American History X: A Fight Against Racism

Reflection Paper
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September 30, 2019
The United States has indeed gone a long way from its history characterized by slavery and oppression. Through the centuries, the country has sought to recognize these past injustices and took decisive steps toward being a nation where all men are equal. However, despite all of these, there are still traces of racism that could be seen in different aspects of our daily lives. The kind racism that is subtle and harder to remove from the very corners of society. In the 1998 film entitled ‘American History X’, these vestiges of racism were shown in both the life and struggles of its main protagonist Derek Vinyard and his younger brother Danny Vinyard. After watching the movie, I realized that while personal prejudice, stereotypes, and discrimination make it difficult to achieve an ideal state of equality, systemic racism makes this fight a more onerous task. 
 
A Fight against Racism
           One of the main lessons to be learned in the story is that understanding racism through one’s personal experience is an effective way to reduce racist thoughts or actions. This lesson could be seen in the task that Dr. Sweeney gave to Danny, where he wanted the latter to write about the circumstances leading to Derek’s (his older brother) incarceration as well as his views about contemporary America. In this case, Dr. Sweeney hoped that he could still change Danny’s ways, by having him reflect on the very reasons (personal and institutional) why his brother has murdered two Black teenagers. 
           Accordingly, Derek’s desire to change his ways is one of the main reasons why he is both the protagonist and the antagonist in this film. One the one hand, both his desire to guide Danny towards a different path in life as well as his subsequent actions where he tried to leave his right-wing ideologies are some of the main reasons why he can be considered as the ‘hero’. These actions symbolize ‘hope’ in changing one’s mentality, which is crucial in reaching equality among the races. On the other hand, however, Derek’s actions brought about by his upbringing are the main reasons why he is the main antagonist of the movie. It is because of his past experiences and actions, that would create a cycle of violence among other people, ultimately leading to Danny’s demise. 
 
Derek’s Upbringing and Institutional Racism
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