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Power Structures In American History X

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American History X tells the story of two brothers, Derek and Daniel Vineyard as they battle to discover truth within an increasingly diverse area in Venice Beach, Los Angeles. The eldest brother, Derek is paroled after serving 3 years in prison for killing two African American “thugs” who attempted to break into and steal his truck. We learn through Daniel’s narration that prior to going to prison Derek was a white supremacist, skinhead gang member that lead a number of violent racial crimes against other ethnicities within LA. Derek’s actions of hate crimes toward other ethnicities can be seen as a product of both his father’s views and an older Neo Nazi gang leader, Cameron, who took Derek under his wing after his father’s death. While Derek was serving time in prison, Cameron tried to further transfer his views of the world onto Derek’s younger brother, Daniel. When the discovery of this has surfaced it angered Derek as he was reformed from a friendship with Lamont, an African American in jail and just out of prison seeing life from a whole new lens. In an …show more content…

As a result, it becomes imperative to think critically about various ‘regimes of truth’ which is a dominant discourse that are produced and reproduced through structures of power that influence the way in which people live. By deconstructing and reconstructing Derek and Daniels life and their change in perspectives being part of a skin head gang, the director is portraying the dangers of these ‘regimes of truth’ by focusing on racism and discrimination and this notion that the white race is against every other race presented. Throughout the film flashbacks are shown to demonstrate and give the audience feeling of Derek’s transformation before and after as a vengeful white

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