Derek.
Fucking pervert
There's a black guy outside. He's breaking into your car.
How long's he been there? -l don't know.
What's going on? -Not right now
-Danny
-ls he strapped? -Huh?
-Does he have a fucking gun
Wait a second. What the fuck is going on
-Stay right here and be quiet. -Jesus.
-Stay right here. Wait a second
Derek.
Shh
They're right here.
l don't have a personal problem with him
Don't insult my intelligence
You hate this child and l think l know why.
l went out with his mother a few times.
That was three years ago. lt was nothing.
Nothing. Really? Hmm.
That paper
Arguing for Hitler as a civil-rights hero?
You've gotta draw the line.
Murray
You told them they could do a report on any book...
...that related to the struggle for civil rights. ln plain English.
l am not disputing the fact that the child is confused and harbors some sick ideas...
...but l am not ready to give up on him yet.
His brother probably put him up to it.
l can guarantee you 100 percent his brother did not put him up to this.
l find that hard to believe. Whatever.
l know he was a good kid and it's a shame what he's been through...
-...but that is dangerous. -Dangerous in what way?
Bob
This racist propaganda
He learned this nonsense
l will not give up on this child yet.
-l knew it was you. Danny
l said
Five
...two.... Shut the door.
What's it gonna be
What's what gonna be?
This petty crap you're pulling.
l don't know.
Have a seat.
How you doing?
Fine.
Things at home okay?
Yeah.
Derek got out this morning
Yeah
He was one of my students. You knew that
Honors English. He was a brilliant student.
Like you. But he hung out with simple-minded fools.
-Heh-heh-heh. -Also like you.
Look
Because what happened to him has nothing to do with me.
Everything you do right now has something to do with Derek.
Look
"Mein Kampf"?
-l should expel you. -Go ahead.
-You don't think l could handle it? -No
Your rhetoric and your propaganda aren't gonna save you out there.
So here's the drill.
l'm your history teacher from now on.
We will discuss current events.
We will call this class...
...American History X.
We meet once a day.
All right
Oh
-What do you want me to do it on? -Your brother.
Oh
No
l want you to analyze and interpret all the events surrounding Derek's incarceration.
How these events helped shape your present perspective...
...concerning life in contemporary America.
The impact on your life.
Your family's.
Whatever you wanna say
...l'll be the only one reading it.
But if it's not on my desk...
...tomorrow morning...
...you are a ghost at Venice Beach High.
Are you clear?
Yeah
Telling teacher l'm fucking cheating?
ls that what's happening?
-l never cheated in my life. -Beat his motherfucking ass
-l didn't say anything. -Why you tripping on me?
Why you all kicking him like that?
What's up
What you scared for? l ain't gonna do nothing.
What's up?
Want some too
You wanna die?
Punk-ass white boy.
You lucky l gotta go to class. He ain't gonna do nothing.
He don't wanna see me and the heater.
Lucky the bell rung. l would have clocked that white boy.
Punk-ass motherfucker.
We'd smoke that fool.
You gotta fucking stand up for yourself.
We got a whole file on skinheads.
These all part of the same gang? Venice Beach Gang.
Where's my buddy? He's doing a stretch at YA.
This guy C.C.? Mm-hm.
That him? Yeah
This morning we have a guest coming in
-Morning. -Morning
-Good to see you
Gentlemen
He's principal over at Venice Beach High.
He's been doing outreach work with gangs
Three years ago
...was sent up for murdering two Crips who were trying to jack his car.
Bob taught Vinyard back in high school and he's followed the case closely.
He was a skinhead
He was more like the skinhead. The protégé of Cameron Alexander.
-Who? -Cameron Alexander.
Here you go. Have a look-see.
Cameron Alexander
...he's a Venice Beach landmark.
He's probably the biggest distributor of white-power literature and videos...
...in L.A. County.
He promotes white-power bands. He writes reviews.
And
Does he have a record?
He's pretty clean.
Been trying to pin something to him
Trust me. He's behind all of it.
He runs everything out of his house down by the beach.
No white gangs in Venice Beach...
...before Cameron Alexander and Derek Vinyard hooked up.
Alexander found in Derek his shining prince.
Essentially
...frustrated and impressionable kids.
This kid Vinyard
...as you'll see in this tape that we've gotten courtesy of NBC.
L.A. County firefighter Dennis Vinyard...
...was shot and killed battling a blaze at a suspected Compton drug den.
We're at the Vinyard home right now...
...and Lieutenant Vinyard's oldest son
Derek
Look
How do you think l feel?
-l think it's typical. -Typical
This country's becoming a haven for criminals
Decent
...are getting rubbed out by social parasites.
Parasites?
Blacks
l don't understand.
You're saying your father's murder was race-related?
Yeah
Every problem in this country is race-related
lmmigration
...the Hispanic community
Aren't those issues that deal more with poverty?
No. They're not products of their environments
Minorities don't give two shits about this country.
They come here to exploit it
Millions of white European-Americans came here and flourished.
Within a generation. What the fuck is the matter with these people?
They have to go around shooting at firemen.
-What does this have to do with your father? -My father was murdered doing his job.
Putting out a fire in a nigger neighborhood...
...he shouldn't have given a shit about.
He got shot by a fucking drug dealer who probably collects a welfare check.
-That's enough. -l'm sorry.
Derek Vinyard was released from Chino earlier this morning...
...after serving three and some-odd years.
l think this is something we gotta keep an eye on.
lf something happens to him...
...things could get very ugly down by the beach.
Just keep it low.
Venice Beach didn't always look like this.
lt used to be a great neighborhood.
The boardwalk's always been a dump...
...but when my dad moved us out here...
...Venice was a nice
Over the years
The gangs are like a plague.
