Do the Right Thing: A Cinematic Exploration of Racism and Power Struggle

Do the Right Thing directed by Spike Lee, highlights the racial problems that were in the USA at the time the film was produced (1989). The film portrays racial and cultural stereotypes of the time, especially with regards to the Italian American, Korean American and African American communities. The impact of racism and police brutality is also depicted in the movie. The moral decisions that the people make are highly influenced by race and the film shows the impact of negative perception, based on their race.

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Author Note

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Do the Right Thing directed by Spike Lee, highlights the racial problems that were
in the USA at the time the film was produced (1989). The film portrays racial and cultural
stereotypes of the time, especially with regards to the Italian American, Korean American
and African American communities. The impact of racism and police brutality is also
depicted in the movie. The moral decisions that the people make are highly influenced by
race and the film shows the impact of negative perception, based on their race. The characters
in the movie are presented stereotypically to stress the theme of racism more. The use of
cinematic attributes such as camera, lighting, music, and narrative structure further help the
director to pass the thematic messages to the audience. These themes are explored here.
The movie uses iconography to highlight the segmentation of the society in Brooklyn
along racial lines. The American Italians in the movie such as Sal and Pino wear crosses and
tank top shirts. Radio Raheem wears a medallion and plays loud rap music on his stereo, all
which are stereotypical attributes of African Americans.” There is also a group of
Latino youth with Puerto Rican descent who listen to salsa music all the time as they share
beers. The youth also speak Spanish despite the fact they are in a neighbourhood that uses
English as the main language. The film is dominated by insults in which the characters bring
out the sentiments that they hold against each other. The belief in injustice and the lack of
equality is evident throughout the film - most prominently in the segment where Buggin’
questions the Italian wall. The struggle for power in the society is also aligned to the racial
groupings. Racism is, in fact, the cause of the power struggle in the neighbourhood. Activism
in the film such as by Buggin’ and Mookie’ sister is also racially biased and it leads to
animosity instead of helping the people to live in harmony.
“The social interactions of the characters in the movie show their belief in
Marxism.”1 Buggin’, for instance, harasses a white man for running over his shoes (Jordans)
1 “Do the Right Thing (1989).” IMDb, IMDb.com, www.imdb.com/title/tt0097216/.

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and asks him what he is doing in Buggin’s neighbourhood. The fact that the man is a legal
property owner in the neighbourhood implies that the poor African Americans connect their
economic inferiority to their psychological problems. Buggin does not take it as an accident
but views as an exploitation by a wealthy man. The negative sentiments by some characters
against Sal is also a projection of the power struggle caused by racism. The divisions among
the African Americans and the Korean and the Italian merchants can be attributed to the
differences in their financial status. The police are also hard on the poor African families, as
compared to the other races in the neighbourhood. The arrest of Buggin after the fight in
Sal’s pizzeria, totally ignoring the fact that Sal and his sons too were involved in the fight
brings out the brutality that the poor people in Brooklyn went through in police hands.
The interracial liking or disliking of particular characters such as Sal and the Korean
business owner is based on the fact that they own a business. Some of the African Americans
such as Mookie are happy to have a job that helps them to cater for their needs while others
like Buggin view the business owners as foreign pests whose main aim is to exploit the poor
and impoverished them even further as they make profits. The African Americans in the
movie loved Sal’s pizza and they only become aware on Sal’s negative sentiments against
them after Buggin’ confronts Sal about the fact that there was no black man in the wall of
fame inside the pizzeria. The denial of Sal exposes his control over black patrons in the
pizzeria. The black and Hispanic characters in the film fight over material possessions too but
remain peaceful in the long run. Mookie is depicted as a peacemaker in the better part of the
film until he stands up to fight for what he believes is fair at the expense of his job.
“The negative racial sentiments lead to a violent confrontation in Sal’s pizzeria”2. The
fight starts with a lot of racial-based insults and the destruction of Raheem’s radio, the fight is
2 Mack-Shelton, Kibibi. Great Events from History: African American History. Salem Press.

