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• Blaxploitation
  Blaxploitation

  noun

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

  noun

  a genre of films featuring Black stereotypes

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

“Like, OK, let’s have an Asian child and a Black — I used to get more offended by that than just — I grew up watching Blaxploitation movies, right? And I said, ‘That’s great.’

From Salon • Sep. 15, 2024

So we’re talking about Wakanda, I can also trace it back to the Blaxploitation movement.

From New York Times • Mar. 13, 2024

PolyGram executive Harry Weinger reached out to Bitton and asked him to lend the record label his copy of a rare Blaxploitation soundtrack so the company could make a reissue.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 15, 2024

“Rocky” was released in 1976, and it was his mainstream film break — Weathers’ film credits up to that point were for Blaxploitation features “Friday Foster” and “Bucktown.”

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 2, 2024

The 1970s movie franchise was iconic as it was among the first of what came to be known as Blaxploitation films, a genre featuring action movies that centred on heroic black characters.

From BBC • Oct. 24, 2023