Racism and Cultural Prejudices, Research Paper Example

For a long time now racism and cultural prejudices have been the problems that the society is trying to deal with on the daily basis. However, the complexity and significance of the above mentioned issues only add up to the ongoing political and social debates, in which every individual is standing strong on the way of protecting personal rights and freedoms. Directed by Paul Haggis in 2004, the movie Crash is a “rare cinematic event” that challenges its audiences to question their own prejudices (Plot Overview, 2004) and determine their own place on the discriminatory scale. “CRASH boldly explores the gray area between black and white, victim and aggressor…and finds no easy solutions” (Lewison, 2005).

The idea behind the plot is to show a two-day-long drama that takes place in Los Angeles and collides the lives of completely different multiethnic LA residents, who, struggling to overcome their own fears, careen in and out of one another’s lives. Among the main characters one sees a “police detective with a drugged out mother and a thieving younger brother, two car thieves who are constantly theorizing on society and race, the white district attorney and his irritated and pampered wife” (Lewison, 2005), a racist white cop, a Hollywood director and his wife, a Persian-immigrant father and a Hispanic locksmith. “No one is safe in the battle zones of racial strife. And no one is immune to the simmering rage that sparks violence – and changes lives…” (Plot Overview, 2004).

The movie itself is full of intercultural barriers and encounters, which trigger the audience either to sympathize with one character or hate the other. In one of the scenes the District Attorney’s wife Jean Cabot (Sandra Bullock), being carjacked at gunpoint by two Afro-American teenagers, takes out her anger on a Hispanic locksmith who is changing the locks in the house. Experiencing the feelings of fear and frustration, Jean tries to persuade her husband Rick (Brendan Fraser) to change the locks again in the morning, basing her argument on the fact that the locksmith, judging by his appearance, must be a member of the gang and will inevitably pass the keys from their house to his friends, so that eventually the house will be robbed. The locksmith overhears the conversation but leaves without even saying a word. This scene is a vivid example of the prejudice behavior, where a frightened white woman suspects every minority group looking individual of being a criminal of some kind. As a prove to Jean’s false judgment, the locksmith turns out to be one of the most noble and crime free characters of the movie, who is being portrayed as a real family man trying to do his best to help his little daughter overcome her bullet fear. To my mind, Jean’s behavior is unacceptable and really biased. On the one hand, it is understandable, that after having had a gun put to one’s head, the feelings of fear, frustration and anger are overwhelming, but, on the other, it is unthought-of after that to accuse every suspiciously looking to you person of being a criminal, especially when that person hears it and still stays calm and focused on the service that he is providing. As far as I can judge, these are the essential ideas that should be brought to today’s classroom out of this particular story line in order for the students to understand that theorizing on the cultural awareness topics and being caught up in the real life circumstances are two different experiences. A interesting observation would be to collect students’ own views on their possible behavior in such kind of situation or just to see whether they would agree that a good advice for Jean in this situation would have been to focus on her own mental and emotional stability, instead of rushing around the house and spreading her frustration on every human being around. Maybe, she could have, at least, made sure that no one overhears her conversation or could have left all the further discussions till the time all the people have left. Both scenarios would not offense the Hispanic locksmith, emphasizing his dignity and nobility, as well as prevent Jean’s own nervous system from further misbalance. What students should also understand that in such situations it is important to remember that our uncontrolled behavior is a powerful weapon in hurting others – and in this case it is not the physical pain that should be kept in mind.

