Racism v. Humanity Essay

Introduction

Racism has been in existence throughout humanity which in most cases leads us to believe that a certain race is greater than the other or vice versa. Racism has influenced numerous atrocities such as slavery, wars. Legal codes, segregation and the formation of nations which in the end only limits our nature as humans. Naturally, humans exist as a single species however due to racism we are divided and wage war and hatred against each other over one's skin colour which is unethical and diminishes our values and morals as humans. The following document is going to focus on the issue of racism and how it transcends humanity by review the movies 'Do the right thing' by Spike Lee and 'Crash' by Paul Haggis.

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Racism is a to the strong belief that a certain race or group of people are inferior or superior to another, in that a person's social traits are predetermined by her or his unborn biological characteristics. The belief that one group is better than the other is what separates us from other creatures. Racial separatism is solely the belief that different races need to remain segregated or discriminated against. Such prejudice cloud our understanding of togetherness and brotherhood, as a result, we begin to discriminate and treat others as lesser beings whereas in the real sense we are all equal just unique in a different way.

People in the modern society experience racial discrimination in numerous ways. Racism can occur due to prejudice, stereotyping, and bias. In other societies where the population is multicultural, racism occurs through advanced forms of differential treatment. This results in people formulating negative feelings against others as a result of stereotyping. Stereotyping is the attribution of a certain characteristic over an entire ethnic group. As a result, we end up judging people by their differences and fail to notice the common features and characters that holds us together as human beings. In addition to this racism can cause psychological issues on the individual who is discriminated. According to the speech on 'Post Traumatic slave syndrome,' individuals who go through racism develop outbursts of anger in future and tend to express them towards others. Going through racial discrimination can negatively impact the way we view life and perceive other people in the society from a different ethnic society.

One thing to note is that biological differences arise from variations in an individual's colour and physical appearance which are minor characteristics if you consider the fact that we belong to the same species. On the other hand, personality traits are similar but vary in different proportions and in various groups of people. When it comes to behaviour, this is shaped by an individual's history, social norms, culture, beliefs ,experience together with interaction with people from different family backgrounds. Therefore, humans are very similar and we share much more than we can perceive with the naked eye. The only thing that makes us different is the unique nature of each individual which is the case in each race. Therefore as humans, we should understand that 'we are all more alike than different.'

Racism in the 'Do the right thing' By Spike Lee

This film is an excellent representation of both individual and institutional racism. The movie is set in a multicultural society, Brooklyn in the late 80's. This neighbourhood is characterized by different types of people and races who were subjected to each other resulting in numerous issues and conflicts which develops the plot of the movie. The film provides an important lesson to the viewers on the dangers caused by racism which is violence and destruction of property.

The film displays institutional racism in the form of a local restaurant known as Sal's Pizzeria. This restaurant is owned by an Italian family. Two of the family members have a deep dislike for the black community in the neighbourhood. The irony, however, is that majority of the customers visiting the Pizzeria are African Americans. This creates constant tension between the black customers and the two Italians. The first sign of conflicts starts when one of the customers asks Sal why he only hangs pictures of Italians on the wall and no blacks or any other race. Sal is offended and they begin to yell at each other and the customer is kicked out of the restaurant (Lee,1989).

More conflict arises when another customer who is also black, 'radio Raheem' refuses to obey Sal's order to turn off his boom box radio. As the customers complain and exchange harsh words between the owner more tension begins to build up. The black customers begin to question the owner why he does not show respect to the clients who are the reason why he opened place but Sal ignorantly avoids answering them. These simple confrontations build into a rage and the entire neighbourhood gangs up at attacks Sal's place. The group of angry individuals break into the place and sets the restaurant on fire while Sal watches the place burn to the ground. The conflict seems to be over but nothing good appears to be the result. The store is turned into ashes as Sal counts his losses and the neighbourhood feels ashamed of their actions. The boom box continues to play stating 'Fight the power' which is the central theme of the movie. This song symbolizes the need to fight against racism and the unjust nature of mankind (Lee,1989).

On the other hand, instances of individual racism are also dominant in the entire film. These instances mostly occur in between individuals or small groups of individuals from different races. The conflict would arise almost every time a member of a different race met with an individual from another race and they would exchange insults. The movie presents how in the society people different races perceive each other. One thing that was evident is that people from one race tend to unite together and are ready to fight an individual from another race. Racism creates conflicts and it makes us believe that we are different from one another whereas in the real sense we are all the same. We all feel pain, and we all go through tough times, however, being different in colour should not be the reason we should judge each other.

