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Race And Identity In The Film Little White Lie

621 Words3 Pages

The documentary “little white lie” what this tittle is about race and identity. The director Lacey Schwartz grew up in Woodstock, New York with a white middle class family where she felt she didn’t belong. During elementary school a boy asked to see lacy Schwartz’s gum. At her local synagogue a member assumed she was Ethiopian Jewish. Ms. Schwartz’s family attributed her darker skin to a Sicilian great-grandfather. As Ms. Shwartz grew up she began to realize what might seem apparent to an outsider that her biological father was black.

“Little White Lie” is the story of Lacey Schwartz’s evolving view of her background. As a child she thought of herself as white and even wished for a lighter complexion. On her college application she didn’t declare a race, then Georgetown University considered her a black student based on a photograph she sent. During college she felt like she belonged due to the welcoming of the Black Student Alliance. She started experiencing the influence that race has on everyday life. Having gained perspective Ms. Schwartz began to embrace a biracial identity. Making things awkward for her family members in the sense that indirectly she may be repudiating them. …show more content…

Schwartz’s parents, Peggy and Robert Schwartz, who are divorced both say that to varying degrees they had convinced themselves of the Sicilian-ancestry story, even though Lacey Schwartz’s biological father Rodney Parker who was an acquaintance of family and friends. Some are shown attending Mr. Parker’s funeral, where Ms. Schwartz was announced as one of his children. “Little White Lie” examines how the secret came out through the years. Graced with old photographs and footage Ms. Schwartz who narrates films key confrontations with her parents. Anyone expecting a warm reception from the pained looking Robert whom she still calls as

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