Let’s Change the Statistics
Why is it up to the police force and members of authority such as governours, presidents, and politicians to determine the value of a black person’s life? The entire course of a black individual’s life can be altered in a split second, from one wrong decision or one petty crime. Why are white people and other people of colour not treated as harshly? Most importantly, why is this continuing to happen in 2020?
The 13th Amendment to the Constitution makes it unconstitutional for someone to be held as a slave; however, there is an exception for criminals, where a loophole is put in place (Averick et al., 2016). This constitutional right is then used as a tool; however, one would like. The prison industrial complex relies historically on the inheritances of slavery; once you’ve been convicted of a crime, you are, in essence, a slave of the state (Averick et al., 2016).
The docu-film 13th focuses on this issue within the racialized carceral system and how African American people are criminalized in the media. The docu-film starts by describing how the prison population increased rapidly throughout the 1980s to the 2000s. Former President Barack Obama opens the documentary with an enlightening and alarming quote where he states, “The United States is home to 5% of the world’s population but 25% of the world’s prisoners. Think about that” (Averick et al., 2016). One in three young Black males are expected to go to jail in their lifetime; meanwhile, one in seventeen white men are likely to spend a lifetime in prison (Averick et al., 2016).
The media plays an essential role in the public narrative by depicting Black people and people of colour as criminals. Black people are overrepresented in the news as criminals; they are shown as criminals more times than are accurate, based on FBI statistics (Averick et al., 2016). The media has contributed to perpetuating systemic anti-Black racism by criminalizing Black men/women and blaming most violence and drug use in this community. News stations report on these topics by showing little to no mercy on this race by automatically assuming that the Black individual is guilty when more often than not, the individual in question did not commit the crime. When the media continuously use derogatory terms to identify a race, it is only natural for the public and its viewers to inherently see that race as “dangerous” and “evil.” People underestimate the power that the media holds and how much influence and impact are put forth by conveying their messages to the public. The media even began to use the term “Super Predator” when describing Black people, which ultimately created public fear around the Black race. The media’s usage of this term violates the social contract for journalists, as stated by Pech & Liebel (2006), “the overall goal of the institution of mainstream journalism, [is that it is] purely epistemic, [and] in the service of a democratic society.”
The media has contributed to systemic anti-Black racism in history by using politics and presidential leaders who embedded racism and anti-Black movements inside of their campaigns. These authoritative figures reinforced fear of the war on drugs and placed the blame on African Americans for the use of drugs on the streets. The United States has the highest rate of incarceration globally (Averick et al., 2016). All of this can be trickled down throughout history when black people’s misrepresentation had begun to emerge. The movie Birth of a Nation began falsifying African Americans in the media by depicting Black men in the movies as rapists, animals, and violent untamed creatures. This film ultimately led to the formation of the Ku Klux Klan, also known as the KKK.
This docu-film has exposed the sickening systemic racism that continues to exist in America. The prison-industrial complex is killing Black individuals and people of colour every single day. We have one positive solution that we are able to use today in an effort to make a change — social media. People can pull out their phones to engage in civilian journalism. Individuals can now record protests or rallies that are happening live and force a conversation about the issue. Social media has the impact and power to spark a discussion and to make a change for the public. If we continue to stay quiet about these issues, we will never see change. We must continue to advocate for the lives of Black people. All lives can’t matter until Black lives matter.
Work Cited:
Averick, S., Barish, H., & DuVernay, A. (2016). 13th [Motion Picture]. United States of America: Kandoo Films.
Pech, G., & Leibel, R. (2006). Writing in Solidarity: Steps Toward an Ethic of Care for Journalism. Journal of Mass Media Ethics, 21(2), 141–155. doi:10.1207/s15327728jmme2102&3_4