Another perplexing intercultural moment in the movie is the encounter of Officer Tom Hansen (Ryan Phillippe) and Peter Waters (Larenz Tate). Hansen picks up a hitchhiker Peter, not being aware of the fact this boy is one of the two teenagers that have stolen Rick and Jean’s car. On the way they get involved in a racially tense conversation, when Peter notices that Hansen has just the same St. Christopher’s statue as the boy does. Peter reaches out for his statue, which lies down in his pocket when Hansen suspects that it is the weapon that Peter is reaching for. As a result of this misunderstanding, Hansen shoots Peter and dumps his body with the further intention of burning down the car as the only existing evidence. During the classroom discussion of this scene it is important, to my mind, to make students understand that the core idea of the scene is that Hansen’s action was a result of a prejudice judgment, just like Jean’s was. The only but most significant difference is that as a result of this judgment Peter dies. It is vital to underline for students that Hansen makes a quick assumption of Peter’s intentions on the bases of the boy’s baggy and shady appearance, which is only being intensified by the theme and moods of the ongoing conversation, and it is unacceptable and really biased from the cultural awareness perspective. In my opinion, the importance of the scene’s discussion also lies in the fact that, till this particular moment, Peter and Hansen were seen as some of the most unbiased and stereotype free characters of the movie. When considering an intercultural communication strategy for the characters of this scene, it is important for the students to mention that unlike Jean’s scene, the outcome of this one depended on the behavior of both participants. On the one hand, to my mind, Peter, witnessing the intensity in Hansen’s behavior, could have first told the whole St. Christopher statue situation and only then took it out to show as a prove, whereas, on the other hand, Hansen had no legitimate reasons to shoot at the boy as he hasn’t even seen the gun itself yet. Students could argue that it was a self defense action, that is why it is essential to point out that the suggestion of every shady looking person, who is reaching out for something, is going to kill you is nonsense. Students should keep in mind that if the fears and suspicions were taken under control by both characters involved, they would have just laughed at the whole situation and remained safe and sound.

When considering another cultural awareness problem for a classroom discussion, I would recommend analyzing one of the most perplexing in understanding characters – Officer John Ryan played by Matt Dillon, who, on the one hand, expresses all kinds of unethical behavior through the whole movie, while, on the other, willingly puts his own life at risk when trying to safe one of the female characters, whom he previously offended. The audience’s first encounter with John is in the scene where he and his soon-to-be ex-partner Officer Tom Hansen pull over a vehicle of the African-American television director Cameron Thayer (Terrence Howard) and his wife Christine (Thandie Newton) with the endangerment accusations in regards to the suspected sexual activity occurring while driving. Officer John Ryan sexually molests Christine while searching for the weapon. Christine is furious, while Cameron leaves without even standing up for his wife. Later one, we seen Officer Ryan from another perspective – he is a thoughtful and carrying son for his sick farther, but the unethical behavior is still being expressed in regards to the African-American social worker, who is not agreeing with Officer Ryan on his father’s further treatment objectives. One can say that till the last episodes of the movie John makes an impression of an impolite, aggressive and biased character, who is misusing his power and status. However, this impression is changed when he is the one rescuing Christine, who is being trapped in the overturned and burning car. As Dillon’s character leaves mixed feelings in the hearts of the viewers, it would be interesting to hear students’ impressions and attitudes towards this character. As far as I can judge, a point should be still emphasized that it is intolerable to express one’s individual frustration and some kinds of prejudices on the people around. Respect and mutual tolerance should be addressed as the main headlines not only in regard to Officer Ryan’s situation but to all movie scenes. We live a circular life and sometimes this life can turn our lives up side down so that we will be desperately saving those, whom previously hated or offended.

All in all, the major cultural awareness objective to be underlined in today’s classroom discussion is that Crash shows how important it is to look below the surface of behaviors of people around us. Intercultural barriers combined with fear-based behavior come out “when we least suspect it as we experience racism, ageism, wealthism, homophobism or any number of “isms” and can’t believe it’s happening to us, inside of us, around us, or worst case that it’s actually perpetrated by us even today” (Harris, 2005).  For some people Crash evokes memories of the discriminatory behavior directed towards them, others come to think of all the biased and stereotyped behavior that they brought up themselves. The movie doesn’t leave anybody carefree, raising and underlining once again the importance of clear, unbiased and fare treatment of each and every individual.

