Racial Disparities And Discrimination In Boyz In The Hood

These issues of social control all work singularly and in tandem with each other to create a system where the young boys in Oakland mostly become self-fulfilled prophecies of criminals, drop outs, or gang members. Even I, despite my white

The film Boyz ‘n the Hood, directed by John Singleton is more than just a Hollywood blockbuster. The film incorporates numerous criminological theories and also demonstrates the concepts of conformity and deviance. This paper will analyze the characters of Tre, Ricky, Doughboy, Furious and other friends and family and show how criminological theories and the concepts of conformity and deviance play a part in their lives.

The predominate theory of the social structure perspective that will be applied to Boyz N the Hood is Robert Merton’s Anomie/Strain theory and Robert Agnew’s General Strain theory which closely applies to Merton’s. The strain theory holds that crime is a function of the conflict between goals people have and the means that they can use to obtain them legally. Most people desire wealth, material possessions, power, prestige, and other life comforts. Although these social and economic goals are common to people in all economic standings, strain theorists insist these goals are class dependent. Members of the lower class are unable to achieve these goals of success through conventional or legal means. In return they feel anger, frustration, and resentment, which is referred to as the “strain.” Lower class citizens can either accept their conditions and live out their days being socially responsible or they can choose alternate means of achieving success illegally. These means can include but are not limited to theft, violence, or drug trafficking.

In the movie “Boyz in the Hood” director John Singleton, paints a clear image of the problems that happen very often in the African American communities. The movie deals with issues such as: the importance of a father in a young man’s life, the ongoing violence of black on black crime, and how black people are put in situations where they are put to fail and not succeed in life.

Throughout the 1992 film, “Boyz in the Hood,” John Singleton takes a closer look at urban black America in South Central Los Angeles. Doughboy, Ricky and Trey, along with their parents are chronicled from childhood to adulthood. Each person, though living in the same neighborhood chooses different paths in life. These characters were raised in a very deviant community, however there were many causes as to why they did not all become deviant. Deviance is defined as behavior that goes against what is socially acceptable. It is when a person disregards what is normal in a specific society and acts upon it. Throughout the movie these characters had many chances to engage in deviant behavior, as some did while

In the 1991 drama “Boyz in the Hood”, Written and Directed by John Singleton. He successfully attempts to portray what life was like and in some areas in America still is for African Americans living in a rough Los Angeles neighborhood. It displays a portrait of the harsh realities that plagues the black community and by displaying uninviting living conditions that is South Central L.A, Singleton aims to share to the world the self-destructive deviant behavior that is to this day, destroying the African American community. Some of the self-destructive deviant behaviors include gang life, selling drugs, and gun violence. Various issues are displayed in this movie involving the black community including deviance, poverty, gentrification, the importance of a father in a young man’s life and black on black crime. Singleton displays a tale of three friends growing up in the “hood”, plagued by drugs and violence and layers textures over rough and compelling visuals of black culture that shows us what it means to come to maturity, or die trying, as a black male. In this essay, I will be giving a thorough analysis of the film, as well as covering certain points from the movie from a sociological perspective to explain why singleton chose to write this film.

The greatest problem that the society faces in the inner city black community is the interpersonal violence and aggression created by the troubled youth in their society. By simply living in this kind of violent, innocent people are affected by crimes such as burglaries, carnapping and drug related incident and shootings.

The setting of this novel is based in a very fatally dangerous neighborhood. Often times, the narrator and main character Mann, describes the true setting of his surroundings. “They kill people where I live. They shoot ‘em dead for no real reason” (Flake, Page 1). Mann has struggled through not only his brother’s death, but his relatives and close friends as well. His neighborhood is unexpected in killings and shootings. “A boy walks out of his house and goes to the store for milk and Bang! He’s dead.” (Flake, Page 78) The description of Mann’s neighborhood is very pertinent compared to today’s society. This novel relates to society because there are dangerous cities in America like Chicago, Detroit, Memphis, and everyday news articles get published about killings, shootings and stabbings. The audiences are into movies that are relevant to what they have already observed, whether it is a personal experience or based on news stories. If this novel gets adapted into a motion picture, it has the ability to spread a positive message to hopefully change people’s outlook on these situations to help towards the cause and fight for a

Discusses how race is a conceptualized concept most often through stereotypes of different groups with the presence of a systematic structure of racism where the dominant group has placed themselves as superior and all other groups are deemed inferior. This structure often produces a negative impact on same race relations. Identity, according to this theory is created due to psychological enforcement of repeated racial oppression. The movie “Boyz N’ The Hood” demonstrates the effect of this enforced systematic structure and its negative impact on same race relations which lead to the ultimate death of some of the characters in this film (Singleton,1991). The movie takes place in impoverished South Central Los Angeles and depicts scenes of violence perpetrated by gangs against the main characters of the movie. Janet Helms points out that racial theory consists of four models White Identity, Black Identity, People of Color, and the Racial interaction model. She points out that the more an individual becomes aware of the social constructs of race and the racist system the closer

Boyz n The Hood is a story that was written and directed by John Singleton. This is notably the first time an African-American filmmaker has attempted to tell a story about how ghetto/hood life is. This film depicts the issues of three young boys who follow very different paths throughout the film. The central theme of this film is to raise awareness of peace among young African-American teens. Singleton uses various techniques.

Boyz N the Hood shows the challenges black men face due to their home life and the conditions of the area their community. In the film, we see the difference in how Tre, Darren, and Ricky live. Ricky and Darren are brothers who have different fathers and who are both different as day and night. The film shows how important it is to have a male role model in the home. This is evident in Tre life because he has male leadership.

Overall, BOYZ N THE HOOD AND DO THE RIGHT THING showcase the dysfunction among inner-city blacks during the 1990’s. Both films have something to say about Amercian society, and have a message (or warning) to other black men. Society views young black inner-city men as a lost cause, their only hope for success is to strive for something better. To succeed these men must avoid the temptations of the ‘hood, and get an education and motivate

Frightened students that do not report strange behavior and poor security cause violence to erupt. The Pathway to Violence made me, as an audience member, feel a range of conflicting emotions and taught me important lessons to stay safe in school. Some lessons to take away from the film are speak up about strange behavior and schools need to adopt new security. The movie held my interest through the entire film because of the tragic stories told and the people who told the story from an emotional angle. I had a very personal connection to the movie and stories because I am a college student, and I do not want to see anyone suffer. It is important to realize the signs of violence and report them to those in charge who can take control of the situation before something tragic happens. Without anyone speaking up on behalf of the majority, others will bear the

Boyz in the Hood, is a racially charged look into the life of black males in the ghettos of California. It took place in a time where racism was alive and well, and drug laws like the 1-100 crack/powder disparity were being passed targeting black people disproportionally. Many cases of police brutality and even mobs attacking and murdering black men made the headlines in the 1980s. This movie, much like “The Little Mermaid,” is about the struggle of two males who are trying to break free from the social norms imposed by society. The protagonist in this movie, Tre, moves to South Central, Los Angeles to live

enocide is a word known in every household as a horrendous event that unfortunately plagues our world. Raphael Lemkin coined the term genocide, which roughly translates to race killing, after the events of the Holocaust and created the Eight Stages of Genocide, a system to determine if genocide is actually happening. Every American knows about the Holocaust and the removal of Native Americans, but many do not know about a genocide which occurred in California during the 90’s. The violence between the different Los Angeles based gangs can be classified as a genocide because it follows Lemkin’s stages. Despite genocide often being associated with underdeveloped countries and corrupt regimes, director John Singleton demonstrates how it can, and did, occur in a society founded upon liberty through his film Boyz n the Hood.