Ayanna. Pressley, US Representative for Massachusetts said once, “We have to acknowledge that systemic racist, economic inequality and achievement gap are all the result of policies made by man.” Ava Duvernay in her documentary 13th explores this idea, that the 13th Amendment of US Constitution has been responsible for the mass prisonering of people of colour. Duvernay, using a variety rhetorical methods to create a narrative of systemic injustice that is commendable by both political parties, uses different rhetorical strategies. The 13th Amendment of the US Constitution states that slavery and involuntary slavery are prohibited within the United States. If you’re incarcerated. The director uses pictures, stories and words to prove Ayanna Pressley’s and other people’s point. Ava Duvernay successfully communicated that systemic racial discrimination in the justice system is due to the 13th-amendment loophole by using accredited speakers, compelling data, and vivid visuals.

Ethos is a form of persuasion that relies on the speaker’s/presenter’s credibility. If the audience did not have credibility, they would find it difficult to relate to and trust the director’s ideas. The film director introduces a range of historical characters. The film opens with Barack Obama’s opening statistic about the incarceration rate in the United States. Martin Luther King Jr.’s and Angela Davis’s speeches. Duvernay chose figures that have experienced the justice system themselves or are well-versed in the injustices faced by people of color. Duvernay could create more trust with the public by showing people/minorities that have been victims of injustice. The director’s film gained credibility because it included multiple viewpoints. The audience was able to hear interviews with Newt Booker or Cory Gingrich, who were either in office at the time of filming. Michael Hough was interviewed in relation to the lobbying topic. Michael Hough wasn’t only a senator during this time period, but he also belonged to the ALEC corporation/lobbying organization. Duvernay introduced a number of civil rights activists, including Malkia Cyril, the founder and president of Essie. Interviews were conducted by the director with notable professors, such as Kevin Gannon of Grandview University Idaho or Jelani Cobb who is an author and journalism professor at Columbia University. Duvernay takes the perspective of different experts to offer a diverse range of perspectives for his audience. Ethos has been used to improve the credibility of this documentary many times throughout the film.

The audience was more likely to be moved by the facts themselves, since the individuals who presented them were well-known figures. Duvernay presents this statistic, which was given by Obama in his film. One-fourth the world’s prison population is located in the United States. This piece of proof was particularly compelling as it came after Obama’s previous assertion that only five percent of world’s population resided in the United States. Duvernay insists that injustice towards people who are of colour is legal in the US Constitution. The document that governs each piece of legislation. It is important to note that there are many legal terms used in the film. This helps the audience connect with the facts and statistics about injustices within the US justice. Near the film’s end, audiences are shown the reality behind the disparity in incarceration rates for people of different races and whites. Only 1 in 17 men of colour will go to prison, while one in three black men may end up there. The director used compelling evidence to educate and inform the audience.

Duvernay reaches his audience most effectively through images, video, and film, which tend to evoke strong emotions from viewers. These strong emotions force the viewer to remember or draw connections to similar situations described in a film. The documentary begins with a powerful example. A montage starts as the speakers talk about the “first prison boom [in the US]” following the Civil War. Images of black men and boys in prison uniforms performing arduous tasks. Birth Of A Nation clips that dehumanized African-American men. Demonstrating black men as rapists or romanticizing Ku Klux Klan views led to a return of the KKK. Duvernay showed clips from Birth of A Nation, a film that shows “life imitating Art” in a very powerful way. Jeloni Cobb, one of Jeloni’s quotes, explains this. The unfiltered images forced viewers to go back in time. The images were unfiltered and showed large numbers of people surrounding black men as they were being lynched. Videos of klansmen carving “KKK”, a pronounced acronym, into the skin of a man. These images, as well as the newspaper headlines at the time which did not show any remorse or regret for the terrorist acts, can evoke feelings such anger and confusion among the audience.

Duvernay is able to use images and clips in a very effective way. This can be seen towards the end. The viewer’s mind is transported to the 2016 US Presidential Elections. The viewer is taken back to the 2016 US Presidential elections as President Trump gives speeches at rallies while chanting, “USA!” The clips show Americans, specifically blacks on whites, spitting, shouting offensive remarks, and manhandling. The “USA!” chants are juxtaposed with clips of whites committing acts of violence against blacks. The montage starts as President Trump continues to talk about the “good, old days”. It shows the similarity between the discrimination of the Jim Crow period, segregation, and now. These clips show groups of black men, police officers, and white men beating up black men in the Jim Crow era. Black men, women and children are being harassed by white people at today’s rallies. Black children in prison are shown on video clips. All of these images and clips help contribute to a more emotionally-capturing film.

13th by Duvernay is a highly acclaimed documentary because it addresses a topic that affects so many Americans. The film was successful not only because of the controversial subject but also because the director used a variety of rhetorical strategies that were appealing to their target audience. DuVernay’s film had some flaws, such as the lack of exposure to the opposing viewpoint and ideas. But overall she was able effectively communicate her ideas. The people who already knew about the injustices in the justice system but needed to be educated further. This documentary illustrates a controversial issue using reliable, credible information in order to convince its viewers.

Works Cited

DuVernay, Ava is the director. 13th. Netflix Official Site, 7 Oct. 2016