Editing Jungle Fever (section)

==Themes==
=== Racism ===
Lee dedicated the film to [[Yusuf Hawkins]].<ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://slate.com/culture/2014/07/spike-lees-opening-credits-sequences-titles-for-movies-do-the-right-thing-da-sweet-blood-of-jesus-jungle-fever-and-more-are-among-the-best-parts-of-the-movie.html|title = The Joint Before the Joint: Spike Lee's Greatest Opening Credit Sequences| journal=Slate |date = 7 July 2014| last1=Wickman | first1=Forrest }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.essence.com/culture/5-things-know-storm-over-brooklyn-yusuf-hawkins-documentary/|title=5 Things To Know About 'Storm Over Brooklyn,' a New Doc About Yusuf Hawkins|website=Essence}}</ref> Hawkins was killed on August 23, 1989, in [[Bensonhurst, New York]] by [[Italian-Americans]] who said the teenager was involved with a white girl in the neighborhood, though he was actually in the neighborhood to inquire about a used car for sale. According to the ''[[New York Daily News]]'', "the attack had more to do with race than romance".<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/nyc-crime/yusef-hawkins-black-man-killed-white-mob-1989-article-1.2330613|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150822163044/http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/nyc-crime/yusef-hawkins-black-man-killed-white-mob-1989-article-1.2330613|url-status=dead|archive-date=2015-08-22|title=Yusef Hawkins, a black man, is killed by a white mob in 1989|website=NY Daily News|access-date=2016-04-29}}</ref>

=== Drugs ===
In the film, Flipper's brother, Gator, is a [[Crack cocaine|crack]] addict. He is constantly pestering his family members for money. His father has disowned him, but his mother and Flipper still occasionally give him money when he asks.<ref>{{cite news|title= Spike Lee Cools Off but His 'Fever' Doesn't|work= [[The Los Angeles Times]]|date=1989-05-17|url= http://articles.latimes.com/1989-05-17/entertainment/ca-1826_1_jungle-fever|access-date=2010-10-02}}{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref><ref name="Freedman" /><ref name="Hunter" /><ref name="Ebert" />

In an interview with ''[[Esquire magazine|Esquire]]'', Jackson explains that he was able to effectively play the crack addict Gator because he had just gotten out of rehab for his own crack addiction. Because of his personal experience with the drug, Jackson was able to help Lee make Gator's character seem more realistic by helping establish Gator's antics and visibility in the film.<ref name="Richardson">{{Cite web |date= 2010-12-15 |author=  JOHN H. RICHARDSON |title= Samuel L. Jackson: What I've Learned|website= [[Esquire magazine|Esquire]] |url= http://www.esquire.com/entertainment/interviews/a9106/samuel-l-jackson-quotes-0111/ |access-date=2016-04-29}}</ref>