In a 1984 conversation between James Baldwin and Audre Lorde about the power dynamics between Black men and Black women, Lorde pushed Baldwin to examine the inherent privilege of being a man in a patriarchal society that privileges men over women, intersecting with white supremacy, which harms all Black people. Lorde said in part, “I do not blame Black men for what they are. I'm asking them to move beyond…we have to take a new look at…[how]…we fight our joint oppression…We have to begin to redefine the terms of what woman is, what man is, how we relate to each other."
Now, nearly 40 years later, the patriarchy still reigns, and sexism and misogynoir are as rampant as ever. However, in cinema and television, with more Black women at the helm of Black love stories, we are beginning to see a new soft Black intimacy take center stage and stories that do what Lorde has demanded: redefining gender roles and relationships within the Black community. These stories do not put Black women in a position to struggle or fight for a man's attention or place Black women in the line of fire on the road to Black men's emotional growth and maturity. Instead, they look at Black people in all of their complexity and splendor while requiring self-awareness and accountability, especially for Black men.
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