When the movie Freedomland came out, I checked out the internet reviews. Samuel L. Jackson would get me to the theater anyway, but I wanted to get a sense of the critic and user reviews.
Most were critical of the movie. The New York Times predicted it was an “early candidate for the worst film of the year.” he views of the cyberspace critics seem to mirror both those in the movie and in real life when it comes to addressing the issue of police abuse. The movie was released locally in the aftermath of the Maplewood police beatdown and the tensions that are still simmering.
Samuel L. plays a black detective who investigates the claim of a white woman (played by Julianne Moore) that she was carjacked by a black man (like in real life). The black community is besieged by the police looking for a “suspect” (like in real life).
It is discovered by the cops that the alleged car contained a sleeping boy in the back, making the carjacker now a kidnapper. The black community is outraged at the efforts to find the “kidnapped” white boy when the same level of energy and resources are never used to find black victims (like in real life).
Without giving the complete storyline away, the tensions escalate within the black community over support for the victimized mother (as in real life) and between the black and white police officers (like in real life). At the flashpoint, the black community sees Jackson’s character as a cop while the cops see him as a member of the black community (like in real life). Moore’s character eventually confesses that her lie was to cover up the accidental death of her son and a relationship with one of the black brothas in the hood. Like in real life?
Now, to real life. The African-American community is grappling with the recent and increased number of police chases that have left innocent people dead or injured. The death of the Rev. Nathaniel Cole seemed to be the straw that divides our community along the issue of who’s responsible for police chases. Some call for the heads of youthful risk-takers; some call for the heads of adrenaline-pumpin’ cops. There’s an opportunity here to use dialogue in problem-solving. But will we?
I’m talking about real problem-solving, not passing a reactionary law to impound a car because some young person has the music up too loud. No police testified that such a ordinance, if enforced, will take them away from the more serious crimes of the day. So, yes, it will become another tool in the racial profiling toolbox.
“Too loud” is an emotional determination that will be made based upon subjective conditions. The bill will lead to more harassment by the police, more black men in court and more stolen cars.
In the movie, Freedomland was an institution for children with emotional or mental disorders that had been shut down because of its archaic and inhumane treatment methods. Our Freedomland is the metaphoric place where we have equal protection under the law, that our safety and security is valued because our lives are, and that in 2006 we don’t have to worry about what comes after a lynched “coon” on a black construction site.