They moved west from lnglewood and South Central...
...and basically took over.
lt ain't fouling you. What's wrong with you?
Fuck all y'all.
l ain't got time for all the bullshit.
Fuck y'all.
You all right? l'm all right.
Yo
Yeah
Bitch-ass motherfucker.
That's why Derek started the D.O.C.
He said white kids shouldn't have to walk around scared in their own neighborhood.
For a while there
-Throw the ball. Throw the ball. -Come on
Come on
-Pass that thing. -D up.
-Here we go. -Come on
Come on.
Look at this fucking jungle bunny. He does a spin move every time. Every time.
-You ain't getting shit
This one's for you
-Fuck you--? -Stop that.
Who you calling a boy
You lucky motherfucker! l'm through monkeying around with your ass!
You pale
...a hundred bucks say l make you my bitch.
Hear that? He's trying to make ends meet for his cut in welfare. You're fucking on!
-lt's 8-6
Come on
-You have a big fucking mouth
You can't take a shit. The fuck are you thinking?
-l will beat him. Give me the money. -Shut up. Shut up.
You're gonna fucking embarrass us. Shut up!
l'll take care of this.
Hey.
l got a bet.
l come in this game right now. Same score
Motherfucker.
Oh
Name your price
No money. No money. For these courts.
And not just today. For good.
lf you win
...no bitching
...here in front of everybody
Man
Eight to six
Let's go.
Pick him up. Pick him up.
Seth
Come on
All right. Defense!
All right.
Pass the fucking ball
Damn!
Let's go. Let's go
Pick
Bullshit! That's offense.
-Get out of here. He moved his feet. -lf you want to go
-Don't throw elbows! -Want to go?
Adolf Hitler-wannabe motherfucker? What?
Kill that motherfucker! Dead!
Chill out
-Wait
You okay? -Yeah. Just give me some water.
-You gotta call offense on that shit
You can't let niggers get away with that shit.
-Honey
Watch this.
Get that ball.
Pass the ball
Yeah!
Bye-bye.
Get the fuck off my court.
-This is my house. -Fuck you
-What happened? -l dropped the ball!
Yeah!
Get the fuck out of here! This is my court! Yes!
Yeah.
Derek wouldn't let us visit him in prison.
He said it would make it too hard for him...
...and that if we came
Three years without him
...and then at 7:00 this morning...
...we picked him up outside the gate.
Come on
The whole ride back
I wanted to stay home
Oh
What's the matter? You too big to give me a hug?
No
l just know you'll need someone to look after you while you adjust to all this space.
Yeah
This place is smaller than the old living room.
-How you doing? How's school? -lt's good. lt's good.
You gotta do something about that hair. That 'do has gotta go.
-l don't know. The girls like it
You're keeping it pretty close. All the way down
Yeah.
Shit
-lt hurt like shit while they put it on. -When did you get that?
l got it about a month ago.
Cameron made it official.
-Cameron? -Yeah.
-He put this on you? -Mm-hm. Yeah.
Hello? -What?
Hi. Just hang on a second.
Derek
Nothing. Nothing.
-There a phone in the back? -Mm-hm.
l'll get it in the back.
l got it.
Yeah? Oh
What?
My eyes have seen the glory Of the trampling at the zoo
We washed ourselves in niggers' blood And all the mongrels' too
We're taking down the ZOG machine Jew by Jew
The white man marches on
You think our friend was behind that?
You know what? l don't even care.
l'm gonna take care of that tonight.
Mwah.
My sweet kid. My baby boy.
God
No
l'll get it.
-Came to see the man. -Can you fit through the door?
Fuck you!
-Seth. What's up
How you doing? Where's Derek?
He's on the phone.
Come out
-Vinyard! -Hang on.
-Give me a minute. Vinyard!
No
l'm being careful. What am l gonna do? l won't stay in my room the rest of my life.
Hold on.
Hey. Hey. What the fuck is Seth doing here?
Did you invite him over?
No
All right. Danny
Just give me one minute.
Yeah.
God
You calling me a blimp
When was the last time you were able to see your feet?
Come in here
Seth.
Hey
ls Davina's ass watertight?
You're fucking sick
All right
l'm not in the mood. l got homework to do.
Tell me some of the shit you've learned
Okay. l believe in death
Cut the shit
-You mean that shit about your mother? -You wanna get fucking beaten
l'm not fucking talking to you
Look
l'll take care of it.
Who do you hate
l hate anyone that isn't white Protestant.
Why?
They're a burden to the advancement of the white race.
-Some of them are all right
They're all fucking freeloaders. Remember what Cam said?
"We don't know them. We don't wanna know them. They're the fucking enemy."
What don't you like about them? And say it with some fucking conviction.
l hate the fact that it's cool to be black these days.
Good. l hate this hip-hop...
...fucking influence on white fucking suburbia.
-Good. And l hate Tabitha Soren...
...and all her Zionist MTV fucking pigs...
...telling us we should get along.
Save the rhetorical bullshit
...because it ain't gonna fucking happen.
That's the best shit l've heard come out of your mouth.
Danny
l know you don't believe that.
-Shut up
Get out of the house
ls that any way to talk to a guest?
A friend of the family?
-Derek hates you and you don't realize it. -Hey
Fucking A. Back from the dead.
God bless Jesus Christ
l think you lost weight
Fifty fucking pounds
-Yeah
Grab your jacket
All right. l wanna talk to him one second.
Look....
Hey
...did you pull some shit in school today?
-No
-Did you turn in a paper on Mein Kampf? -Yeah.
Awesome. -You should've--
Sweeney probably shit his pants. -He did
Did Cameron put you up to that? Did he tell you to do that?
No
-How'd you know? -Doesn't matter how.