Crash uncovers a handful of cultural issues and problems that are currently of the primary concern for the society. To my mind, Crash also raises the idea that such topics as cultural differences, tolerance and respect should be more widely addressed in modern classrooms so that students were aware of them from the earliest age. As we are all born equal, it is essential for every society to underline the value of human life and dignity from the youngest stages of social interaction. When addressing the topic of teacher planning, one can assume that it can be quiet useful and helpful in spreading the idea of cultural equality and tolerance. Teachers are not only powerful sources of scientific knowledge but also are essential influencers of students’ outlook as they are able to share certain ideas in the classroom that the student will carry on all through the life. That is why it is vital to allow for more cultural awareness activities to occur in the classrooms. Such activities can range from simple in class observations of the origins and core ideas of different world cultures and their value for the diversification and enrichment of the world to inviting culturally diverse guess speakers or incorporating class excursions. The most important point, however, is along with all king of possible activities the statement should be underlined that there are no better or worse cultures, they all are different – that id why is it important to understand and respect all of them.

When talking about the cultural awareness strengthening, one can’t forget about the parental influence on the students. It is without any doubts that it is among their primary functions to raise an accepted and respected member of the society by means of various family activities. But, most of all, it is their own behavioral example that acts as an identifiable element for the students. If the parents are culturally aware, tolerate and respectful, it is one of the most significant guarantees that their child will incorporate the same behavioral features and attitudes.

One cannot but agree that various cultural awareness activities, especially those conducted in the classroom, should be supported with sufficient theoretical background. Nowadays, it is not that hard to find material on almost every subject. However, it is important to understand that it is not enough just to make students read. It is the teachers who have to spread the knowledge with the help of the language that every student will be able to understand. To my mind, before discussing Crash in the classroom, it is advisable for the teacher to do some related reading not only on the topics of racism but also that of controlling aggressive behavior and expressing behavioral and cultural tolerance. When considering the control of aggressive behavior and frustration, especially among students, I would recommend using Rowell Huesmann’s Aggressive Behavior: Current Perspectives. Not only does it reveal the basic theories of human aggression, but also exhibits case studies and possible solutions to mostly experienced aggressive behavior patterns. With the help of the material proposed in the book, teachers would be able to show students the essences of aggressive behavior and ways to eliminate them. Another powerful source of knowledge that would be useful in the cultural awareness discussion is a report by the Advisory Commission of the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative “The Right to the Culture of Tolerance”. The report covers the 10-year-long Commonwealth’s struggle in spreading the importance of cultural tolerance and equality all over the world. It can be a good example of how people all over the world unite forces in the struggle for the dignity and equality of each and every culture inhabiting the Planet. Finally, when collecting information on the topic of the racism in today’s society, a powerful source to use would be the United Nations’ library, which can be accessed from the United Nations webpage http://www.un.org/en/. An abundance of available articles and statistical data would be a persuasive and valuable knowledge for the students of the current episodes of racial struggle as well as the ways in which they can contribute in order to fight this social disease.

In conclusion, I would like to point out once again that cultural awareness and tolerance are essential nowadays on the way of building democratic and healthy society. As were are all equal members of the community, we are to respect those around us no matter how different or unusual they may seem. Cultural awareness is not a scientific subject like math or chemistry, where everything could be expressed with the help of formulas and graphs. However, it should still be a matter of concern in the classrooms because it is their that students start building grounds for the future life and what they learn there in most cases determines whom they’ll be in the future.

References

Harris, Parker J. (2005). Intercultural Lessons from the Movie Crash. Retrieved Sept 26, 2009 from http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/articles/intercultural-lessons-movie-crash.html

Huesmann, R. (1994). Aggressive Behavior: Current Perspectives. Springer.

Lewison, Martin. (2005). Plot Summary for Crash (2004). Retrieved Sept 26, 2009 from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0375679/plotsummary

Plot Overview. Crash (2004). Retrieved Sept 26, 2009 from http://www.mooviees.com/7252-crash/movie

“The Right to the Culture of Tolerance”. (1997). The Commonwealth Human Rights initiative. Retrieved Sept 26, 2009 from http://www.humanrightsinitiative.org/publications/chogm/chogm_1997.pdf