Good Thing That Joe Is A White Man

And to some extent, "A White Man With A Camera." I really enjoyed watching this film, and I often put myself in other people's or characters' shoes. I was very touched by the generosity of the strangers that he encountered, and wondered if I as a 24-year-old black woman with a masters degree and pretty much the same easy-going, agreeable character of Joe would have encountered the same experiences. I would really only feel comfortable having a very muscular camera-person so that s/he would be able to help me if situations turned dangerous - and maybe a secret bodyguard too. Anyway, would the people be as accepting to a black woman?

That being said, I applaud Joe for doing this, but I do have some criticism about his attitude of what he found on his adventure. Honestly, it is a not hard to believe that someone would help a white man who is being followed by a camera. I wonder if me, a black man, a Muslim man or woman, an Arab man or woman, a Latino man or woman, etc. would have received that much safe hospitality. Gender, race, and class of someone have a lot to do with how welcoming people are willing to be to that person. The only of the three that broke barriers to me with "Craigslist Joe" was the aspect of class, but then again, he did have a cameraman following him; so people probably didn't think that he was too lower-class, not matter his dress and hygiene. Even in regard to a non-white family, would they have been as accepting to a non-white person not of their race? Or an orthodox family who didn't agree with how a woman traveler was dressed (wearing pants, wearing make-up, short hair, or heels, etc.)?

Being faced with rape, racism, sexual assault, etc. (I'm not saying that men can't get raped or sexually assaulted and that white people do not face racism, but the chances are significantly higher for the other groups) could have made him sing an entirely different tune than a sense of community. I know that the documentary was short, but that little insight would have meant so much. Actually, I was thinking that he would mention something along those lines when he was visiting the Muslim family, but he didn't (at least in anything not left on the editing floor). By leaving these things out of his documentary, it kind of shows how out of touch a lot of US residents are; by Joe attributing his individual experience to all of the US without acknowledgement of his gender, race, and class it shows a lot of wishful thinking on his part. Joe being a white man got him places, literally. No doubt that Joe faced hardships on his journey, and I don't mean to underwrite his quest. However, I do suggest that before he stamps the US with a seal of approval for a sense of community, he think about how his journey would have gone if he were not a white man. Just because he was met with warmth, niceness, travel, and shelter doesn't mean that everyone in the US would get to enjoy that same sense of community.

I did enjoy this film though. Joe, though probably very tired and hungry for most of his journey did a great job at interviewing people and letting them tell their story without interruption. The actress with cancer was an incredibly touching seen where he showed his true colors of someone wanting to genuinely help - not to mention the many volunteer groups that he joined and started. It was very open of him to wish people "Happy Christmas" and even do a Christmas drive even though he's Jewish. He was very accepting toward everyone's personality, and I got the sense that he is a naturally agreeable person - or one of the best actors around. :-P The film was thought-provoking, original, and gave a hybrid result of our technological age and old-fashioned oral tradition.