Crash

Crash
Name
Institution

Crash
Crash is an American film that features the social and racial tensions in Los Angeles. The movie portrays racism in a new way by emphasizing that every person is prejudiced against individuals who are from different races. By doing so, the director, Paul Haggis, shows that the matter can not be dealt with by separating people into victims and offenders. Instead, discrimination can only be overcome when humans learn to appreciate the significance of diversity in their community. The movie displays multiple instances of white privilege and the experiences of African American citizens relating to racism.
White privilege describes Caucasian individuals who fail to recognize the advantages they have by just being born white. Nobody reacts in fear when a Caucasian person walks by, but Anthony and Peter complain that a passerby, Jean, clutches her purse when she spots them. Anthony argues that “if anybody should be scared, it’s us: the only two black faces” (Haggis, 2004). Another example is Jean’s claims when Daniel, a Hispanic locksmith, changes their locks. Jean complains that Daniel will “sell our key to one of his gang banger friends” when he leaves (Haggis, 2004). Jean feels that she can act on her prejudices towards Daniel with no consequences and fails to understand why Rick, her husband, objects to her request.
African American characters in Crash are continuously discriminated because of their racial diversity. Flanagan, an employee of Rick, is convinced that Officer Lewis is the guilty party in the case Detective Graham is investigating.

He rationalises that the officer may have killed two other men because “being black in the valley is reason enough to get killed” (Haggis, 2004). His statement is proof of racial injustice and corruption in the criminal justice system. Officers Ryan and Hansen stop Cameron and Christine’s car on their way home. Ryan insists that something illegal has transpired when he notices that both the driver and the passenger are African American. When Christine accuses him of discrimination, Ryan assaults her and threatens to arrest them if they continue to defy him.
Conclusively, Crash is a film that explores racism and white privilege and its effects on the lives of the characters. The movie portrays white privilege as the Caucasian characters hardly experience any form of prejudice. However, this advantage makes them unsympathetic and prejudiced against people from different races. Also, Haggis showcases racial injustice concerning African Americans because they appear defenceless against law enforcement authorities.

Reference
Haggis, P. (Director). (2004). Crash [Motion picture]. America: Lions Gate Films.