IBARW last post before midnight!
I just saw a great documentary and thought I should share it with y'all -- it's called Crips and Bloods: Made in America. It's available on Netflix to watch online, so if you have an account, get on it!
Trailer:
It's about the origins of the Crips and Bloods gangs of South LA (and beyond), as well as current situations and personal stories about gang members. It was very, very well made and insightful, with great archive footage and interviews.
What was most eye-opening about the movie was the fact that what caused the gangs to form went back decades; the institutionalized racism that kept Blacks "in place" in the 50s and 60s, as well as the forced dispersion of many Black Panthers and other Black Power movement leaders were integral in the increasing of violence in Black communities. And the violence continues because of racism today, with the ridiculously high levels of incarceration among Black men (due in part to the failed "War On Drugs"), awful school systems of lower-income areas, and lack of mentorship and guidance among youths -- in one area of South-Central LA, according to a study, the kids were experiencing PTSD at a higher level than similar-aged children in Baghdad.
It sickens me that all this is happening in the US, where people from all backgrounds are supposed to have the same opportunities to succeed, and where everyone is supposedly equal.
Trailer:
Click to viewIt's about the origins of the Crips and Bloods gangs of South LA (and beyond), as well as current situations and personal stories about gang members. It was very, very well made and insightful, with great archive footage and interviews.
What was most eye-opening about the movie was the fact that what caused the gangs to form went back decades; the institutionalized racism that kept Blacks "in place" in the 50s and 60s, as well as the forced dispersion of many Black Panthers and other Black Power movement leaders were integral in the increasing of violence in Black communities. And the violence continues because of racism today, with the ridiculously high levels of incarceration among Black men (due in part to the failed "War On Drugs"), awful school systems of lower-income areas, and lack of mentorship and guidance among youths -- in one area of South-Central LA, according to a study, the kids were experiencing PTSD at a higher level than similar-aged children in Baghdad.
It sickens me that all this is happening in the US, where people from all backgrounds are supposed to have the same opportunities to succeed, and where everyone is supposedly equal.