Crashing the Party

I am a little disappointed that Crash won, I must confess. Crash is a mostly ordinary film with an extraordinary impact. Brokeback Mountain, I feel, should have won on its merits as a film, but I would say that ultimately Crash is a film we need more. (More in a second)

It was a very good night in many ways. George Clooney won and got to give an amazing speech (topped only by Reese's), and Jon Stewart's prepared clips were hilarious even if his lines weren't. And Charlize Theron had a bow bigger than her face, which really amused me. And they burned a car onstage. Or pretended to.

Actually, what was up with the songs in general? Since when did Bob Fosse start directing hip hop performances? And the slow motion stuff in front of that burning car in the Crash song? More embarrassing than the fact that they slipped "Day After Tomorrow" into the "films that matter" tribute. And then there was the Ben Stiller green suit thing. He did make a point, though—what are they giving an award for—best visual effects or most visual effects?

Back to Crash though. When I saw the film, I wrote:

Crash, I think, makes it impossible to look at the problems of race without looking at the problems of racism. Conservatives who focus on racial check-boxes and reverse discrimination via affirmative action never like to talk about the racist conditions that have made some people think that those measures are necessary... Those who get all caught up on skin tints miss the point. The questions we should be asking aren't about race. They're about racism.

Many of the problems of racism are distinct from problems about race. Do questions about the genetic nature of race really apply to the actions of a police officer who pulls someone over for driving while black? That action is about power in the same way a jock shoving a nerd into a locker is about power. Or the way a woman gets paid much less than a man for doing the same damn thing. Racism is definitely about race, but it also is simply when we use racial differences as a cover for an abuse of power.

The problems of racism, then, are the problems of how our systems and society allow these abuses of power. How we've used race as a cover for creating imbalances, inequalities, and injustices that perpetuate themselves—that is what needs to be addressed, and it can't be addressed by pretending to be colorblind.

I think that's what is truly great about Crash; it treats racism as something we must all confront, even if we aren't confronted with race..."

Well, anyway, good night and good luck.