This kid is smart as hell.
Was that Sweeney on the phone?
Yeah
What are you talking to Sweeney for?
Relax. Listen. -He's got to get a fucking life.
-He pisses me off. -Sweeney's a good teacher
Sweeney is a nigger on a power trip
That's what he was like when we were there.
-And it'll never change. Fuck that nigger! -Hey
-Seth
Go wait in Danny's room. l wanna talk to my brother. l'm glad to see you.
-l'll be there in one minute. -Hurry up. l'm starving.
Come here. Seriously
Forget this yahoo. He kills bugs for a living. You don't wanna be like that.
l'm serious. lt's not funny.
Sweeney is a good teacher. You can learn from him.
So don't fuck it up with small-fry shit like that.
You got to be smarter than that.
You gotta see the bullshit paper he's making me write.
l know about it. He told me about it. l don't care.
Do it. You do anything he tells you to do. l mean it.
l don't want you in trouble in school
...taking this shit in there
Do you understand what l'm saying?
l guess
Well
Shit. Listen to that.
Yeah
All right
Okay. Later.
She's coughing her lungs out and you're blowing this shit in her face all day.
-Put it out. l'm putting it out.
All right. Come on.
Hey. Come on
Mommy
What are you doing? Put that out.
l'm yelling at him for blowing smoke and you're here sucking on it.
Nice thing to come home to
Yeah.
You all right?
Look...
...you gotta take it easy. You gotta get some rest.
l want you to take Danny's and my room and we'll hit the couch.
-Couch is fine for now. -No
We can't live like this.
We gotta get out of here.
Can l go with you?
Yeah
l could drop out of school.
No. No
Derek
l don't give a shit! Go wait in the living room!
-God. -l want him out of my house.
l know
He's an idiot. He's always been an idiot.
Whatever
Look
Not at Cameron's
-Why? l thought we were gonna hang. -Trust me. l'll explain it later.
l need you to stay away from the party
-Whatever. -Hey
Promise me you'll stay away from that party.
l'm not fucking 14 anymore
Whatever.
God!
Come on
-Where are you parked? -Out back.
-Yeah
lt didn't take long for Derek to make a name for himself.
And Cameron knew just how to use it.
You sure you don't wanna stick around?
You know l'd love to...
...but l gotta be careful.
Yeah
-We'll see you back at the house
-All right. -Good luck.
He sent Derek to the kids...
...to the frustrated ones.
The ones who were sick of getting their asses kicked by black and Mexican gangs.
Don't just be some punk...
...be part of something.
All right
And everybody ate it up. They did whatever Derek told them to.
Let's go. Come on
Shut the fuck up. Check this shit out
You want a little toke? Huh? Go ahead.
-Curtis
Weed is for niggers. Put that away right now.
Aw
All right
There's over 2 million illegal immigrants bedding down in this state tonight.
This state spent $3 billion last year...
...on services for people who had no right to be here in the first place.
Three billion dollars.
Four hundred million dollars just to lock up a bunch of illegal immigrant criminals...
...who only got into this country because the lNS decided...
...it's not worth the effort to screen for convicted felons.
Who gives a shit? Our government doesn't give a shit.
Our border policy is a joke.
So is anybody surprised that south of the border they're laughing at us?
-Laughing at our laws. -Yeah.
Every night these parasites stream across the border...
...like some fucking piñata exploded.
Ha-ha-ha. -Don't laugh!
There's nothing funny going on here. This is about your life and mine.
lt's about decent
...and getting the shaft. The government cares about...
...the constitutional rights of a bunch of people who aren't citizens of this country!
On the Statue of Liberty
Well
And l say until you take care of that
Because we're losing.
We're losing our right to pursue our destiny.
We're losing our freedom...
...so that a bunch of fucking foreigners can come in and exploit our country.
And this isn't something that's going on far away.
This isn't happening in places we can't do anything about it.
lt's happening right here! Right in our neighborhood. Right in that building.
Archie Miller ran that grocery store since we were kids here.
Dave worked there
He went under
...and is making a killing because he hired 40 fucking border-jumpers.
l see this shit going on and l don't see anybody doing anything about it.
And it fucking pisses me off!
So look around you.
This isn't our neighborhood. lt's a battlefield.
We're on a battlefield tonight. Make a decision.
Are we gonna stand on the sidelines...
...quietly standing there while our country gets raped?
Fuck that.
Are we gonna ante up and do something?
Fuck
You're goddamn right we are.
Come here!
Don't you know it's against the law to hire border-jumpers
Fuck that! Fuck that!
Sweetheart. No
Please! Please
You fucking spic!
You know what? l think this bitch is hungry.
This bitch stinks. Get me cleaning products.
Smells like fish and chips and guacamole.
Here we go.
Yeah
Get the fuck up!
Get down!
Have some fucking beans
Yeah!
-Take my job. -You donkey bitch!
Get some of that in there.
-Throw it on
You can get a white woman's job
A little better than this one
-White. You can move up in the world
Asshole!
Let's go. We're out of here. Everybody out. Let's go. Now. Now!
All right
Let's go. -Come on
Let's go.
No green card
-Come on. Come on! Go
We're fucking done! Come on!
Dad was gone. But things were almost normal again.
Derek had a good job. Mom was starting to live a little.
Everyone was feeling so good that we just didn't see it coming.
Maybe we should have.
The irony is that most of the stores that were destroyed during the riots...
-...were owned by black people. -That's stupid
Why trash your own neighborhood?
Well
lt's like an expression of rage by people who feel neglected...
...and turned away by the system.
Exactly. l mean
...or the riots in Chicago in '68--
l don't buy that for a minute.
Calling a riot an irrational expression of rage
lt's opportunism at its worst. A bunch of people...
