Supremacy with a Smile: White Saviour Complex in 'The Blind Side'

The white saviour trope, in which a white protagonist demonstrates their virtue by protecting or otherwise assisting a person of colour, is a pervasive narrative in American cinema – but also one that, despite its feel-good trappings, only serves to reinforce racial stereotypes and existing societal power structures. Using examples from John Lee Hancock's film and a range of other screen texts, Luke Rodesiler and Kathy Garland offer a guide on how to critically address this topic in classrooms.

Additional keywords:
Screens in the Classroom, middle years, senior secondary, racism, civil rights, media literacy, Michael Oher, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, The Help, Ghosts of Mississippi