couples? Are those fears valid or invalid? Probably not! If we look at history we can see how these fears may have manifested over time.

The question becomes, just how far from reality are the themes of this racially charged thriller? Well, here are some examples from history of the mistreatment Black people have faced by sections of the White community; all after the end of slavery.

1. In 1919, in the wake of World War I, Black sharecroppers unionized in Arkansas, unleashing a wave of white vigilantism and mass murder that left 237 Black people dead after mass lynchings.

Four more examples follow, with disturbing photographs. If you aren’t well versed in the history of horrific racism in uStates, you definitely need to click over and read every word of the article. If some white people are so in need of being outraged, you need to get outraged about the right things. I’ve known more than one black person who has mentioned a low level fear when surrounded by white people. There’s a reason for that fear, and there’s a reason for the mistrust which fuels it. These things don’t come out of nowhere for no reason. There’s a deep bedrock of reason, and it you don’t know it, please educate yourself.

[…]

In short, movies like this expose the subconscious fears of the subjugated minority and highlight a lack of awareness from the other members of the same society. Get Out it is basically the horror version of Guess who’s coming to dinner. If people have a basic knowledge of history then they shouldn’t be shocked by this film. It only shows racism from a horror perspective. Therefore, if art is supposed to imitate life, this film is merely a reflection of an aspect of life. Thus, people should find society’s racism more shocking than this film that for the first time depicts an aspect of life from a horror perspective. So, yes it is sensational but that ‘Horror’; people need to discuss the issues it raises- rather than simply complaining for the sake of it.

Click on over and read the whole article, it’s excellent, and contains a lesson that people inclined to complain or be dismissive truly need to learn.

Get Out’s Trailer Is Making White People Mad: Here’s 5 Real Racist Incidents In History Worthy Of Anger.