Justice Equals Change
Oftentimes, the harsh realities of minorities are portrayed in media such as, music, and on the big screen. They detail drama-filled, yet relatable stories about what underprivileged people go through. The 1980s and 1990s especially were trivial times for all of America. Racial tensions were extremely high as well as crime rates. Asian American and African Americans were targets of various crimes that went unpunished. Examples of these include cases such as Vincent Chin, Rodney King, Latasha Harlins. Injustices against Asian Americans; as well as other minorities; should not be tolerated and needs to end.
In 1982, two white men clobbered an Asian American, Vincent Chin, to death with a baseball bat. Chin was celebrating his bachelor party at a club in Michigan with friends the night of the incident. During this time, Japan was becoming very successful in the automobile industry. This caused a lot of Metro Detroit citizens to be laid off as a result of the increasing competition. Two of these former employees included two white men, Ronald Ebens and Michael Nitz, who witnesses claimed caused the altercation. They ignorantly yelled slurs at Chin during the dispute, mistaking a Chinese man for Japanese. After some punches were thrown, Chin and his friends left the club. Unfortunately, Ebens and Nitz pursued Chin until they eventually found him. This is where they continuously beat him with a baseball bat until police showed up. The event caused Chin to suffer from a coma for multiple days until he eventually passed away. Neither man served any jail time as a result following the aftermath of Vincent Chin’s murder.
The violent beating of Rodney King was one of the major reasons for the majority of racial tensions during the 1990s. After an eight mile pursuit of officers chasing King throughout Los Angeles, King stopped his car and stepped out of his vehicle. After being told to lie down on the ground by police, King instead dropped to his knees, which police saw as resistance and tried forcing him to the ground. After showing resistance, officers shot King with a taser multiple times. While police claim King then got up and ran at one officer, King recalls that he was being threatened and tried to run, fearing for his safety. The officer struck King with his baton and continuously hit him for almost an entire minute before handcuffing him. Following the incident, three officers were acquitted of their charges. This event sparked the infamous Los Angeles Riots and is another example of the mistrust minorities have for the justice system. Unfortunately, it would be far from the last.
Latasha Harlins was fifteen years old when she went to a Korean-owned store in South Central, Los Angeles. The owner of the store, Soon Ja Du, witnessed Harlins walk into the store and place a bottle of orange juice in her backpack. Harlins walked towards the counter, where she was accused of stealing. A short scuffle between the two broke out and Du shot Harlins in the back of the head, instantly killing her. Although Du was found guilty by the jury of voluntary manslaughter, she served no jail time, paid a small fine, and was only sentenced to probation and community service. Throughout all these crimes, there were plenty of protests from the families and people who wanted more justice. When the protests were not enough, there was media such as movies, whose hopes were for people of all different races to be able to understand each other’s struggles.
One example of a movie showcasing the struggles of racial injustices was created in 1991 titled, Boyz N The Hood. The movie depicts the life of a young man, Tre, along with family and friends. The film shows Tre who suddenly has to grow up in a tough neighborhood in Crenshaw, Los Angeles, dealing with the harsh realities of life and the lessons that come with it. In the first showing of racial prejudice, Tre’s home is broken into on his first night in the neighborhood. His father calls the police, but they arrive an entire hour late. One officer is aggressive towards the duo, even though they did nothing wrong.
After seven years have passed, Tre and the police officer have another confrontation. However, the officer has pulled over Tre and his friend after they fled from a street racing gathering. Once again, the officer is very confrontational and tries to frighten Tre, evening threatening him. This film is just one of many examples showing prejudice against minorities. Another example of this is a film titled, Gook.
Gook is a story showcasing the hostilitiy in Los Angeles during the trial of Rodney King and the L.A. Riots that soon followed. The term, “Gook” itself is a derogatory term for people of Asian decent. It follows two brothers, Eli and Daniel, who are struggling to maintain their shoe store passed down from their father. They befriend a young African American girl, Kamilia, whose brother, Keith, has resentment for Asian Americans. During this time, there was antagonism between African American and Asian communities, as well as the police. In the first half of the movie, Kamila is accused of stealing a twinkie from a Korean-owned store. The owner was going to hit her over the item until Eli intervened, which he highlights was not worth hitting the girl over.
