American History X vs. The Autobiography of a Recovering Skinhead

             Between the movie: American History X and the book: The Autobiography of a Recovering Skinhead, the only real differences are the characters. After studying in my cultural ethnic studies class about white power movements, I’ve learned that the values of true skinhead cultures are fervent and reoccurring in all white nationalist groups and gangs. White power is the goal derived from old ideologies of the German Nazis from Adolf Hitler’s days. They all believe that Whites are special and deserve the privilege to rule the world and have every other “incompetent” race at their disposal to do what they please.

            More importantly, the recruitment process is EXACTLY the same. The brainwash tactic is such a handy tool for those older believers in white supremacy because the mind controls everything. If you can successfully convey an evil message to a young, misguided, lost in life “soldier” as being the “right thing to do/believe”, their whole world becomes altered. These are the people that are targeted. In American History X, the main character Derek Vinyard, loses his father because of a murder that happened to be by black guys. From there on, he blamed minorities for every problem that the WORLD was having, including HIV/AIDs. While he’s down and feeling like a lost cause at his lowest, he is recruited to become a skinhead and share the beliefs of people who agree that all other races are the root of all evil. He becomes engulfed so deep into the ideology that he serves the best and becomes a high-ranking official.

            Frank Meenink, the main character in The Autobiography of a Recovering Skinhead, has a similar story. He didn’t have his father killed but still grew up troubled in a broken home. His mother was a drug addict and his stepfather was extremely abusive. He never felt comfortable or safe at home and was always in search of an escape. However, he couldn’t find that at school either because it was just as bad as being at home. Feeling alienated, the white supremacist nation took an interest in a blank mind that could easily be reformed to believe what they believe. What both these stories also have in common is the startling realization that other races are people just like whites. It takes a rude awakening along with a simple interaction for both these misguided young men to realize this and they learn that its never too late to change. The unfortunate part is that most white supremacists do not believe this and live the rest of their lives on this rugged path.