Crash Project

Crash Project - Affirmative Action

By Allie Bono and Lindsay Brown

Affirmative action is a set of rules designed to get rid of discrimination based on race, color, religion, or gender that is being attacked. Affirmative action was first introduced by President Kennedy in 1961. He wanted everyone to believe that they are equal within society, no matter what race or gender. The policies of affirmative action make sure that minorities have the same chance to receive promotions, increases in salaries, scholarships, and financial aid. Most of these were directed to only white people. Affirmative action makes sure that everyone has equal rights. In the late 70's, reverse discrimination was a concern which led to the Bakke case in 1978. Allan Bakke was a white man who was rejected by a medical school two years in a row. The medical school had accepted less qualified minority applicants as well. This particular school had a different admissions process for people of a minority - they reserved 16 out of 100 spots for kids of a minority. The Supreme Court banned inflexible quota systems within affirmative action programs. In the Bakke case, this was a discrimination against a white person. A lot of people of the white race were aggravated at the thought of affirmative action. White people thought that minorities loved to play the victim all of the time. Affirmative action is necessary in todays society because everyone deserves an equal opportunity no matter who they are or where they come from.

Racism is the main theme throughout the movie, Crash. It affects more people as the movie goes on because every character is drawn into it. Every character judges one another before they know anything about them. The main theme is to realize that you cannot judge a book by its cover. Pre-judging someone is useless because usually the person is the complete opposite of what you think. Many people in todays society pre-judge and stereotype all the time. This movie portrays how racism can affect so many peoples lives in different ways.

Essential Questions for Crash

1). In the film, Crash, one constructs an identity through affirmative action. Affirmative action is an action favoring those who tend to suffer from discrimination, especially in relation to employment or education. The characters create their identities by the way that they have been treated their whole lives. Racism plays a huge role in how these characters construct their identity. Anthony (Ludacris) believes that he can only rob white people and steal their cars. When he tries to hijack a black car with his friend, he got into the car and a black man (Cameron) was driving it. Anthony did not think it was right to take a black mans car because they are in the same boat when it comes to racism. They are against most white people, mostly the police, and do not want to go against their own blood. After the incident with the police, Anthony realizes what he has been doing is wrong. Anthony is treated poorly by the white policemen, so he gives them attitude and is automatically thought of as a criminal. Once everyone in society defines him as a criminal, he is more likely to do terrible things like steal cars. People in this movie construct an identity by the way they are treated by the rest of society. The film’s message about this construction is that society plays a huge role in how people view themselves and act towards one another. The color of ones skin also shapes who they are in the general public.

2). The cultural systems that are in place in the film Crash are race, gender, and power. They influence the characters positively and negatively depending on the color of their skin and their sex. Power influences the characters the most throughout the film. The policemen have the highest amount of power because they are the authority. An example of this is when Cameron and Anthony got pulled over and were surrounded by policemen. Before exiting the car, Cameron begins to tear up because he knows that they will shoot at him just because he is a man of color. It is a good thing that Hansen was there to calm the rest of the policemen down. If he was not, then Cameron would have been in a lot of trouble. This example also has to do with race. White people in this film automatically think that someone of color will try to do something harmful and shocking. The police are so up-tight because they routinely believe that blacks are aggressive. Another example of this is when Officer Ryan and his partner, Officer Hansen, pull over Cameron and his wife. When Cameron’s wife is being molested by Officer Ryan, he does not speak up or stop the officer in fear of himself getting arrested. This shows how much power the officers have and how much power the white race has over the black race. These cultural systems influence the characters because it puts them in their place within society.

3). Narrative structure is the ideas, facts, concepts, and form of the story. Thematic development is how the story is developed around the theme. One of the main themes in crash is affirmative action. The narrative structure is that the story takes place two days in Los Angeles and demonstrates how society revolves around racism and stereotypes. The stereotypes in the Los Angeles society affects the theme because it prevents women from getting jobs. Women are often paid less and get fewer raises just because of their sex. This is sexist which is a form of discrimination. In the society they live in these stereotypes affect their everyday living and create several obstacles for people everyday.

4). Throughout the story the film represents a tremendous amount of blame and guilt. An example of this is the holocaust. Things were so bad in society and people had blamed the minority. The main message of this film, is racism and prejudice and how it affects society. There are many negative feelings towardaffirmative action, which is a result from prejudice. The title of the film, crash, shows how when cultures mix in a society things seem to crash, or collide. Since people have so many stereotypes aboutdifferent religions, races, cultures ect. An example of affirmative action in the film was when the black Leuitenant didn’t want Ryan reported for racism because it was very hard for a black man to get promoted and he would look bad. An example of blame and guilt throughout the novel was when the black woman told the officer that there was nothing she could do to help his dad. He told her that there are a half a dozen more qualified white people that could have filled her position but since she’s black she got the job. He told the woman that his dad who is dying of prostate cancer owned a janitorial service and hired exclusively African Americans and went out of business when the city only gave contracts to minority-owned businesses. The films message surrounding blame and guilt revolves around stereotypes and racism. There are so many stereotypes such as all Arabs are in charge of 9/11. We blame minorities for questions that don’t have answers. One of the main characters, Anthony, who is played by Ludacris says to his friend that black people have large windows on their busses so the whites can look at the blacks being forced to use public transportation. This shows how blame and guilt affects not only the majority blaming the minority but how the minority feels being so neglected.

Works Cited

Fullinwider, Robert, "Affirmative Action", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

(Winter 2010 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.), URL = <http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/win2010/entries/affirmative-action/>.

Marquita Sykes. The Origins of Affirmative Action. 6 April 2011. 

               <http://www.now.org/nnt/08-95/affirmhs.html>.

Merriam-Webster. Affirmative Action. 7 April 2011. <http://www.merriam-

               webster.com/dictionary/affirmative%20action>.

"Affirmative Action History & Timeline (Civil Rights Act, Supreme Court Cases, etc)."

Infoplease. © 2000–2007 Pearson Education, publishing as Infoplease.
11 Apr. 2011 <http://www.infoplease.com/spot/affirmative1.html>.