Essay the accademic interpretation of American street code

M. V.

31/05/2013

Title: The academic interpretation of the African-American Street Code in TVs series, movies

and video games .

Abstract: th

The spread of Black American Gangs in the 20 century is a social phenomenon which has been

object of discussions as an academic subject. However, this event has also been interpreted from

different social perspectives in TVs series, movies and videogames in order to allow a less

intellectual public to easily understand it.

This thesis explores how real life influences the way through which people perceive the

development of a street code in Black American gangs. First of all, this thesis will compare how the

ongoing formation of Black gangs in American cities has been treated by academics, then it will be

analyzed in details Elijia Anderson’s essay Code of the Street and other dissertations about the same

topic, focusing specifically on the economic, social and moral implications which lead black

gangsters to build a street code.

Secondly, by examining online articles, interviews and reviews, this thesis will focus on how the

academic analysis about Black American street code has been deciphered in the virtual world by

comparing the hierarchical order, the language, the moral behavior of the characters in the first and

third season of the TVs series The Wire, The crime drama American Gangster and the crime

videogame Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. The proposed statements will show how virtual world

may help a not academic public to conceive the phenomenon of Black American gangs and their

street code.

N.b during my researches I found the aspect of the language in the street code and argument so vast

and complex that I decided ultimately not to touch it.

The academic interpretation of the African-American Street Code in TVs series, movies and

video games .

The Street is cold Dog. Like it is said in the Book, we are blessed and cursed.

-Big Smoke to Carl Johnson, GTA San Andreas.-

Los Santos, San Andreas, 1992.

The Police arrested a young black man outside the national airport. His name was Carl Johnson,

also known as CJ. He was member of a street gang called "The Grove street family" and five years

before he had escaped from his hometown in order to free himself from the pressure of a life in Los

Santos streets, where the community was lacerated by turf wars, drug dealing and cops corruption.

After knowing that his mother had been killed during a fight among street gangs, CJ come back to

take part in the urban struggle among rival gangs to protect the rest of his family. The purpose of

this synopsis of the video game GTA San Andreas is to introduce a very important social

“The

phenomenon that Elijah Anderson has called Code of the streets”(1).

dictionary definition a code is “a

According to The Oxford’s set of moral principles or rules of

a social group”.

behavior that are generally accepted by Aforementioned Anderson highlights how

the cultural background is an essential factor that leads African-Americans who live in decaying

organize themselves in a sort of “[closed

inner cities to community] which reflects mainstream

…[of people] who must be able to handle themselves in a street oriented environment”(1).

values

Other Academics as also focused on the historical and economic implications which lead African-

Americans to set up a street code. However, few of them have taken into consideration how

gangster’s

television interprets the values of black communities. Furthermore, not even movies and

games about the topic have been considered reliable sources that draw a flawless picture of the code

of the streets.

This essay seeks to remedy these problems by analyzing how the anthropological aspect of

African-American gangsters hidden rules have been interpreted in TV Series and movies not only to

allow intellectual people catching glimpses of the street code but also to help average people to

recognize its importance. Moreover it will be shown how a video game is a very useful tool to let

young people to be aware of the ethnic stereotype of the criminal black man .

This paper first gives a brief overview of the history of African-American street gangs, touching

th th

racial and economic issues that black immigrants suffered in 19 and 20 century. It will then go on

taking The Wire as example to show how urban decay may influence the establishment of a social

code. Chapter 2 begins to focus the anthropological aspects of the streets code, comparing the main

character of the movie American Gangster, Frank Lucas and the members of the Barksdale

organization Avon and Stringer Bells in the first and third season of The Wire. We will notice how

the value of hierarchy and the lounge for profit may influence their behavior as gangsters. In the last

chapter, we will see how a video game like GTA San Andreas is a very useful tool to let young

people to develop their personal point of view about the world of gangs and street culture as they

gangster’s shoes.

put themselves in an African-American We will underline the relationship

gangster’s

between the street codes and protection of territory, taking the rival gangs wars in GTA

rd

The Wire’s

San Andreas and in 3 season as examples and then we will draw our conclusions about

the entire work. of urban identity and it’s fictional perception in mass

1.The Street Code as a symbol media. The

Case of The Wire.

This is what’s wrong with America .

you can’t find your way.