There are also multiple moments throughout the film, where at least one of the brothers is either running away or getting beat up by gang members in broad daylight for just walking on the street. Towards the end of the film, the young girl’s brother finds out Kamila received shoes as a gift from Eli. Keith assembles his gang, while Kamila grabs a gun and tries to warn the two brothers. Keith threatens to burn the store down as Kamila tries to get a shot off before they can. Unfortunately, she trips over the door exit and accidentally shoots herself. Keith and Eli take her to the nearest hospital where she tragically dies. After some finger pointing, the two feel guilty as they reminisce about what their actions have caused and how Kamila’s death could have been prevented. As there are many real-world and media examples of racial injustice, there needs to be discussions and examples of how to prevent them and the senseless acts of violence that follow.
As the world continues to move forward, there needs to be an end to the marginilization of minority groups. Some police forces are already beginning to execute this action by implementing sensitivity training for their officers. However, these trainings are mostly only carried out after a wrongful murder of a minority by an officer has occured. Officers who are involved in these situations often claim they have mistaken their weapons for tasers. Even though tasers are viewed as less harmful than guns, tasers are still involved in hundreds of deaths. In order to prevent this, research could be done to discover how effective they are in the field and if they still need to be used or not. While police officers are supposed to protect everyone, they are not the only issue when it comes to marginilization of minority communities.
Schools are supposed to be safe for students of all ages. However, there have been and still are plenty of cases of bullying in schools that lead to worse situations affecting minorities. Minorities are often bullied for looking “different” or for things such as their culture. Bullying has been known to lead to things such as depression, retaliation from victims, and more violence and death. Most schools claim they maintain a zero tolerance for bullying, but it still occurs. Similarly, all faculty should be required to do training based on research to view signs of bullying to ward off any conflict that could possibly occur. Students should not have to be scared for their safety while dealing the stresses of receiving an education.
Racism and injustice has been present throughout the entire history of America. Many senseless deaths and acts of violence could have been prevented if there was not as much tension between people. Some of these acts could have been stopped with more communication and knowledge that one may have not had during that moment. Once people learn to appreciate one another for their cultures and anything else that makes them different, is the day that people fully acknowledge and respect them. The road to ending marginialism against minority communities is not an easy one, but it can be achieved if everyone works together and learns from one another.
Works Cited
“25 Years after Her Murder, Family of Latasha Harlins Honors Her with a Vigil.” 25 Years After Her Murder, Family of Latasha Harlins Honors Her with a Vigil, The Culture , http://theculture.forharriet.com/2016/03/25-years-after-her-murder-family-latash.html.
Bates, Karen Grisby. “How Vincent Chin’s Death Gave Others a Voice.” How Vincent Chin’s Death Gave Others A Voice, NPR, 27 Mar. 2021, https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2021/03/27/981718272/how-vincent-chins-death-gave-others-a-voice.
Kenny, Glenn. “Gook Movie Review & Film Summary (2017): Roger Ebert.” Rogerebert, 18 Aug. 2017, https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/gook-2017.
“LAPD Officers Beat Rodney King on Camera.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 4 Mar. 2010, https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/police-brutality-caught-on-video.
O’Reilly , Kevin B. “11 Beginning Steps to Reform Policing and Tackle Racial Injustices.” American Medical Association, 7 July 2020, https://www.ama-assn.org/delivering-care/public-health/11-beginning-steps-reform-policing-and-tackle-racial-injustices.
Staff. “The Untold Story behind the Making of ‘Boyz n the Hood’.” Far Out Magazine, Far Out , 21 July 2019, https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/the-untold-story-behind-the-making-of-boyz-n-the-hood/.
