In this course we discuss the voices of British immigrant minorities. One aspect of this immigrant community that we have yet to discuss and probably won't be able to due to time is the tension between different minority groups. I'm not sure what the status of this issue is in London, but in other cities around the world it is prevalent. One salient example is Los Angeles. This diverse city is known for its racial tensions, not just between the white and ethnic populations, but also inside of the latter.
The 2004 film Crash, directed by Paul Haggis, explores this subject in depth. Part of the film focuses on the the six degrees of separation concept, but more interesting is the way it conveys tensions between different ethnic groups. The tagline of the film is "it''s not like things are black and white." Haggis demonstrates this by including African Americans, Persians, and Hispanics to name a few. It's a really moving film, and I highly recommend it if you haven't seen it. It's definitely one of my favorites. It won three oscars including Best Motion Picture.
Here is one of the most emotional scenes from the film. The Persian man who approaches with a gun has just had his store burglarized. He blames the Hispanic man for not properly changing the locks. (there is more to this specific story, but this is a decently summary)
That's a interesting point to bring up because most of my learning experiences and conversations centered around racial tension have to do with tensions between a dominant group and a minority group. However, it is very important to be able to see these inside tensions as well! I'm glad you brought it to light.
ReplyDeleteThis is a really great and moving film and I think you're right that many people forget about the tensions inside the minority communities that are very prevalent in large cities and can cause a lot of disturbance. Good job on reminding us!
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking from personal experience, I have been witness to some of these inner-minority clashes. It really is a huge deal that some just think is one of those conflicts of race. This stuff really goes on a lot and even though it is not highly recognized by the media it is literally at other people's doorsteps. It is such a big cause for worry when family can sometimes go against family. It really is quite sad that these struggles are not highlighted enough except through films such as this one (which is great by the way). And even then, there is not as much recognition as there should be.
ReplyDelete