Oscar DeGruy
Encyclopedia
Oscar DeGruy is an American
actor who has appeared in over a dozen films and TV shows over 30 years, started the Bahá'í Youth Workshop performance model in 1974, and has assisted Hip hop
artists.
for the 1972-3 season and appeared in shows as diverse as Room 222
to Hill Street Blues
. His first role was on The Young Lawyers
in 1970 and in 2008 he completed work as a supporting actor in Zero Option based on a true story.
In Good Times
in 1974 Degruy was featured in a two-part episode "JJ and the Gang". JJ
is forced into a gang led by Mad Dog (DeGruy) who wounds JJ. After the trial Mad Dog is confronted by his mother who confesses "I never thought I could feel this way about my child, but I hate you" and the two exchange emotional arguments over the missing husband/father. JJ's father, James, ultimately feels sympathy for Mad Dog witnessing the family argument over the absent father.
issues and "had to do something" - so he and his wife brought performing arts
theater with performance art
s of step dance
and street dancing together with the Bahá'í principles
of equality, racial harmony and unity of religions. In 1982 DeGruy was joined by Juliet Soopikian and together they co-wrote the Workshops's manual in 1987. In 1995 there were over 100 Workshops in the United States and another 100 scattered across 50 other countries. Over 1000 such Workshops have formed over the years some of which have toured internationally.
There are several standard performances that are part of the Workshop's manual - one is the "Racism Dance." Two young members from oppositely styled groups (by clothing colors or other visual cues) come together in the middle of the "stage" and start to become friendly. They are then theatrically dragged back to their "own" groups by the blindfolded adults, who communicate through gestures their mistrust of and hatred for the other group and the central players are given blindfolds to wear of their own. In the dramatic climax, however, the young ones shed their blindfolds, return to center stage, and demonstrate the races can unite. At the end, their example leads everyone to remove their blindfolds and come together in a final joyous dance sequence.
In 1995 a select group of six young women formed a Workshop to perform at the NGO
Forum on Women in China
, parallel to the UN Fourth World Conference on Women
and performed five times. They were selected to perform in the closing ceremony, before some 15,000 people two pieces - "a dance on domestic violence showing women as peacemakers, and a rap on the nobility and dignity of women, showing and the importance of women and men working in partnership."
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actor who has appeared in over a dozen films and TV shows over 30 years, started the Bahá'í Youth Workshop performance model in 1974, and has assisted Hip hop
Hip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...
artists.
Acting career
DeGruy was a regular on The New Bill Cosby ShowThe New Bill Cosby Show
The New Bill Cosby Show was a variety television series aired in the United States by CBS as part of its 1972-73 lineup.The New Bill Cosby Show was an attempt to exploit the widespread popularity of Bill Cosby, who had previously starred in an eponymous sitcom and the drama I Spy and who had been...
for the 1972-3 season and appeared in shows as diverse as Room 222
Room 222
Room 222 is an American comedy-drama television series produced by 20th Century Fox Television. The series aired on ABC from September 17, 1969, to January 11, 1974, for 112 episodes...
to Hill Street Blues
Hill Street Blues
Hill Street Blues is an American serial police drama that was first aired on NBC in 1981 and ran for 146 episodes on primetime into 1987. Chronicling the lives of the staff of a single police precinct in an unnamed American city, the show received critical acclaim and its production innovations ...
. His first role was on The Young Lawyers
The Young Lawyers
The Young Lawyers is an American legal drama that was aired on the ABC network as part of its 1970-71 lineup.-Plot:Aaron Silverman is part of a group of young, idealistic students at a top Boston law school who open a legal aid center, the "Neighborhood Law Office," to help the poor...
in 1970 and in 2008 he completed work as a supporting actor in Zero Option based on a true story.