...grabbing any excuse they can find to go and loot a store.
The fact these people ripped off stores...
...in their own communities reflects that these people...
...have no respect for the law.
And certainly no concept of community or civic responsibility.
Wait a minute. White people commit crimes against white people too.
But they're not offing each other in record numbers all over America.
Look at the statistics
One in every three black males is in some phase of the correctional system.
ls that a coincidence or do these people have a racial commitment to crime?
Not only that. They're proud of it.
Maybe it says something about prejudice in the judicial system.
lf you wanna talk about criminal statistics...
...you might wanna take a look at the social inequalities that produce them.
Yap
You're taking one thing and calling it something else...
...and alleviating the responsibility that these people have for their own actions.
lt's like saying:
"lt's not a riot
lt's just nonsense. lt's bullshit. lt's exactly what happened in this trial too.
Because the media twisted things around so people focused on these cops...
...whether they'd get convicted...
...and whether Rodney King's civil rights had been violated.
Everybody lost sight of Rodney King himself.
The guy's a multiple felon by his own admission.
He's high as a goddamn kite
He gets pulled over by a bunch of cops
He attacked police officers. Bottom line. And he walked.
And there's some yahoo with a video camera who turned it on halfway through...
...so all we see is them hitting him.
Exactly. Powell and Koon winding up and cracking him with billy clubs...
...and Briseno's kicking him in the back of the skull.
And people are going
Poor guy who attacked 4 cops.
And those cops end up on the stand defending themselves...
...for using absolutely standard
l don't think the tape showed that at all.
You didn't think so? And what
Murray
l did think that the police used their clubs rather excessively.
Who are you to say what's excessive? l think it was totally appropriate.
They're in a better position to make that call than you are.
ln fact
...because we acknowledge that their job is difficult and dangerous.
You know? Unfortunately
Look who's talking about respect here
-What? -Davina.
You wanna go to college
l didn't say l respected laws. l acknowledge a cop's authority.
l don't respect laws that let monkeys like Rodney King on the street.
Second
...a member of a low-rent
Please. So take your head out of your ass.
You've gotten off the point.
-l had a point. That wasn't the point. -Do you have one? What is your point?
All right
lf Danny had been walking across the street...
-...and Rodney King had plowed into him-- -Can we just drop this Rodney King thing?
Mm-hm.
Who would like some dessert?
We're having a discussion.
We're having a nice discussion
lf Rodney King had been hopped up on Chivas Regal and PCP...
...and killed Danny
l didn't see him hit anybody and neither did you.
He didn't happen to kill anybody.
-Thank God. -Keep it down
lf he had
...everybody would have a different opinion of this matter.
They'd be focused on Rodney King and not on these officers.
But instead
Now all the sudden it's Hands Across America for this total son of a bitch.
l mean
We're hung up on this notion we have some...
...obligation to help the struggling black man.
Cut him some slack until he can overcome these historical injustices.
lt's crap. This stuff you guys are saying perpetuates it.
All this liberal nonsense.
Everyone's looking the other way while our country rots from inside out.
Christ
How long does it take to get your act together?
Well
Are you saying that it's wrong to feel sensitive about anti-Semitism?
Forget that. l'm with you. l am with you all the way
-l'm sick of these liberal hypocrites. -Here we go again. l love this part.
Well
They'd come down that hard on black Willie Williams?
-No way. The video was a setup. -Jesus Christ. Can l please be excused?
-Yes. -No
Excuse me
The hell do you think you are?
-She's in the middle of a point. -Who do you think you are?
-Sit down! -No. Fuck you!
Sit down! Shut up! Derek
-Sit down! -Derek
-Shut up! -Don't tell him to shut up!
-Sit your ass down! No. -Fuck you
-Sit down
Goddamn it
Shut your mouth and give my girlfriend respect.
Derek
Murray
-Derek
You need to learn some fucking manners
-Shut your fucking mouth! Shut up! -Derek!
Stop!
She can't breathe!
Let her go!
Are you gonna apologize?
Are you gonna apologize? Are you?
You're a fucking asshole.
l hate you!
What are you doing
Right
...anybody else or what you think. You're not part of it
-That has nothing to do with it! lt doesn't?
You don't think l see what you're doing?
You think l'll sit here and smile while some kike tries to fuck my mother?
lt's never gonna happen!
Fucking forget it. Not on my watch. Not while l'm in this family.
l will fucking cut your Shylock nose off and stick it up your ass...
...before l let that happen. Coming in here...
...and poisoning my family's dinner with your Jewish
Fuck you!
Yeah
Asshole-fucking
Get the fuck out of my house!
You see this? That means "not welcome."
-What did l do? -You disgust me!
You disgust me! Bring him to our table!
Primping your hair and your dress!
-Don't touch me! All tarted up! -What did l do to you?
How could you bring him to Dad's table? How could you go from Dad to that?
Aren't you ashamed?
l'm ashamed that you came out of my body!
Go run to your fucking kike! Go run to him!
lt's okay. l'm proud of you
l'm so sorry
l really am.
-He's gone. -He's just a boy...
...without a father.
Doris
Goodbye.
Hey. You all right?
-Take this
-Fuck you! -Calm down!
-Let go of me! -Calm down!
Let me go
-Sorry. l'm sorry. -Fuck you!
l would never hurt you. You know that.
Come on
lt's not you.
l'm sorry.
Come on
You know that. l'd do anything for you.
l don't believe you.
l trust you
Hi.
Hi. What are you doing out of bed
-Want a plane ride? -Yeah.
Going for takeoff.
-Woo-hoo! -Heh-heh-heh.
Oh
No
Gotta go to Mom.
She's a crazy flier.
Kiss Mom. Oh
Okay.
