ols Table Add-Ulls al text Roboto12 B I lAnalyze an African American person\'s r
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ols Table Add-Ulls al text Roboto12 B I lAnalyze an African American person's racial identity using one of the racial identity models discussed in our text. The person you choose can be a real individual (e.g., Barack Obama) or a character from a fim, book, or TV show (e.g. Clff Huxtable from the Cosby Show). First, give your classmates some background information in case they are not familar with this individual or character. Then, describe which stages of racial identity you believe the person has exhibited and why If you choose to apply Sellers' model, be sure to apply all four dimensions (salience centrality, ideology, and regard). If you choose Cross' model as described by Helms (1990), you should demonstrate your understanding of racial identity development by discussing his/her movement from one stage to another and explain why Be sure to include specific examples of the individual's behavior to support your opinion.Explanation / Answer
Will Smith is one of the most powerful actors in Hollywood. He was born in 1968 and went through lot of roles such as rapper, comedian, songwriter and producer before becoming a lead actor in the Hollywood. He has won many awards such as Grammy Awards, Golden Globe Awards and Academy Awards. His son Jaden Smith joined him in two movies and a rising star. His best movies are Pursuit of Happiness, Men in Black, Enemy of the State and I Am Legend.
He has supported Barrack Obama, donated for his political campaign and attended Nobel Peace Prize Concert for Obama in Oslo. So his views support the rise of the oppressed and the rise of African Americans to lead roles in politics but he has never shown any hatred towards other races. He has so far considered everyone equal and supported the cause of Scientology. Let’s see Will Smith applying Sellers’ model.
Salience – Racial Salience explains how far a person identifies himself with his race in terms of forming his self-concept. Will Smith identifies himself as an African American and happy about being himself rather than trying to change his identity.
Centrality – It’s a concept of identifying one as the same person in all walks of life such as gender, social status, race etc. Some people may try to identify themselves in other areas such as gender and social status but may not talk about race. Will Smith has never explicitly talked about the race but he has been in the hierarchy of the social status by identifying himself as an actor and supporting different causes except in supporting Obama in his campaign.
Regard – Viewing one’s race positively or negatively is considered as regard. If we look at Michael Jackson’s white transformation, he was not happy being a Black. Will Smith is very positive and happy about being an African American.
Ideology – It’s about one’s view of how people from one’s own race should feel and act. The Black integration by Martin Luther King in America can be viewed as the best example where he wanted all the Black people to rise against the white dominance in a peaceful manner. Will Smith is very assertive but he doesn’t force anyone to follow any ideology. He just prove that race is only an eyewash and people with real talent will rise to heights.
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