(THIS ARTICLE IS MACHINE TRANSLATED by Google from Norwegian)
13th
Directed by Ava DuVernay
It 13. the constitutional amendment to the US Constitution (1864) prohibited slavery – "except as punishment for a crime". That's the last point of the Netflix documentary 13th is about: how black citizens have been criminalized after the abolition of slavery to be used as labor. In particular, the southern states experienced the economy collapsing after the black workers were released. The "loophole" in this constitutional amendment, as one of the interviewees put it, has been used all the time afterwards to fill this void.
The film ranges from 1864 to 1915, then the infamous American silent film The birth of a nation not only wrote film history, but also political history by stimulating the resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan. 13th tells of Jim Crow and the introduction of racially segregated legislation, before making a leap to the 1960s and Martin Luther King's civil rights movement, and to the 1970s when large crowds were imprisoned. We're 15 minutes into the 100 – minute film, we've seen eight mostly anonymous interviewees, and we've been covered for a century with different political views and measures in a whirlwind of talking heads, filing and animation.
Black Lives Matter. The film presents experts, researchers and activists who share their knowledge – if not necessarily experience. They are filmed in large, empty rooms, often placed in a corner of the picture frame, and retell the political story of crime, imprisonment, punishment, criminal acts, drugs, and the American prison industrial complex that has disproportionately treated Blacks and Latin Americans. The multi-camera interviews are interwoven into one big narrative that does not allow for individual narratives. The interview items are fully used to substantiate the argument.
Unfortunately, successful attempts to abolish segregation were halted as several parents filed lawsuits to prevent their children from being sent to racially mixed schools. The parents won in court.
The film begins with the abolition of slavery in the United States and ends with the Black Lives Matter movement. In this way, the film tells a story that is relevant to our time, and contextualizes and explains not only the Black Lives Matter movement, but much of the persistent mind and mistrust that many African Americans have towards politicians.
The approach in 13th seems rather technocratic to deal with a problem the film itself claims is deeply rooted in American society. But racism is more of a cultural than a technocratic problem. And while legislation is important to support cultural change, such changes cannot be pushed forward by changing the laws. People are no less racist because racism is banned.
Segregation. A completely different media expression shows a complex and fundamental problem that lies beneath racism. Last Week Tonight is a weekly comedy show the channel HBO broadcasts late at night, hosted by John Oliver. The program deals with the news picture and each week goes deeper into a specific topic. Oliver builds on both thorough research and creativity, and at the same time tries to take the subject seriously. Parts of Last Week Tonights discussion on ALEC (American Legislative Exchange Council – a meeting place for legislators and business people) in November 2014 is cut into 13th. THE Last Week Tonightbroadcast on 31 October 2016, the issue of school segregation was raised – it is also a system of oppression. Despite political attempts to prevent schools from remaining predominantly white or black, the number of segregated schools is increasing. Segregation leads to a distance between groups and prejudices that are never challenged – prejudices based on the tenacious sense of "danger" associated with people of color. Harvard professor Khalil G. Muhammad puts it this way 13th: "The way we appeal to voters' feelings of fear and anxiety in this country is through black bodies."
Important. Last Week Tonight argues that African American (and Latin American) children attending segregated schools often have less experienced teachers and fewer resources due to failing funding. African American children in mixed schools, on the other hand, do better, and are more likely to take higher education – without affecting white children. Unfortunately, successful attempts to abolish this segregation were thwarted when several parents sued to prevent their children from being sent to mixed-race schools. The parents won in court.
The story of 13th is important and needs to be told. A historical perspective is needed to understand contemporary problems. 13th puts the spotlight on laws and case law that have allowed racism and control mechanisms to continue, and it roars its narrative against you like a slap in the face, especially when the word "criminal" is used: The word appears in large letters against a dark background on the screen . Besides, the film does not suggest a happy solution at all. But racism is a complex phenomenon. As John Oliver rightly states: "One does not need to be racist to do things that have racist effects." His call for the abolition of segregation points at least to a possible successful strategy.
13th can be seen on Netflix.
