ABSTRACT
Blacks return to horror films with a vengeance (pun intended), as detailed in Chapter 6, “Scream, Whitey, Scream—Retribution, Enduring Women, and Carnality: 1970s.” Here, I note the return of Blacks to the horror genre, in both “Black horror” and “Blacks in horror,” through an influx of films offered, not entirely surprisingly, during the rise of the Black Power movement. Both types of horror films were deeply influenced by these times of Black nationalism, as well the lingering, graphic “television war” of Vietnam and national violence (i.e., assassinations and riots). In this chapter, I detail films that are notable for their anti-assimilationist ideologies, themes of revolution and revenge, and “enduring,” resilient Black women who defeat the monster and live on, ready to fight another day. I also observe how Voodoo is reclaimed in these films as a powerful weapon against racism (e.g., Scream, Blacula, Scream [1973], and Sugar Hill [1974]).
