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Spike Lee’s Do the Right Thing is a comedic portrayal of racial tensions in a neighborhood in New York. Despite all these groups having conflict and prejudice all these groups are portrayed as incredibly similar. They all have families, music, possessions, emotions. They are all people with similar interests and dynamics. This connection was made explicitly clear when the black characters open the fire hydrant to relieve the neighborhood on such a hot day. The Italian man drives through the neighborhood and they intentionally spray his car, soaking the interior. Parallel to this case, the white character who moves into the neighborhood drives his bike over Mookie’s shoes. Both instances are not considered a big deal to the perpetrators, but are very upsetting to the victims. While they may not care for the same things, they still have very similar emotions toward their prized possessions.

This movie is based on and refers to real life cases. The plotline in the end follows the story of Michael Stewart, a man killed by asphyxiation while in police custody. Similar to the character Radio Raheem. Another allusion to real life is the graffiti on the wall that reads “Tawana told the truth.” This tells the story of Tawana Brawley who claimed to be raped by 6 white men, smeared in slurs spelled out with feces, and found wrapped in a plastic bag in November of 1987. This case was very controversial and often considered unreliable.  

While this movie has unserious, comedic, and exaggerated scenes, it slowly delves into more serious themes. It symbolizes how microaggressions and smaller acts of racism can quickly progress, especially when other tensions are present. The heat makes the audience feel stressed, seeing the closeups of the characters drenched in sweat makes viewers feel uncomfortable and stressed. Not only is it a tool for immersion, it is also symbolic in its representation of how microagressions and racial tensions will eventually reach a boiling point. When the heat (symbolizing oppression and racial discrimination) is so ever-present and continuous, it pushes people to their limit. It leaves the audience to contemplate how anger can be a response to one’s environment.

The movie also delves into themes of economic discrimination. Despite this neighborhood being historically black, there are no black-owned businesses. The Korean couple who have recently moved in own a grocery store, and the only other business we see is the Pizzeria. It also tackles the issue of gentrification, when the white character moves into their neighborhood. This happens with historically black neighborhoods, which were intentionally and systematically separated during segregation. Over time, white people began moving in and increasing the popularity of the neighborhoods. This increases prices and rent and forces families who have lived there for decades to move. 

Malcolm X and MLK are frequently referenced throughout the movie, with quotes from each at the end. It shows no particular bias toward one perspective over the other, and instead leaves the audience to contemplate on nonviolence and necessary violence. While nonviolence is considered more respectable and often makes great historical change, sometimes it is ineffective. The movie delves into the racist perspective that African Americans incite violence and riots. The characters, like Radio Raheem, frequently push boundaries and cause arguments. While we can easily turn to blaming the characters for their actions and escalation, we also have to question how long these characters have been pushed to this point? We see the progression of violence over the period of one day rather than the progression over a lifetime. It calls to both the ideas of MLK and Malcom X, showing how violence can get out of hand and often have the opposite effect. However, it also shows how frustrations in the fight for equality can cause violent outbreaks and begs the question: When discrimination is so prevalent and never ending and nonviolence yields no change, then is violence truly violence or is it self-defense?

Edwards, G. (2018, June 25). Fight the power: Spike Lee on “do the right thing.” Rolling Stone. https://www.rollingstone.com/tv-movies/tv-movie-features/fight-the-power-spike-lee-on-do-the-right-thing-123339/