-You don't feel too hot. -No
-What are you up to? -l'm just thinking.
A lot of that going around.
-l don't even know how we got here. -Mom.
Like l let you all down. l don't know when it happened.
Mom
-Yeah? -Yeah.
lt's cold in here. No wonder you're sick.
Don't get sick from cold
No
You gotta quit. lt's not good for you.
What are you looking at me like that for?
When are you gonna let that beautiful hair grow back?
The day you quit smoking.
Deal.
l better get Ally to bed.
-Say good night to Mom? -Mm-hm.
Then you have to go to bed. Come on.
-Good night
Good night
l go back to that night again and again in my mind.
l try to stop it from happening.
l want you out of this house.
That's fine. l'll be gone in the morning.
He can move in with me.
In my mind
...if l hadn't gone into that room and told him.
Danny
No
Mommy!
Nigger
-Come here! -Get off!
You should've learned your place on the fucking basketball court!
But you fucking monkeys never get the message!
My father gave me that truck
You ever shoot at firemen?
You come here
l'm gonna teach you a real lesson
Put your fucking mouth on the curb.
Come on
Put it on the curb! Right now!
-That's it. -Derek
No!
Now say good night.
Fucker.
Drop your weapon! Put your weapon on the ground!
Put your hands up!
l said
Now turn around!
Put your hands behind your head!
Get down on your knees right now!
lt's all right.
Let's go.
Come on.
She ain't gonna open the door?
l don't know. Someone's there looking at us. Hello?
Danny
l'll be right there.
Open the door
Danny
Come on
l'm gonna go get some beers.
Hey
l'm not fat
What the fuck's up
Drink up
Holy fuck. He's here?
-Yeah
-Go pay your respects. -Fuck you
Let's go talk to Cameron
-Father Vinyard? -How's it going? l'm Jason
-We're friends with your brother. -You are a fucking god
-Oh
Hey.
-l thought you turned that paper in. -l did...
...and now fucking Murray turned me in...
...and so Sweeney's making me write another one.
Good old Sweeney. He never stops trying
He's one of those proud-to-be-nigger people. l hate those guys.
Now
He's not proud.
He's a manipulative
He's trying to make you feel guilty about writing about Adolf Hitler. Yeah.
Some nigger
...or fucking Cesar "Commie" Chavez...
-Heh-heh-heh. -...gets a pat on the head.
Yeah.
l mean
Definitely.
Come on
No
l wanna see you
-Okay. -You understand?
Yeah. l'm here. When you're ready
-Look
Leave with me.
-Leave where? -Leave here. Leave all this.
Just come with me.
Why would you wanna leave? They worship you. You're like a god to them.
lf you think we had it good before...
-...wait till you see what it's like now. -l don't want all that.
l don't want my family involved. Everything l've done here has fucked it up.
-Do you understand? -You think what you did was wrong?
Oh
Those niggers got exactly what they deserved...
...and we all know that.
l understand you just got out...
...but no one's gonna hurt you. No one can touch you.
There's a small army out there.
We won't let a bunch of spooks kick us out of here.
Stacey
l don't want it anymore.
l'm done with it. l'm through with this.
lt's....
lt's bullshit
Listen
lf you wanna be with me
Come on.
You're nuts.
You are nuts. No way.
l don't think you realize what's been going on here.
We are 10 times what we were
l mean
This is a mistake. Forget it.
Wait a second. Wait a second. What was a mistake?
Stacey
This isn't you.
-l know you. -You don't know anything about me
-Hey. Are you Danny's brother? -Yeah.
Tell him Lizzy's looking for him.
Lizzy. Thank you.
We'll let the niggers
Can't blame them.
Of course
And if we scare the fuck out of people...
...and a few people get killed in the process
You gonna put that in your paper
-Ha
The return of the soldier.
-What are you doing here
-You knew l was gonna come. Let the kid alone
He knows when to go to bed.
-Go wait outside. -Come on
There's a little blond sitting out there.
She keeps asking for you. She's dying. Come on.
-Well
All right.
Wait for me right outside.
Take it easy.
Chill out.
You're on safe ground.
You don't have to watch your ass around here.
Come on
l'm sorry. The party was a little quick.
But we're just so damned glad you're back
-lt's only natural you should feel funny. -l don't feel funny
You know
lt did.
Glory
The white man marches on
Things have changed since you've been gone
You talk about organization?
Wait till you see what we've done with the lnternet.
We've got every gang from Seattle to San Diego working together now.
They're not competing. They're consolidated.
Only thing we lack is a little overall leadership.
And that's where you come in.
Because people out there got a lot of respect for you
-When you're ready
l'm done with it
Yeah
...shaved-head bullshit a long time ago
l like your hair the way it is now.
See
-No more of this grocery store-- -You're not listening.
l am done with it. All that bullshit out there and all your bullshit too.
l'm out.
l understand how you feel. You've just done some hard time--
Don't fucking talk to me about hard time.
-You don't know a thing about it. -l done mine.
You didn't do shit. l found out about your story.
You did two months
So don't feed me your fucking lies
All right
l'm done.
Look
Get your head on straight
But it doesn't matter if l don't
You got the next crop all lined up and ready to go...
-...you fucking chicken hawk! -Excuse me?
You prey on people
l lost three years of my life for your fucking phony cause...
...but l am onto you
Hey
Remember where you are.
This is not a fucking country club where you can waltz in and out of here--
Shut up! Shut the fuck up!
l came in here to tell you one thing: l am out. Out!
And Danny is out too.
You come near my family again
Well
You can't come barking threats at me.
You can do whatever you want
He's not some whining pussy like you. He needs my help and l'll give it to him.
lf you come near Danny again...
...l will feed you your fucking heart
l won't have to.
