Men in Black (1997) is a film that most Americans have seen. Will Smith (Agent J) and Tommy Lee Jones (Agent K) working as agents in the super secret organization that monitors and polices extraterrestrial life on Earth. The plot is, of course, hilarious, and shows the audience that aliens could live among us.
At the time of the movie's release, the major topic of discussion in America was about illegal immigration. From 1990 to 1999, four major decisions were made concerning illegal immigration:
- The Immigration Act (1990) increased the legal immigration ceilings and tripled the number of visas available for priority workers and professionals with US job offers.
- United States v. Verdugo-Urquidez stated that "cases in which aliens have been determined to enjoy certain constitutional rights establish only that aliens receive such protections when they have come with the territory of, and have developed substantial connections with, this country".
- The Illegal Immigration Act (1996) required phone verification for worker authentication by employers, made access to welfare benefits more difficult for legal aliens and increased border patrol.
- Rodriguez v. United States (1999) held that statutes which discriminate within the class of aliens comport with the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment so long as they satisfy rational basis scrutiny.
It is clear that, during the late 1990's, immigration quickly became a source of cultural anxiety in America, and can be reflected in the movie Men in Black, with its references to aliens living among society, being controlled and monitored strictly, and being at risk of being deported.
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ReplyDeletethis is where I pulled my data from, throughout the website
I never even thought of Men In Black in this sort of way. The idea that they are trying to capture the aliens and send them away though sounds innocent until you put in perspective that they are doing this to people. Aliens in this movie are considered unwanted and a threat to the world. However illigeal immigrants to the government are seen this way. They see them as a threat making it harder for Americans to get jobs but also will get the jobs due to lower labor costs.
ReplyDeleteSMART IDEAS! I’ve definitely never connected Men in Black with the public anxiety of illegal aliens. However your post does answer the question quite well. This was a creative connection between the two. The problem of illegal aliens in the movie now seems to me to be almost identical to the public anxiety. I do think that this is more of a how it should be rather than how it is. This is because the monitoring and control of illegal immigrants is relatively non-existent.
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