Marxist Agenda

Rating: 5/10 (23 October 2015)

American History X intentionally mixes up concepts to cause confusion to viewers. It relates crimes motivated by racism to conservative ideas in order to cause the viewer to mistakenly associate racism to conservatism.
For example, in the scene with the discussion at the dinner table, Derek delivers many TRUE facts. For example, he says that the act of someone finding an excuse to loot a store is nothing but disrespect for law and community, and not a morally fair act (supposedly legitimated by a situation of economical difficulty, or any other reason), meaning that nothing justifies robbing someone. Right after saying this, the discussion goes to a racist bias (where Derek is obviously wrong). And right after this, Derek's sister gives Marxist propaganda on how crime is caused by 'social inequalities' (and is therefore justifiable), and not a matter of moral values. That is saying it is OK to rob someone if they are richer than you. Derek than argues (correctly) that this opinion of hers is just like taking one thing (robbery, for example) and calling it something else (redistribution, for example, or, to quote Derek, it's like saying "It's not crime, it's poverty"), with the intent to alleviate the responsibility of the one who commits it. That's exactly what Marxism does.
This twisting of concepts happen in other passages of the film, where the speeches and dialogues intertwine racist and conservative ideas. For example, in the scene where Derek fairly criticizes welfare (which is basically looting tax-payers to give privileges to others) and right away he says something racist.
The director's intent is clear: to unfairly associate racism to conservatism using a Nazi character to place conservative and racist ideas side by side, thus leading the naive viewer to wrongly believe these ideas are one and the same.