MovieChat Forums > A World Apart (1988) Discussion > This Vile Agenda

This Vile Agenda

posted 19 years ago by chrisbedford
5 replies | jump to latest

From a review of this movie:

And it is so horrible to think that this vile agenda was in power for over forty years.

Well firstly an "agenda" can not be in power. But be that as it may, it is horrible to think that America *still* has a Ku Klux Klan, and South Africa never had a hate organisation anything like it.

It is horrible to think that the USA only repealed *their* version of apartheid laws in 1963, but by 1969 were reviling South Africa for being so evil. And it is so horrible to think that during Bill Clinton's presidency - and today, for all I know - there were still US Senators and Congressmen campaigning against civil rights.

But most of all what is so horrible to think is that Americans who have No Clue can pass judgement on something they have never seen or experienced except through the eyes of Hollywood.

[–] thesnowleopard 19 years ago

Wow. That's not a blanket and bigoted comment about "all" Americans, isn't it? Don't you think that African-Americans and Indian-Americans might at least have a right to make some comparisons and shudder at some of the horrible things that occurred under both systems?

You're also assuming that no Americans have lived and worked for extended periods of time in South Africa (or might have moved from South Africa to the United States) and therefore, might have a first-hand view on whether or not apartheid was "vile". That's a big assumption. An inaccurate one, too.

And since when does the fact that one country has some dirty laundry make another country's dirty laundry okay? So what if some Americans are hypocrites? So are some South Africans. And both apartheid and segregation were vile. If you disagree with that statement, try mustering some rational arguments against it instead of throwing mud at the reviewer based on your assumption of his or her nationality.

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[–] mpennock1 19 years ago

The KKK is an ineffectual hate group. Capable of carrying out occasional acts of horrible violence, but a nut-case fringe group.

Apartheid, on the other hand, was the policy of a modern industrial state. It was backed with the full force of every instrument of coercion. Land removal, wretched social services, lethal police violence, military action, extralegal violence, and military invasion of neighboring states.

Modern South Africa isn't a paradise, but apartheid is no longer an active impediment. Its legacy, however, will be there for years to come.

[–] melatkey 18 years ago

This was a British film. The US is, in this context, irrelevant.

[–] rowhitakertoday 18 years ago

To melatkey: Excuse us for caring! Hate crimes and injustice are global issues. Was Hitler's regime irrelevant to Britain and the US because it was in Germany? Maybe some Americans thought so back then, and looked the other way. But now we think differently and are trying to learn from past mistakes.

[–] minyuette 16 years ago

Dude slow down, he was replying to the OP. The OP was blasting what he called a "Hollywood" film for daring to pass judgment. The guy you just flamed was pointing out that it was a British film, in other words not Hollywood anyway. So in essence he wasn't saying anything against whether or not we Americans care. Wow, can people around here chill out a bit?