Rush Hour: A Racist Movie?

Throughout American history, African Americans have been oppressed and stereotyped as inferior, uncivilized human beings. The fight for racial equality has aided in suppressing these stereotypes; however, it has not eliminated the problem. Modern day media has contributed to the lingering of racist stereotypes. The movie Rush Hour presents many of these serotypes to the public. These stereotypes are then interpreted differently by a wide variety of audiences.

Rush Hour takes place in modern day Las Angeles where FBI agents are attempting to track down an alleged criminal for kidnapping a Chinese consul member’s daughter. In the processes detective Carter, an African American LAPD officer, and Chief Inspector Lee, a Chinese police officer, are coincidentally teamed up. This clash of cultures leads to a series of comical yet somewhat racially offensive incidents. After Carter and Lee settle their cultural differences, they develop a closer relationship and begin to work together. Carter and Lee go through a series of ordeals when trying to find the consul’s daughter, but eventually discover that she was kidnapped by a Chinese criminal organization that is ironically led by a white FBI agent. Carter and Lee eventually catch these criminals and safely retrieve the consul member’s daughter.

During their investigation, Carter and Lee walk into an all African American bar. Upon entering the bar, Carter greets several of the people by asking, “What’s up my n****?” Lee observes Carter doing so and assumes that this saying is a customary American greeting; however, Lee did not receive the kind handshake that Carter did. Instead Lee was greeted with an arm wrapped tightly around his neck and a mob of angry African American men. This scene clearly reflects the concept that reality is based on every individual’s perception. The scene also strongly parallels with the Darkie Toothpaste incident discussed in class. Darkie Toothpaste was one of Hong Kong’s top selling toothpastes. It featured a picture of an African American man with an exceptionally bright smile. If this brand was sold in the United States, it would have been perceived as racist and would have been immediately removed from shelves. The Chinese population however, did not view this product as remotely racist. They saw the pearly white teeth of the African American man on the box. The skin color of the man on the box was only used to create a high contrast to emphasize his white teeth. This is how the Chinese community perceived Darkie Toothpaste. This concept was also reflected when I was watching Rush Hour with my parents. Being born in Taiwan, my parents have never heard of the n-word. During the previously described scene my parents failed to see the controversial nature of the question. They seemed more confused as to why Lee was being attacked. This shows that an individual’s perception is also heavily based on their cultural background and that racial insensitivity is only based off of a specific culture.

When regarding American view points, Rush Hour portrays many African American stereotypes such as drug abuse. As Carter and Lee are running their investigation, Carter converses of his fellow African American officers. During the conversation, Carter accuses the man of purchasing a bag of marijuana. Ironically, the officer had purchased the marijuana in order to share it with Carter. This reinforces the stereotype even more so than other movies because it is the protagonist that is partaking in drug usage. The stereotype of African Americans as being gangsters and thugs is also expressed in this movie. In one scene, Carter is talking with his cousin who says that he has to tell his mother that Carter is a drug dealer rather than a detective because their family detests the police. This relates to the issue of African Americans being portrayed more heavily in news media. A study conducted by Robert Entman revealed that “a mug shot of a black defendant is four times more likely to appear in local television news report than a white defendant.” Rush Hour also reinforces the stereotype that African Americans only appreciate music written by black artist. As Carter and Lee are driving around, Lee turns on the radio and the Beach Boys comes on. Immediately, Carter says, “don’t you ever touch a black man’s radio boy! You can do that in China, but you can get your ass killed out here man.” Carter then proceeds to turn on a rap song. I do not believe this stereotype to be an offensive one; however, some people have begun to directly associate the gangster stereotype with this one. This is most likely due to the fact that these two stereotypes are often presented together. Lastly, Rush Hour supports the melting pot myth. America is supposedly a nation of tolerance where opposing cultures may coexist with each other. However, these cultures must conform and adjust to white culture. The basis for the majority of the humor in Rush Hour is based off of two characters with conflicting cultural backgrounds trying to function in a white nation. Every single authoritative figure except the Chinese consul member was a white male. The police chief, FBI leader, and even the leader of the Chinese criminal organization were white males.

In my opinion, the continual perpetuation of stereotypes in media cannot be and will not be completely avoided. People have been trained by the media to expect certain qualities from people of a different cultural background. Movies such as Rush Hour would seem awkward if the African American actors did not somewhat fall into black stereotypes. The same would apply to any other character such as Lee. If Lee were to not have a thick Chinese accent or not know some form of martial arts, the movie would have seemed as natural. Stereotypes such as these should be avoided in film; however, if it is not possible, film makers should be more culturally sensitive with how they present these stereotypes. The perception of these stereotypes could also be misinterpreted by an audience of a different background. As shown by Darkie Toothpaste and the incident with my parents, what is offensive to one person may seem completely normal to another.