How did you notice the power of money being displayed?
I noticed that the power of money was being displayed in the movie when Farhad went to purchase a gun with his daughter. During this scene, Farhad speaks in his native language, which makes the gun owner aggravated. However, instead of chasing both Farhad and his daughter out of the shop, he only chases the man and makes the daughter buy the gun he insists on selling to her (IMDB, n.d). This is the power of money because the gun owner could not stand Farhad speaking in his language, but he could not also stand to see that he did not make any sale from them. I also noticed the power of money when the Cabot’s hired the Latino locksmith named Daniel to fix their locks (IMDB, n.d). The power of money is evident in this scene when the wife isn't pleased with his race and asks the husband to hire another locksmith the following day to fix the door even after Daniel had done an excellent job fixing the door. This shows the power of money because the wife could order or instruct anyone as she wishes because she was wealthy.
How was social class or prejudice demonstrated?
According to Sue et al. (2007), prejudice can be defined as the biased opinions formed by a society that includes passing judgment towards a specific group of people. Prejudice entails judging them negatively based on their race, age, gender, or socioeconomic status. In the movie, there are instances of prejudice and social class demonstrated. The scene on Farhad and his daughter in the gun shop clearly shows that the gun owner has his prejudice about Muslims or rather the Iranian race. This is demonstrated when he chases Farhad out of his store because he spoke in his native language. The other scene is when the Cabot's couple expresses their paranoia in the presence of two young African American men, so they become scared and force the men to be removed from the restaurant (IMDB, n.d). They also go-ahead to change their door locks when they see them seated in the street where they leave.
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These two scenes show that the Cabot feels like their social class, which is wealthy, should not be associated with black men in a restaurant. They also demonstrated prejudice against people of color when they had their locks changed just because they saw them seated in their street. The Cabot couple also demonstrates that they have a higher social class than others when the wife insults the housemaid just because the utensils are unclean in the house. (IMDB, n.d). This shows that she thinks she can treat the housemaid as she pleases because she is wealthier. The Cabot couple also demonstrates prejudice when the wife asks for another locksmith after discovering that the one changing the locks is Latino; hence she associated his race with gang bangers or rather burglars.
What was the cultural barrier?
I noticed that the movie's cultural barrier was when Farhad asked the Latino locksmith Daniel to fix his shop by repairing the door. This turned out to be a cultural barrier because Farhad was Iranian. He did not understand much English, so when Daniel advised him that he should change the door completely, he thought that Daniel was trying to scam him. Unlucky for him Daniel was right, and his shop ended up being robbed because he had not changed the door (IMDB, n.d). This was a cultural barrier because the two could not have a simple conversation that would be understandable to both. However, they had a language barrier that ended up with Farhad counting losses from the robbery in his shop. Language and cultural barriers can hinder one from going about their day-to-day activities. They may lead to a lot of misunderstandings in places or work or any other social place.
Did you notice any institutionalization?
Institutionalization refers to changing rules against their norms, installing them, and having people adapt to them in their social and political lives. This can be seen in the movie when racism has been made a norm even by the law enforcers. This is when the police officer sexually harasses a black woman when on duty, and the other officer couldn't do a thing because it was normal. The other instance is when a police officer also makes racist comments to a health care provider, and no one stops him because it is the norm till the health care provider throws him out of the office. This movie has institutionalized racism, prejudice towards race, and discrimination. Institutions should be against institutionalization because it hinders the workers from doing their work everyone should feel comfortable and needed at their places of work.
How do you feel in general about the movie and what you have learned in this class?
I feel that the entire cast of this movie was prejudiced in their aspects. Some were prejudiced towards race while others towards their social class status. The creator made social class status a theme in the movie because it is evident that they are potent characters according to their wealth and the powerless ones because of their low social class status. I have learned that having white privileges is a thing in America and that this privilege sometimes can blind a person to the evils being done to the people of color and other races in the country.
References
IMDB. (n.d.). Crash, (2004) . IMDb. https://www.imdb.com/video/vi2898198809?playlistId=tt0375679
Sue, D. W., Capodilupo, C. M., Torino, G. C., Bucceri, J. M., Holder, A., Nadal, K. L., & Esquilin, M. (2007). Racial microaggressions in everyday life: implications for clinical practice. American Psychologist , 62 (4), 271.