He'll come to me.
l'm more important to him now than you'll ever be.
Shit!
You're a fucking dead man
Hey
Where the fuck is he?
-Hey
Stay away from me
Why don't you share what you just said to me...
...you piece-of-shit
Fucking nigger? -You monkey-fucking traitor!
Are you a fucking nigger?
Hey
He's a fucking nigger. Nigger. Nigger.
Cam's out cold!
Where the fuck are you going?
He's got a gun!
-Yo
You make me fucking sick!
Seth! Put down the fucking gun!
Go ahead. Shoot.
-Shoot him! Do it
Traitor. -Kick his ass.
-Seth! -Do it
-Shoot him. Do it! Shoot him!
Oh
Back up. Move.
Back up. Back up. Back the fuck up.
Move. Move.
Easy
-Danny
Danny
-Who do you think you are? -Danny. Take it easy
l fucking hate you
All right. Shh
Hey
-Take it easy. -What's happened to you
Take it easy. Take it easy.
What's happened to you
Come on. Come on.
This is so fucked.
Look. l'm sorry. All right?
You weren't supposed to see that. l told you not to come.
Fuck you
That was so fucked up.
l know. l know.
-God. -lt wasn't supposed to happen that way.
That was fucked up.
-That's all there is to it. -Not what l had planned.
lt just all went to shit.
lt went to shit.
Totally out of control.
What's fucking happening to you
Hey. Look at me.
l can't go back to that
Can't go back to what?
To any of it. Those guys
What happened to you up there?
C Block! Back at the chow! Don't be late today
Let's go! You wanna eat today?
Get up! Five minutes!
This is my fucking house! Get up!
What the fuck's your problem
Move!
Joe
All right
Five minutes. Step forward.
Those beds better be made.
After two days in that place
Come on there
You wanna eat today
You white-trash piece of shit. You think you're fucking special?
Button that top button. Let's go! Move!
Are you fucking eyeballing me? Don't eyeball-fuck me
l'll fucking kill you.
Fucking keep my eye on you
Don't fucking eyeball me
Step forward.
Turn to the left.
Step forward to chow. Let's go.
Come on.
Hey
Let's go.
All the wrong people knew who l was anyway...
...so l figured l'm just gonna put up a flag and hope a friend sees it.
That's the catapult right there.
-How you doing? -Good.
Have a seat.
-Spike. Good to meet you. -Hey.
Don't fuck with me
You know why?
Because l control the underwear.
All right
l hope you work out
...didn't wear no drawers
...and used to sniff the drawers.
We got two sizes: medium and large. All right?
All you do is put the mediums with the mediums...
...and the large with the large.
lt's a boring job
l spent two years in the kitchen
That
You should be happy that you landed this job.
Ain't no telling what the hell they'll have you do in the joint.
By the way
...what are you in for?
Probably robbed some old lady
Okay
Badass peckerwood with an attitude.
Well
You better watch your ass.
Because in the joint...
...you the nigger
I was a year in. I thought l was cruising.
Then everything started getting complicated.
l'll take care of that
What the fuck is that?
What's that all about?
Oh
He's doing favors for that fucking spic?
Mitch has got a little something extra on the side with them boys
You're kidding
No.
That's bullshit
What the fuck is he thinking?
Mitch is the only reason why you're not a corpse.
-Remember that. -You know what? l don't fucking give a shit.
l can take care of myself. He shouldn't be doing that.
l'm getting sick of it. A lot of hard talk around here...
...and not a lot of follow-through.
l think you'd better chill out...
...on the preaching bullshit
Ease up on it.
What are you doing here
l was in the neighborhood.
Well
l don't care what you told me
l need to talk to you now.
So how is everyone?
Davina's great. She's
And
...and starting to talk a little.
-How's Danny? -Danny?
Danny.
He holds you up so high.
He thinks you're the greatest.
He's always bragging about you to Cameron...
...and all his new friends.
He's starting to remind me of you.
Jesus
l'm sure he's fine.
l mean
You think because l watched my first-born fuck up his entire life...
...that l can sit here and see my baby follow him down the same toilet?
You know what? l can't fix all this shit from up here
l'm not asking you to.
lt makes me feel bad. l'm trying to get through this
You think you're the only one doing time
You think you're here all alone?
You think l'm not in here with you?
Fuck
Every day you go through these sheets like you gonna get to the end of them.
Look
Goddamn! No matter how fast you get through them
...they'll keep bringing them in and bringing them in.
Throwing them around ain't gonna do a thing but give you a heart attack.
Know what? That's cool with me.
But you're gonna give me a goddamn heart attack too!
l know
What do l know?
l know l ain't the one getting mad at them damn sheets
As a matter of fact
"Boys
We gonna hate some niggers.
We gonna hate some goddamn niggers. That's all we'll do
l don't know what a nigger is
My cousin Derek is in the pen right now...
...working next to a nigger
See? That's the ticket.
Nice and easy.
Now we can ignore each other in peace.
l go
He goes
Never lets me finish.
Why don't you tell a joke? Did you fuck him too?
l get back
What's up?
Will you get to the fucking point? Jesus Christ.
He was taking it from the Mexicans and dealing it out to his own people.
He didn't believe in shit. None of them did.
Took too damn long.
Hey. Hey
What?
Come on
You know what that smells like
Come on
God
The job l had on the outside wasn't much better than this one.
But at least l gotta go home at night and lie down next to this sweet smell.
God
You got a woman?
Yeah
Let me give you some advice. All right?
She comes to visit you...
...whatever you do
Don't let her walk out of here with a bad attitude. lf you do...
...you spend next week wondering if she's getting her fuck on with somebody else.
She comes to see you it's nothing but sweet talk through that glass.
