Collective Identity- Pressure

What event occurred in the 1970s and 1980s that represent the presence of racial tensions?
The 1970s and 1980s were decades of conflict in British society. It was a period of widespread unemployment which seriously affected the economically less prosperous Black-British community. Discrimination and poverty were also issues that sparked a series of riots in Black-British communities such as Brixton, Tottenham and Notting Hill Gate.

Why do you think Pressure was made?
Pressure was made to show a social awakening of young, black British men and women. It focuses on the changing attitudes of White British people on Black British people. It also shows the changing economical and political climate of Britain in 1970s and 1980s. This is shown through Tony's brother Colin in the film Pressure. He tries to get young black people to join together to change the system, the way black people were treated everyday in their society. The film also highlights the difficulty of getting a respectable job as a young black person despite having many qualifications. The characeter Tony is shown to have difficulties getting a job as a secretary mainly because he is black, and his friends who are white got a job as soon as they left school.

What examples of racism are represented in Pressure?
Racism is shown very clearly in Pressure. The first example we see is when Tony explains that he has been going to numerous job interviews since he left school but as soon as he leaves the interview, he never hears back from them. Further example is shown when he goes to a interview and because his name looked English on paper the employer assumes he must be white, and because he is black he is not given an opportunity.
Another example is, when Tony goes with his friend Sheila to where she is presumably renting a room with a white woman, and she refuses to let Tony in her house when she sees him. However when she is questioned why, she doesn't give a clear reason except for 'I just don't want them kind of people here'. This suggests that young Black people in the 1970s-1980s were all thought of as criminals who do harm to the society.
Lastly, the scene where Colin and his group have a meeting with young black people in a community hall and a group of police arrest a lot of them for no reason particularly. They also portray black people badly in the newspapers by claiming that many white people were injured by black people when it was the reverse that happened. This shows that the police thought they could do whatever they wanted to black people and if they didn't like how they were treated they will be forced to leave the country. It was a way of making black people feeling uncomfortable without saying anything.

How does the theme of collective identity come across in Pressure?
The theme of collective identity is shown at the breakfast scene when Colin accuses Tony of trying to be white by eating Fish and Chips instead of the traditional Caribbean food. He says 'this is what we eat back home' he tries to encourage Tony to be part of the collective identity of Black British people by eating the same foods they all eat.
Similarly, Colin tries to encourage to join him in campaigning for Black rights because he is black. Colin tries to explain to explain to Tony that he can't be black and still be influenced by white culture, he has to represent his Black culture.

How do you think Pressure differs from mainstream representations of black Britons?
The film Pressure tries to show Black Britons as victims instead of the representation that most young black people are violent and dangerous. Black people in the film are showed in uncomfortable situations where they have to fight to get any solution. For example the young American woman that helps Colin with their campaign is beaten for no reason as she tries to do something important for the Black British community.

Research-Collective Identity

Investigate what was happening in Britain between 1948-1962

Since the end of World War II Great Britain has continuously faced a common political and international dilemma- Commonwealth immigration. This immigration has continued to bring former colonists to their previous imperial “parent” in order to search for something that will help their future growth. Britons perceived this influx from the West Indies and Africa as an invasion. 1948 was only three years after the war, during the war many people from foreign countries came here for work as they were called upon to help as many British men had to fight for their country after the war however they stayed which angered many British people and sparked much racism between British people and people from countries such as Jamaica, the west indies and countries in Africa.

How was the social landscape changing?

Many black migrants started to get jobs in a white populated environment and there was hostility amongst the white community because they didn't want to work with 'coloured' people. They wanted to keep whites apart from blacks. Many young black men also started to have relationships with young white women and also there was hostility from society towards them because it was seen by some as a taboo. This was evident in the film 'Flame in the Streets' where the young white lady Cathy wanted to marry her black boyfriend and her mother says they will not be allowed to live a normal life. They will face difficulties such as getting looks from the public when they go out, and finding it hard to get a house because one of them has 'a black skin'. In sapphire the girl sapphire pretended to be a white woman she knows she will have a better quality of life if she was white and will not be judged based on her skin.

How did the changing social landscape lead to a 'racialisation' of British politics?

The social landscape changed to a racialisation of British politics, the laws were more racialised. Between 1962 and 1971, as a result of fears about increasing immigration by Commonwealth citizens from Asia and Africa, the United Kingdom gradually tightened controls on immigration by British subjects from other parts of the Commonwealth. The government introduced a law which involved the concept that only British subjects who had strong links with the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man had right of abode, the right to live and work in the United Kingdom and Islands. Also there were certain categories of migrant workers alowed to participate in the labour market.

Representation works through construction - how were black people represented in the film?

Black people were represented and lower and inferior to the white people. At the outset of the film Sapphire the friends she hung around with were all white and the society they lived were of a majority of white people. This shows that black people were not worthy or of a high class to be called friends by white people. There was also a club for foreigners called 'international club' this shows the segregation black and foreign people faced because they weren't allowed to mix with white people even at a club. When Sapphire was introduced to the police officer, tense music was played to show that there might be danger upcoming because the man was black. Black people were automatically attached to crime and anything bad. Also Sapphire's lingerie in the locked drawer seemed to shock the police officers because they linked the over sexualised clothes with her been black. The black men also referred to the white police men as 'boss' when answering their question this shows the superiority the white men had over the black men not only because they were police officers but as a white man they had power over them because of their race.

Considering your research and film analysis- How does the film put across a sense of collective identity of Black British people?

Black people were perceived as all the same by white people in the film and as the police officer says in the film Sapphire 'you can spot them a mile off' he already has a preconceived idea of how black people are. Many black men were seen as criminals because they had low paid jobs, low quality of life so they weren't given a chnace to develop.