Racism in the movie 'Crash' by Paul Haggis

This film provides numerous examples of prejudice and racism affects everybody's lives. The movie centres around people from different and social classes and shows the encounters between these individuals. The central theme of the movie is that people in the multicultural society have to learn to deal with their own prejudice and racism no matter their ethnicity, class or race. The first incident of racism is a witness at the beginning of the film. A Persian family is seen attempting to purchase a gun(Haggis,& Yari,2004). While at it the clerk at the store begins to make racists comments about the bombing of the twin towers. According to the clerk, all the Middle East people are terrorists. This form of prejudices highlights the nature of people from another race how they are quick to judge and interpret tragic events by referring it to a different ethnic group. This shows that people use racism as a way to mask their frustration and anger in relation to a bad event which was caused by an individual from a different ethnic group.

The second example of prejudice and racism is displayed by the character Matt Dillon. In the beginning, his character appears to be racist due to his family background. Dillion develops a close bond with his father with who they go through negative experiences as LAPD officers and begins to develop a dislike for the African Americans. Dillion treats any black person with disrespect and even goes far by sexually harassing an African American woman in front of her husband while he was frisking her (Haggis,& Yari,2004). However, an incident occurs where the woman gets into an accident and the first officer on the scene is the individual who had harassed her for being black. The women had created a negative attitude towards the officer who was white. Both the woman and the officer are stuck and have to move quickly before the car explodes into flames. At this moment they realize that they are actually not different from each other. After the rescue, we can see the change in attitude towards each other as both the white officer and the black woman begin to realize that we are humans and we need each other.

Another incident that can demonstrate our thesis on racism and the fact that we as human are more alike than we perceive is the incident between the Latino who is a lock maker and the Persian man. The Persian shop owner is concerned about the safety of his business and asks the Latino to repair the locks. However, after repairing the locks the, the Latino informs the Persian that there are still issues with the door and it needs to be changed too to ensure that the store is secure. The conflict then arises as the Persian asserts that the Latino lock maker is a liar and that he wants to extort money from him. The following day the Persian finds that his shop is robbed and racist messages written on the wall. Since he remembers his conflict with the Latino and he believes that he is the thief. This judgement arises due to the stereotype and prejudice that the Persian had created towards the Latino lock maker. In anger, the Persian takes his gun and waits for the Latino out of his residents and prepares to shot him (Haggis,& Yari,2004). By mistake, he ends up shooting the Latino's daughter. This realization makes him feel guilty about his actions. Both of them feel the loss and pain and begin to recognize that we are all the same, in that we go through the same pain, anger and grief as humans but racism clouds our judgement.

This movie uncovers the harsh reality that different individuals, especially in a multicultural society, do hold stereotypes against others which constantly influences our attitudes, emotions and feelings towards people of a different race. The movie highlights our nature to quickly judge others and jump to certain conclusions due to the societal stereotypes created by a certain ethnic group in the society. Such attitudes make us feel that we are different from one another whereas in the real sense we all go through the same troubles and challenges making us more alike than different.

In addition to this, the movie 'Crash' teaches us to face and learn to control the various stereotypes developed by the society or the environment around our community. For instance, most police officers perceive African American as criminals or having committed a crime even without verifying the crime. This makes a life for such groups of people who are vulnerable victims of a police search anytime they walk down the street. Furthermore, the film also shows cases how prejudices from both the sides of the society that is the minority and the majority can collide at a life-threatening situation and cost an individual's dignity, honour and life. From the movie, it is possible to conclude that such life-threatening situations can force an individual to forget stereotype of discrimination and racism and realize that we are humans and we share similar emotions and feelings. Therefore, Crash is a movie that serves to remind us that 'we are all more alike than different'.

Conclusion

In conclusion, racism can result in violence, conflict and post-traumatic disorders as stated in the speech on 'Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome'. The fear or anger towards other blinds our perception of life. We begin to judge others by their differences and forget that we are all the same. One thing to learn from this discussion is that racism as a vast impact on our attitudes and emotions towards others and we should learn to embrace our difference and uniqueness as hu...