Send her away floating
Because it's not like the real world. Where you can fight...
...but it's cool to fight because you can make up and have make-up sex.
You know what l'm saying? That angry sex. That sex with an attitude.
Where you lay on your back and let her take out all that aggression on you.
All guys know that
lt's that pow
Let her get on top and she's gonna punish you first
"You been a bad boy
You been a bad boy and l'm gonna punish you.
l'm gonna put it on you. Don't you ever let me catch you...
...looking at another woman.
Yeah. l may forgive you if you bring it.
l think l can. l forgive.
l forgive. Oh
That's it. Right. Yeah. Yeah. Yes. l forgive you.
l forgive you. l for-- l for-- l forgive you.
l love you!"
Let's keep it moving.
How do you figure the Lakers to ever be a bigger dynasty than the Celtics?
-The Lakers are like a flare-up. A fluke. -Are you crazy?
One good coach for four years. The Celtics are like a dynasty!
Come on
A dynasty of ugly motherfuckers
Look at Kevin McHale.
James Worthy? The guy has a head like a melon.
-No
-l don't even know what you're saying. -You are tweaking.
Boston Celtics.
-How many is that? -That's enough.
Enough? All right.
l lost count
-Doesn't matter
Who's counting anyway?
All right
What the fuck landed you in here?
You didn't kill. Too skinny for a gangbanger.
That a bitch. Don't judge a book by its cover. l can throw these things
-You know what l'm saying? -Whatever. Come on. What did you do?
Yo
What? Embar--? Everybody in here is embarrassed.
You think? Nobody in here got away with anything.
What did you do?
Look
So you stole a TV. What's embarrassing?
l stole a TV from a store that was right next door to a doughnut shop
l run out
l run into three cops
l told you it was embarrassing and you laugh.
Wait a second. Wait a second.
That doesn't make sense.
No
-Come on. -l go in the store
...the police officer grabs my arm
They said l threw the TV at the officer.
Assault. Six years.
Come on. Tell the truth.
You chucked it at him. Or something.
Like l said
...he grabbed my arm
What you got for me
There you go
That's what l'm talking about!
Put some D on him
Fuck you.
Get a towel! Hold him. Hold him.
-You wanna be a nigger
We're gonna treat you like one.
Come on.
Fuck you.
-That was real sweet. -Fuck you!
How is he?
Well
Hey
Oh
Well
l brought you some books.
Well
He's headed right where you are.
Oh
Danny's not my responsibility. You know?
What do you expect me to do? lt doesn't help. Am l supposed to feel guilty?
l don't want you to do anything. l need to know the truth about how you feel.
Well
l don't know. l don't know what l feel. l'm all....
l feel a little inside out.
Um
...that don't fit.
Well
Look
...pretending you don't see the holes in this bullshit.
Listen
All right. That's why you have to stay open.
Right now
Your anger is shutting down the brain God gave you.
You've been talking about what's going on in me since l was in high school.
How the fuck do you know so much about what's going on inside me?
No
l know about this place. l know about the place you are in.
What do you know about the place l'm in?
There was a moment...
...when l used to blame everything and everyone...
...for all the pain and suffering and vile things that happened to me...
...that l saw happen to my people.
l used to blame everybody. Blame white people.
Blame society. Blame God.
l didn't get no answers
-You have to ask the right questions. -Like what?
Has anything you've done made your life better?
No.
You gotta help me now.
Just help me.
Get me out of here
l'm up in four months for review.
Put in a word for me.
l already have. So you're out there
l don't wanna fuck up my family anymore.
l'll go as far away as l can get.
That's not good enough.
You want my help
But running just ain't good enough.
Fuck him.
Fuck him. Fuck him. Let the niggers have him.
Yo
Are you out of your fucking mind? Are you fucking crazy?
D! Look at me
You can't make it on your own.
l'm not afraid of those fucking pussies. There was six of them
That won't happen again. l hope they fucking try.
Look
They were protecting your stupid ass!
You dissed them in public.
Now you're on your fucking own!
Yo
They're gonna fuck you
Tell me something l don't already know. You think l haven't thought about that?
They're gonna come for me
What can l do
So l was right back where l started.
Every day
Every time l stepped out of my cell.
Every time l got in that shower.
l figured it was only a matter of time before they made a move.
l just hoped that it'd be quick.
But it never came.
l couldn't figure it out. l knew some of them were itching for it.
But after a while I just put my head down...
...read the stuff that Sweeney sent me
The last six months in that place l was like a ghost.
What's up
What the fuck you waiting on? Get the fuck on out of here.
-Yeah
l'm thinking maybe the only reason l'm getting out of here in one piece is you.
Come on
You think l'm gonna put my neck on the line for a crazy-ass peckerwood?
Yeah. Right. Stupid.
That's what l thought.
l owe you
Man
Yes
You'll be out in no time.
Come on
You just take it easy on the brothers
God
l'm sorry
Sorry that happened to you.
No
l feel lucky because...
...it's wrong
lt's wrong and it was eating me up. lt was gonna kill me.
And l kept asking myself all the time...
...how did l buy into this shit
And it's just because l was pissed off.
And nothing l ever did ever took that feeling away.
l mean
And that didn't make me feel any different.
lt just got me more lost. And l'm tired of feeling pissed off
l'm just tired of it.
And l'm not telling you what to do.
l'm really not.
But l need you to understand.
Because l love you and you're my best friend.
Do you understand?
Yeah
All right.
Whoo!
Jesus.
-Hey. -Hi.
-Everything okay? No
Great. Yeah. You wanna sleep in our room?
-No
Thank you
All right. Come on
Good night.
l'm gonna take a shower
lt's hard to look back and see the truth about people you love.
l think if you asked Derek why it all went the way it did
...he'd still say it started when our father was murdered.