It is gotten so big

-Bumpy Johnson, American Gangster.-

James C. Howell and John P Moore treat the historical formation of street gangs in the United

gangster’s

States and in a section they focused on African-American history:

The first African- American streets gangs [set up] in 19th century, when immigrants from the

deep south of the country reached cities like Chicago, Los Angeles and New York to seek their

fortune in the north of the country. They were considered a source of cheap labor [who needed to be

segregated in poor areas of the inner cities] and so they started reuniting themselves in social groups

to commit crimes against wealthy middle class property, such as car theft, robbery, drug dealing,

etc.(Howell , Moore 2-3). “between the 70’s and the 80’s,

Jim Parker also noticed that living conditions in inner cities

cooled down and [the country’s]

deteriorated as American economy politics shifted from Great

…..

Society initiatives to Contract with America cutbacks. [The outcomes of a] faltering economy

and declining job opportunities in the inner cities set [an] explosive growth of street gangs(3).

Gangster’s history

So what it can be discerned by this brief portrait of African-American is that

academics have commonly took up poverty as key marker which may help to explain the formation

of this kind of communities. Another important factor that may justify the establishment of a

criminal gang is the is the racial segregation and social disparity that a social group suffer after

that gang’s

moving from a territory to another . Anderson also suggests members feel the necessity

“build

to a code of honor connected to their cultural background. This code does not only

distinguish themselves from the Decent Community, (generally members of healthy families who

inner city’s districts),

moved from but also allows them to provide a frame work for negotiating

(2-3).

respect” Admittedly, this statement would mean that urban inequalities influence a person’s

“measured (Anderson

appearance if they want to possess a social respect” 3).

community’s problems. Moreover, “The

The Urban Environment is the first step to figure out a

perception of human space is a powerful instrument that allows an artist to catch different types of

(Amato

information to help individuals to interpret their places in the society” 52). Charles Dickens

denounce Industrialization’s effects on

for example used the urban space in his novels to the

th

England society in 19 century. He carefully described the urban decay to draw popular attention

workers.

to public abuses and crimes whose victims were lower class’s members like factory’s

Nowadays, the media also may underline how the "urban decay" has influenced the establishment

of Street Gangs in poor districts of big cities and The Wire provides the elements to trace a social

studies as Dickens did two centuries ago.

David Simon’s attempt is to give an “authentic

criminal series representation of life in poor

[exploring]

urban communities in Baltimore… the reality of postindustrial America”(Fraley 2),

touching themes that Anderson mentioned in his social analysis about street communities. First, the

series show how the Barksdale’s criminal organization (whose member are basically African-

American grew up in Baltimore’s western district) deals with the problem of selling drug without

st

being caught by police in the 1 season and the control over a particular territory (Baltimore's West

rd Wire’s

Side) in the 3 season. Furthermore, The virtual space shows the outcomes of

Deindustrialization (the removal or reduction of industrial capacity or activity in a country or

region,Wikipedia.org 2008 in cities like Baltimore and how this affects young African-Americans

)

who live in the housing projects in joining street gang and start selling drug on the streets. However,

The Wire offers more than a simple portrait of the contemporary urban decay but it also provides

examples of how someone could take advantage of urban decay to build his own fortune, even if in

an illegal way. We will return on this matter in the following chapter, analyzing how important

hierarchy to establish a street code and the way in which it influences criminals behavior.

2. The struggle between hierarchy and sense of innovation in the Wire and American

Gangster.

If the pawn makes it all the way down to the other dude's side, he gets to be queen…[but]

The king stay the king.

Barksdale, the Wire (1.03)-

-D’Angelo crime movies to analyze gangster’s

One of the reasons for Academics underestimating

communities is because they may generally encourage stereotyped image of Gangsters as are

immoral, greedy, violent and power-hungry men. So why should we trace a parallelism between

HBO’s criminal series and a movie like American Gangster?

One of the series writer Ed Burns was a former Baltimore police detective, so he exploits his

life poor neighborhood and drug

experience to offer a realistic picture of African-American’s

dealing in Baltimore, engaging actors who came from the same back ground as in the case of

Felicia Preston who played the role of "Snoop" from the 3rd season of the series. Similarly, Ridley

Scott’s American Gangster (2007) is based on the true story of Frank Lucas