In Good Times
Good Times
Good Times is an American sitcom that originally aired from February 8, 1974, until August 1, 1979, on the CBS television network. It was created by Eric Monte and Michael Evans, and developed by Norman Lear, the series' primary executive producer...
in 1974 Degruy was featured in a two-part episode "JJ and the Gang". JJ
J. J. Evans
James Evans, Jr. is a fictional character on the 1970s sitcom, Good Times. He was created by Norman Lear and portrayed by Jimmie Walker. The character was known as simply "J.J.", and is commonly seen as the show's breakout character. His favorite expression was "Dyno-MITE!"-Character...
is forced into a gang led by Mad Dog (DeGruy) who wounds JJ. After the trial Mad Dog is confronted by his mother who confesses "I never thought I could feel this way about my child, but I hate you" and the two exchange emotional arguments over the missing husband/father. JJ's father, James, ultimately feels sympathy for Mad Dog witnessing the family argument over the absent father.
Bahá'í Youth Workshops
A former member of the Black Panthers DeGruy changed his approach to racismRacism
Racism is the belief that inherent different traits in human racial groups justify discrimination. In the modern English language, the term "racism" is used predominantly as a pejorative epithet. It is applied especially to the practice or advocacy of racial discrimination of a pernicious nature...
issues and "had to do something" - so he and his wife brought performing arts
Performing arts
The performing arts are those forms art which differ from the plastic arts insofar as the former uses the artist's own body, face, and presence as a medium, and the latter uses materials such as clay, metal or paint which can be molded or transformed to create some physical art object...
theater with performance art
Performance art
In art, performance art is a performance presented to an audience, traditionally interdisciplinary. Performance may be either scripted or unscripted, random or carefully orchestrated; spontaneous or otherwise carefully planned with or without audience participation. The performance can be live or...
s of step dance
Step dance
Step dance is the generic term for dance styles where the footwork is the most important part of the dance. Body and arm movements and styling are either restricted or considered irrelevant.Step dance is one end of a spectrum of dance styles...
and street dancing together with the Bahá'í principles
Bahá'í teachings
The Bahá'í teachings represent a considerable number of theological, social, and spiritual ideas that were established in the Bahá'í Faith by Bahá'u'lláh, the founder of the religion, and clarified by successive leaders including `Abdu'l-Bahá, Bahá'u'lláh's son, and Shoghi Effendi, `Abdu'l-Bahá's...
of equality, racial harmony and unity of religions. In 1982 DeGruy was joined by Juliet Soopikian and together they co-wrote the Workshops's manual in 1987. In 1995 there were over 100 Workshops in the United States and another 100 scattered across 50 other countries. Over 1000 such Workshops have formed over the years some of which have toured internationally.
There are several standard performances that are part of the Workshop's manual - one is the "Racism Dance." Two young members from oppositely styled groups (by clothing colors or other visual cues) come together in the middle of the "stage" and start to become friendly. They are then theatrically dragged back to their "own" groups by the blindfolded adults, who communicate through gestures their mistrust of and hatred for the other group and the central players are given blindfolds to wear of their own. In the dramatic climax, however, the young ones shed their blindfolds, return to center stage, and demonstrate the races can unite. At the end, their example leads everyone to remove their blindfolds and come together in a final joyous dance sequence.
In 1995 a select group of six young women formed a Workshop to perform at the NGO
Non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization is a legally constituted organization created by natural or legal persons that operates independently from any government. The term originated from the United Nations , and is normally used to refer to organizations that do not form part of the government and are...
Forum on Women in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, parallel to the UN Fourth World Conference on Women
Fourth World Conference on Women
The United Nations convened the Fourth World Conference on Women: Action for Equality, Development and Peace on 4-15 September 1995 in Beijing, China. 189 governments and more than 5,000 representatives from 2,100 non-governmental organizations participated in the Conference...
and performed five times. They were selected to perform in the closing ceremony, before some 15,000 people two pieces - "a dance on domestic violence showing women as peacemakers, and a rap on the nobility and dignity of women, showing and the importance of women and men working in partnership."