But the truth is
All right. Are we all meeting together for the game tonight?
Yes
Ben's Burgers
Okay. Yeah.
-Psyching up for the game? -Yeah
l got an English exam third period. l'm having a heart attack. l'm not ready.
What's the matter
Might do you good. B minus.
Don't laugh. This guy is different.
Dr. Sweeney? This guy's unbelievable. l've never had a teacher like this.
He's got two Ph.D.s. l don't know what he's doing at our school.
-He's not like other teachers. -What's he got you reading?
We got this essay exam on this book
-All on this one book. -Native Son. l don't know that.
That's a big surprise.
What? l read.
Honey
Well
So
lt's this book about this black guy.
We're doing this whole black literature unit.
What is it
No
This guy Sweeney
Yeah.
What?
Nothing. lt's just
lt's everywhere l look now.
What?
This affirmative blaction.
Honey
Read the book
Just don't swallow everything he feeds you whole.
-Just because you see it on the news. -But like what?
All this stuff about making everything equal. lt's not that simple.
Now you got this book
What happened to the other books in the course?
They're not any good anymore because Mr. Two-Ph.D.s says they aren't?
Are you gonna trade in great books for black books? Does that make sense?
You gotta question these things
You gotta look at the whole picture.
We're talking about books here. But l'm also talking about my job.
l got two black guys on my squad now who got their job...
...over a couple of white guys who actually scored higher on the test.
That make sense? Huh? Yeah
...but l got two guys watching my back
...who aren't as good as two others. They got the job because they were black.
-Not because they were the best. -That sucks.
Yeah. ls that what America is about?
No. America's about "best man for the job."
You do your best
You know
l don't know what that's about. There's some...
...hidden agenda or something going on.
-You see what l'm saying? -Yeah
l don't know
-Well.... -This guy
l don't know. Dr. Sweeney
...it's kind of hard not to listen to him.
Maybe some of what he says is kind of--
lt's bullshit.
Yeah. Yeah
No
lt's nigger bullshit.
-You see that
-You gotta watch out for that. -Yeah
Good boy.
-l'm proud of you. -Don't worry about it. l got it.
lt's 5:40 a.m...
...and in about one minute
l don't know if l've ever done that.
Anyway
It won't be easy
And l feel good.
l'm not sure if this paper is what you wanted.
lf l hit the social significance
But
Wow. You look great.
Look at you.
Yeah. Gotta dress up for the parole officer.
ls she cute?
She is a fat guy named Hector.
So l'm out of luck.
l just gotta check in
Great.
-Good morning. Yes
Davina
You look great. Knock them dead. -Okay.
Thanks.
What would you like to wear? l wanna wear my blue dress today.
-You do look good. -Yeah? l feel silly.
-You look good. Yeah?
You feel good?
Yeah. Yeah. l feel
...a little....
l'm getting there. l'm getting there.
Listen
l don't know if it's okay that l'm here.
l wanna be here.
-l'm gonna get a paper. -Cool.
-What do you want? -A maple bar and a large milk.
All right
Let me get a coffee
Right away.
Hey
Derek.
-We need to talk. -What's going on?
Cameron Alexander and Seth Ryan are at the lCU at St. John's.
-They were jumped last night. -How bad?
Well
-Then they got lucky. -Somebody's gotta lose
Aw
We were kind of hoping that maybe you'd talk to your old crew.
-Come on. No way. This is not a good thing.
lf there's anybody they'll listen to
No. No
Those guys are probably gunning for me now.
We're asking for your help here
-Did you tell him l was gonna do this? -Derek.
This has got nothing to do with me.
Yes
What are you doing to me? You know
l'm going like this to keep my family in the clear.
-Don't ask me to fix this. -l'm not asking that.
-lt was there before me. -You helped create it. Wanna take a break?
You take a break
The way to find peace is to stick.
lt's not gonna make a fucking bit of difference.
lt might.
Do you know what you're asking me to do? Do you?
Yes. l'm asking you to do whatever is in your power to do.
Man.
Fuck.
All right.
You're gonna get me shot by white boys.
-l doubt it. -Yeah
...we're all gonna have a laugh at that
l'm gonna take him to school. l'll be back in half an hour.
Come on.
Hey
-l'll give it to you
What's going on?
Come on.
This is so bad for Seth
-l wonder how bad they got fucked up. -l don't know.
l'm glad they're not dead
Should we visit them?
Visit them? No. No
Definitely not. Just stay out of it.
Listen
...l saw a car cruising by the house last night when l pulled out of there with Seth.
lf you get home before me
Make sure there's nothing going on.
Oh
-They're after you
lf l made it through Chino...
...this should be a piece of cake
-Are you gonna be okay? -Yeah
Okay.
What are you gonna do?
l don't know. l'll work it out. Hey.
Keep your head up. Things are gonna be fine.
lt's gonna be fine.
Go turn that paper in.
-Okay. All right
l'll see you at home.
All right?
Yeah
-Hey
See you later.
-We're gonna be late. We'd better go.
-Okay. -All right. Come on.
-Fine. -All right. l'll catch up with you
See you later.
-Derek
-All right. All right. -Get out of my way!
Let him go!
Oh
No.
Oh
God
Oh
So l guess this is where I tell you what I learned.
My conclusion
Well
...hate is baggage.
Life's too short to be pissed off all the time.
lt's just not worth it.
Derek says it's always good to end a paper with a quote.
He says someone else has already said it best...
...so if you can't top it
So l picked a guy l thought you'd like:
"We are not enemies
We must not be enemies.
Though passion may have strained...
...it must not break our bonds of affection.
The mystic chords of memory will swell when again touched...
...as surely they will be