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The Sydney "Race Riots" have been reported about thoroughly on all levels of media and talked about endlessly on the talkbalk radiowaves.

I switched on talkback radio to have a hear about other people's views on the riots - its amazing on how many people's views are just filled with misunderstanding, misconceptions and stereotypes which conflict with my own personal views.

Anyway, rather than going more in-depth with this issue which already has been thoroughly talked and reported by other people i just wanted to draw a parallel with a report I read today and the episode of Oprah about the movie "Crash" I wrote about around last week.

Here is the synopsis of Crash if you haven't seen it:
"A provocative, unflinching look at the complexities of racial conflict in America, CRASH is that rare cinematic event - a film that challenges audiences to question their own prejudices. Diving headlong into the diverse melting pot of post-9/11 Los Angeles, this compelling urban drama tracks the volatile intersections of a multi-ethnic cast, examining fear and bigotry from multiple perspectives as characters careen in and out of one another’s lives. No one is safe in the battle zones of racial strife. And no one is immune to the simmering rage that sparks violence - and changes lives..."

In an article entitled "Give us respect and you will get respect, say Lebanese" in the Sydney Morning Herald this morning it was discussing recent developments as a result of these recent events in Sydney.

The article piece presents a few scenarios which has an eerie parallel to a scene in the movie 'Crash' which involves a conflist between races and the law.

"Rania Hamam, 18, who was interviewed for the research project by the Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies, told the Herald that police harassment was common.

She had been stopped and ordered to surrender her mobile phone in Auburn on Wednesday. "I said to him, 'My phone is private', but he took it anyway," she said. The officer checked the phone for text messages as part of the police crackdown after recent racial clashes.

Ms Hamam said she wanted to become a police officer - because the only way she could see the force changing was if people of different backgrounds joined it. "If police treat us with respect we will reply with respect," she said."

And:

"In one night, he said, they were pulled over 22 times. Tariq said his friend had asked police why he was being harassed. An officer had replied: "A young, ethnic guy driving a Mercedes - why wouldn't we?"

Another, more disturbing, incident was described by Hana, a 16-year-old girl, who said a police officer asked a male friend: "Which girls are you ready to rape?"

Ms Hamam said some members of the Lebanese community had to take responsibility for contributing to the problem."

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