Reexamining Race in Do the Right Thing
This piece briefly outlines the nonwhite history of Italian immigrants in the United States before arguing that this history remains deeply embedded in the Italian characters’ oppression of African Americans. Focusing on the pivotal boycott scene, this piece shows that Lee is not only interested in displaying Black-versus-white tensions but also in how Italian Americans oppress and betray a group they were once racially aligned with as a means of securing their new racial identity in whiteness.
