Blaxploitation

American  

[blak-sploi-tey-shuhn] / ˌblæk splɔɪˈteɪ ʃən /

Or Blacksploitation

noun

(often lowercase)

1. a subgenre of American cinema in the 1970s featuring Black protagonists in exploitation films intended to appeal to African American audiences.

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blaxploitation British  

/ ˌblæksplɔɪˈteɪʃən /

noun

1. a genre of films featuring Black stereotypes

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Etymology

Origin of Blaxploitation

Blend of Blax (respelling of Blacks ) + exploitation; coined by Dr. Junius Griffin (1929–2005) of the Beverly Hills/Hollywood NAACP in 1972 in response to the movie Super Fly (1972)

Example Sentences

Judy Pace, a pathbreaking model and star of blaxploitation films who appeared in television shows through the 1960s and ’70s and the hit made-for-TV movie “Brian’s Song,” died last week.

From Los Angeles Times

Judy Pace, a pathbreaking model and star of “blaxploitation” films who appeared in television shows through the 1960s and ’70s and the hit made-for-TV movie “Brian’s Song,” died last week at age 83.

From Los Angeles Times

She played the scheming, seductive Iris in the 1970 blaxploitation comedy classic “Cotton Comes to Harlem.”

From Los Angeles Times

Mr. Tarantino fondly imitates Japanese manga and samurai films, Hong Kong kung-fu offerings, blaxploitation movies and Brian De Palma’s split-screen stalker motifs, all in service of a point that the B movies the director inhaled as a kid are overlooked classics.

From The Wall Street Journal

He did the soundtrack to the Blaxploitation movie “Coffy,” which was co-written by its star Pam Grier and director Jack Hall.

From Los Angeles Times