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divided along racial lines in which Raheem is defended by the African Americans and Sal by
his sons. The fight is a culmination of the long-held racial and power rivalry. The African
Americans tell Sal and his sons that even though they have monetary power over the other
people, they lack the actual power since they are very small in number and would not eb able
to fight back to a great extent. “The judgement of the people of the events that had just
occurred was also based on racial interests. The crowd ignores the fact that Raheem was
choking Sal before the police came and they pin all the blame on Sal and his sons.”3 The
biased judgment raises tension and Sal’s restaurant is looted and destroyed in the
process. “The reaction of the police also shows that they are biased and they protect the
people that have more financial power in the neighbourhood more.”4 A view of the Marxist
society is seen in this scene as all the opinions of the people and the police are biased on the
one who is in power. Sal and his sons are not even considered since they are seen as
powerless beings. The arrests made only included African American and Sal and his sons
were left free despite their active participation in the fight that they too had caused.
“Cinematically the film brings out the heightening racial tension and power struggle
in the neighbourhood.”5 The camera, in the last scene, pans over black people and finally
focuses on the Sal and his sons. This shows the inferiority of the Italians in the fight since
they are clearly outnumbered, this being the only situation that Sal’s financial superiority
does not count. The African Americans in the crowd are sweating and this shows that they
have taken the heat for too long and they are willing to take extreme measures to take control
of the society in which they have previously been exposed to a lot of brutalities and economic
oppression. The smashing of Raheem’s radio by Sal is played in slow motion and this brings
3 Marie, Michel, and Richard John. Neupert. The French New Wave: an Artistic School. Blackwell
4 John Leazer, "History and the Movies: Some Thoughts on Using Film in Class," Teaching History: A Journal of Methods.
5 Marie, Michel, and Richard John. Neupert. The French New Wave: an Artistic School. Blackwell

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out the fact that Sal was boiling with anger and hate as he was doing it. The different props
and the setting of the film shows that the people who are in the crowd have been oppressed to
a great deal and hence the scene is the perfect mixture of the message that the movie is
portraying in collaboration with the setting that is executing the message. The camera in this
scene captures the yelling of the crowd and the fighting which is occurring between Sal and
Raheem. The camera focuses on the face of Raheem which shows the extreme brutality
through which the character is fighting with Sal and then focuses on Sal’s face showing the
damage that has been brought about by Raheem. The loud noise of the fight which comes
from the crowd is also heard in the background when the fight occurs. The face of Sal which
has been zoomed shows the helplessness that he feels within as his two sons are being taken
away by other people and he only has to suffer the brutality that is being executed by the
African Americans who are led by Raheem and feel the pain that is inflicted on him. The
beginning if the fight sees Sal smashing the radio of Raheem, where no one attacks him as
they wait for him to tire out. Raheem and his people wait for the perfect opportunity to attack
Sal and finds it when Sal tires out after the strenuous smashing of Raheem’s radio.
The use of slow motion as Sal shouts “No!” as his pizzeria is destroyed indicates his
helplessness. This scene shows the true meaning of the film where the people are not able to
overcome the negativities that is present in the society against racism and have to bar the
consequences due to the lack of support and changes in the society by the people. The look
on his face indicates that the end of his economic power had come. The arrest of Buggin’ is
also played in slow motion and he is seen protesting the whole time as he is handcuffed and
walked to the police car. He is seen looking around and nobody is taken with him. The
worried look on his face indicates that he does not trust the police and he is desperately
seeking help from the crowd. Raheem also gasps for breath for a long time as the police
choke him and the director uses slow motion to show how helpless he was in the hands of the

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police who even killed him on the spot and took him away in the back of their car. Echo is
used to show that Raheem is dead as one of the police officers tries to make him talk by
kicking him. “The kicking by the police officer is captured by the camera from below putting
Raheem’s face at the forefront and the kicks by the officer from above. This indicates the
inconsiderate nature of the police and the helplessness of the African Americans in their
hands.”6
In conclusion, the film Do the Right Thing indicates the danger of not addressing
racial and social disparities adequately. The film clearly shows that people in the society have
to identify the problems that affect their daily interactions and solve them or they will all
suffer in the long last. The director embraced a stereotypic approach in order to show the
significance of minor societal differences in terms of the damage that they can cause. The
movie depicts the effects of income inequality in the society and its impact on institutions
such as the police force who tend to be biased in their service to the people. The director uses
cinematic skills of lighting, camera, music, and storytelling to show the escalating tensions
until the eruption of the violence. The film is in line with the doctrines of the New French
Wave due to its massive use of iconography and in location depiction of scenarios despite the
fears about the reactions that the movie would evoke.
References:
“Do the Right Thing (1989).” IMDb, IMDb.com, www.imdb.com/title/tt0097216/.
“The Spike Lee Effect: Reimagining the Ghetto for Cultural Consumption”
John Leazer, "History and the Movies: Some Thoughts on Using Film in Class," Teaching
History: A Journal of Methods.
6 “The Spike Lee Effect: Reimagining the Ghetto for Cultural Consumption”

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Mack-Shelton, Kibibi. Great Events from History: African American History. Salem Press.
Marie, Michel, and Richard John. Neupert. The French New Wave: an Artistic School.
Blackwell