Racial Issues in “Crash” by Paul Haggis

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Racial Issues
Inaccuracies
Conclusion
References

Introduction

Racial bigotry is a pest and social malady affecting societies across the globe. Racism is “established by cataloging its various symptoms and manifestations that include fear, separation, discrimination, and hatred” (Farris, 2007, p. 342). The primary cause of racial discrimination is ignorance. The movie (Crash directed by Paul Haggis) demonstrates candidly how racial bigotry and authority as social problems impact the lives of people. Crash shows how people from diverse ethnic backgrounds and social status reflexively generate an undulating cause and effect through everyday relations. Crash comprises multiple racial descriptions. Blacks, whites, Chinese, Koreans, Mexicans, and Arabs are incorporated in this display of racially distasteful language. The movie shows how frequently people distinguish others according to racial descriptions. This article will review how racial issues are manifested in the movie.

Racial Issues

In the first scene, Haggis introduces two white characters: Jean and Rick. The sheer representation of the two characters compared to the others reflects a measure of racial bigotry. The two are portrayed as confident, good-looking, and wealthy characters who hail from a high social status. Jean clings to her husband’s hand after seeing two youthful black men. The act demonstrates that she is a distinctive racist. In this context, Jean displays the stance that a majority of the whites have towards other races. Despite being in a secure location, Jean feels timid on seeing the two black men (Farris, 2007). According to Jean, black men are cruel, ruthless, and always out to harm anyone they come across. The film director confirms Jean’s apprehension when Anthony (one of the black men) steals her car. In a way, Haggis brings out the concept of racism by showing how Jean reacts to seeing the black men. By depicting the two men as thieves, the film director appears to approve racial bigotry meted on the blacks. In a sense, the director seems to trust that Jean’s worries are legitimate. The film propagates the assumptions that the whites are peaceful while the blacks have a high propensity to violence.

After Jean and Rick lose their car, they opt to have the locks changed in fear that the criminals might decide to strike again. They procure the services from a Hispanic man. However, Jean doubts the man because of his physical appearance. Jean argues that the Hispanic man might go and sell the keys to his accomplices. She even goes to the extent of referring to the man as “gang member with a shaved head and pants around his ankles” (Farris, 2007, p. 344). The sentiments show how Jean loathes other races. According to her, most men from the minority groups are thieves and cannot be trusted. The scene depicts racism from a white man’s point of view. The director uses Jean’s attitude towards other races to bring out the concept of “whiteness” and how it portrays the universe in the reflection of the white person.

Another character that brings out the issue of racial bigotry and chauvinism is Matt Dillon. Matt uses all kinds of insults when talking to a receptionist on the phone. He attacks the receptionist with unsavory racist comments. Matt even goes further to deride the receptionist’s name. Dillon molests the receptionist not because he is dissatisfied with her services, but because he wants to assert his racial supremacy (De Fazio, 2007). He later tries to show remorse and excuse his behavior by sharing his predicament. The use of his father’s illness as the reason he was furious with the receptionist is a mere cover-up. The film brings out the impression that the whites have towards blacks. They always view blacks as inferior. Thus, they are supposed to submit to all that the whites demand.

The film depicts Anthony as a racist, despite him “expressing the sharpest structural and class conscious understanding of race” (De Fazio, 2007, par. 10). Anthony considers himself liberated from racism. Nevertheless, he perpetuates it in various ways. In spite of Anthony’s disapproving of the perception that African Americans are thieves, he goes ahead to steal Jean and Rick’s car. Moreover, he is reluctant to help a Korean man that he knocks with a car just because of his race. Anthony considers all the Asians as “Chinamen,”; a term that brings out his attitude towards Asians. Towards the end of the film, Anthony is reprimanded by an affluent African American man who has been mistreated by the police. The gentleman tells Anthony, “you embarrass me, you embarrass yourself” (Ray, 2007, p. 353). His sentiments depict the prevailing hatred among the African Americans who treat each other with contempt.

Crash hints that everyone plays a role in propagating racism. The only things that the different races are capable of are temporary, erratic ethical gestures. In the film, “state-sanctioned racism in the police is equated with the African American’s racist comments about Asians, and the Asian’s comments about Latinos” (Ray, 2007, p. 354). Officer Ryan brings out the nature of racism in Los Angeles State through his sentiments. His partner is against the way he treats African Americans. In response, Ryan tells him that he is wrong about his identity. Ryan believes that his partner is different from who he perceives himself to be. According to Ryan, the only way that his partner can realize his identity is through experience. The film holds that people are complicated, intricate, divided individuals.

Inaccuracies

Haggis does not succeed to elicit the movie’s explicit assertion of racism due to his endeavor to equate and counterbalance all social positions. The film is full of contradictions. Haggis subjects all characters to similar inconsistencies. De Fazio (2007) argues that Haggis assigns life events to different characters to enable the audience to understand their backgrounds. For instance, Jean suffers from depression, Officer Ryan has a sick father, and the shopkeeper grapples with immigration challenges. These circumstances are used to explain why each character has racial problems. Besides, the film director uses the events as a way to ensure that the audience sympathizes with the characters regardless of their unethical behaviors. Conditions like depression, sickness, poverty, and fear are not in any way related to racisms and cannot serve as reasons for being racist. The director’s effort to rationalize bigotry compromises the film’s ability to send a strong message about racism.

Conclusion

Haggis brings out numerous callous veracities that are hard to see on the big screen. He promotes racial consciousness by showing the state of prejudice among varied races. A majority of the people who have watched Crash claims that the film depicts a stark reality of what happens in the world. Haggis has managed to show veracity in an unrealistic manner.

References

De Fazio, K. (2007). Crash and the ethnic within. Web.

Farris, C. (2007). Crash course: Race, class, and context. College English, 69(4), 340-346.

Ray, S. (2007). Crash or how white men save the day, again. College English, 69(3), 351-357.

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Racial Issues in “Crash” by Paul Haggis

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