*At the Locarno Film Festival to receive the event’s Golden Leopard Honor Award, the legendary Harry Belafonte spoke to The Hollywood Reporter on a number of issues – including his belief that minority celebrities need to do more these days to bring awareness to social ills.
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They have turned their back on social responsibility. That goes for Jay-Z and Beyoncé, for example,” said Belafonte, 85. “Give me Bruce Springsteen, and now you’re talking. I really think he is black.”
Below is the Q&A in its entirety, including the entertainer’s thoughts about his activism, views on U.S. presidential candidate Mitt Romney and what he sees as this age’s biggest enemy.
The Hollywood Reporter: Your acting career is less known than your singing career. What does an Honor Award from a film festival mean to you?
Harry Belafonte: Such awards, coming from culture and societies where I do not linger, are a validation that there was a global receptivity to the fact that I have taken a stand against war, taken a stand against racism, sexism and so on, throughout the years. While at home somepeople would want to crucify me because of my political position, I am alsobeing honored for what I do, and that validation is extremely important.
THR: Has the world changed for activists like you?
Belafonte: Definitely. Back then, the enemies were very clear, very precise. It is easy to fight oppression if it comes in [the form of] a swastika and a boot and as a dictator, and you can see it and feel it and touch it. It is easy when there is a sign that says “No N——“ or “No Jews.“ Where it becomes the most insidious is when it buries itself and you can no longer touch it, but taste that yet it is there, fully blown, doing insane mischief. That is why I think the period now is the most challenging I’ve ever lived in. The power in many societies has become almost absolute. Those whohave the power in the free enterprise system start to crush societies and create wars that are unholy. What we did during the Bush period, what we still continue to do, even with Barack Obama, is the continuance of not changing the paradigm, of not changing the view. We still have laws that encourage torture, we did not change Guantanamo, we have laws that allow the police to arrest you at any time, not having to tell you why, and take you wherever they want. This kind of capitalism is taking us to the doorstep of [a] Fourth Reich, I think.
THR: Would you want Mitt Romney to become the next U.S. president?
Belafonte: Only if I would like to see the end of civilization. No, absolutely not, Mitt Romney is not my cup of tea at all.
THR: Can you pin down what the enemy is nowadays?
Belafonte: Unbridled capitalism. The concentration of money in the hands of a very small group is the most dangerous thing that has ever happened to civilization. We are facing an oligarchy of force. Just look at who controls the press. We all witnessed how money and power squeezed out all essence of Rupert Murdoch and [Silvio] Berlusconi. Thank God for social media, which aids transparency, but even that becomes more and more restricted now, with companies like Facebook buying up all the roots of this technology. But I am currently involved with two documentaries, one Lead Belly: Legend, Life, Legacy and the other Another Night in the Free World, which I am shooting now for about five months. It is globally looking at the youth movement during the Arab Spring, looking at what happened in Cairo and Tunisia, and now in Syria.
Singer Beyonce and rapper Jay-Z in the audience during the 2012 BET Awards at The Shrine Auditorium on July 1, 2012 in Los Angeles
THR: Back to the occasion of the award for your acting career. Are you happy with the image of members of minorities in Hollywood today?
Belafonte: Not at all. They have not told the history of our people, nothing of who we are. We are still looking. We are not determinate. We are not driven by some technology that says you can kill Afghans, the Iraqis or the Spanish. It is all – excuse my French – shit. It is sad. And I think one of the great abuses of this modern time is that we should have had such high-profile artists, powerful celebrities. But they have turned their back on social responsibility. That goes for Jay-Z and Beyoncé, for example. Give me Bruce Springsteen, and now you’re talking. I really think he is black.
Ever since I began looking into those “closet doors” and behind the curtains, it has been very difficult [and in some cases easy] to discern who, under this society’s capitalist-entertainment-governmental umbrella, is real and who is fake…from the days of back then up until now. It has been proven that the majority are fake [and controlled] but [based on my observations] Melvin Van Peebles, Dick Gregory and Harry Belafonte are three that have always stuck out as those “in the game” for ‘The People’ not in service just for themselves… independent voices unshackled. It sticks out in the words he says here…very simple and plain…and true. Many thanks for that!
So true, Harry.
I respect Mr. Belafonte and all he stands for but everybody are not fit to stand in for justice for all. Not to say Bey and Jay Z are not intelligent and articulate people, but everyone does not have the social conscious thought or awareness and understanding of our history with injustice matters.
I agree with Harry to a certain extent. Harry may not want to admit it but while his generation fought and died for civil rights, they also sold themselves out. They gave up all the foundation of self-suffiency to work under yt. It wasn’t ‘hip’ to be conscious anymore once some of us got to the middle class. Now, this is the fall out of not, as some Blacks usually do, passing on history to our children. The children may understand but they don’t ‘connect’ because we refuse to talk openly about responsiblity to our communities. Instead, it’s become a ‘me, my, and I’ community where everyone is out for themselves. It wasn’t that way when my mother grew up or even when I grew up later on. Plus, we are too obsessed with money and materialism. Still caught up in styling and profiling and don’t have a pot to piss in. It’s more complex that simply saying artists are not social conscious when we have dropped the ball in teaching them to be socially responsible in the first place.
Harry sounds like a smart yet old man.
Wish he would’ve explained his “social responsibility” statement a bit more because as it stands, it sounds silly.
Harry Belafonte would have never recorded a song called “Nig**s in Paris.” ‘Nuff said. He is an amazing man who put his life on the line in the Jim Crow South many times over and all over the world. Love him.
I wish that he would call them up instead of calling them out.We need to really stop calling each other out in public,imo.We tell too much of our personal business publicly and it doesnt help.FAMILY handles their biz behind closed door. I have yet to see anyone called out publicly say yeah such n such is right and do what they were called out about. Instead you get a fawk them type response and resentment.
Harry is one of many who talk Black and sleep and marry white,yet no one ever calls him out about that.He made a personal choice and maybe the Carters made a personal choice to put their money and clout to good use socially and politically and not do it vocally.More than one way to skin a cat.
@nylaconnect – I agree that it’s much better to reach out privately – I’m sure the Carters’ representatives would take a call from Harry Belafonte at any time. Then again, I think Harry figures that Jay-Z’s publicized bling – having a publicist broadcast every purchase and splurge – kind of makes anyone fair game.
Now, Family business should be private but the Internet has taken them doors off the hinges. No turning back now! As for Harry’s interracial dating, he still has done more for people of color than most of his peers. The race he sleeps with can’t negate that. It’s like saying a gay man can’t support abused women because of who he sleeps with. Money and showing up counts for more than consenting adults in they beds!
closed doors
Here’s the problem “I” have with this….the elders act like they have been “holding classes” ‘on the history of our culture, & the young just haven’t …shown up. Blaming the young for what is YOUR responsibility to oass on, only continues the separation between the elders & the young & therefore?, keeps the knowledge FROM the ones who should be recieving it! Like…..a gardener doesn’t/shouldn’t “blame the weeds for being…weeds”! So…..there it izz, Liz, my 2 cents.
Sorry….”YOUR responsibility to “P”ass on etc…, & “the ones who should be “recEIving” it!