During our in-class discussion of the "White Bear" episode, one thing that stood out was how unsurprising this method of punishment was to the class. Not meaning that there was endorsement for it, but that there was a collective acceptance that public persecution would make sense in a privatized prison system where the corporate owners would want some means of profiting off the incarcerated population. In our discussion, another point that came out was that somehow the "Justice Park" was ready to go before Victoria's conviction considering that the judge ruled the punishment "should fit the crime" and the public seemed far to angry to have waited the years it would have taken to set up Justice Park. The most likely scenario, in my opinion, is that the privatized prison system had invested in the creation of the park for a high-profile sentencing prior to Victoria's trial. Victoria then had the misfortune of participating in a crime that had a disturbing-enough profile and the widespread media attention to make her the perfect candidate for Justice Park's first feature attraction. So given that it seems at all possible that legal punishment could become an entertainment industry, was what would the first "White Bear" crime look like in our society and how far off from Justice Park are we really?
A few months ago, in August of 2017, Michelle Carter was convicted of involuntary manslaughter due to her part in convincing her friend to kill himself via text messages and phone calls. There was intense media coverage of the trial given the murder weapon was in essence text messages, and when the judge ruled that Carter's was responsible, as her cyber presence caused a dangerous environment that she did not act to save him from, it set a eerily similar precedent to the show. Carter never physically harmed the victim, much like Victoria. Also like Victoria, one of the greatest criticisms of Carter has been that she does not seem remorseful enough and her actions lacked humanity . As of right now, her sentence has been stayed until she has exhausted the state appeals available to her, which was a decision not met with a lot of enthusiasm. Carter's age, 20, could be seen as a mitigating factor in her sentencing, whereas Victoria seems more middle-aged. Now, I am not arguing that Victoria, or our contemporary Carter, deserve what would happen to them in Justice Park. Rather, that as a class we discussed how every day Black Mirror seems more and more like an actual mirror to our society and less like a what-if TV show. So if we are ever going to have a White Bear Justice Park, it seems to me that the based on the nature of her crime, the widespread media attention to it and her subsequent conviction, Carter seems like a notable step in making this situation a reality.
...And if we already had a privatized prison system and a park ready to go, she looks an awful lot like our "White Bear" protagonist.
A few months ago, in August of 2017, Michelle Carter was convicted of involuntary manslaughter due to her part in convincing her friend to kill himself via text messages and phone calls. There was intense media coverage of the trial given the murder weapon was in essence text messages, and when the judge ruled that Carter's was responsible, as her cyber presence caused a dangerous environment that she did not act to save him from, it set a eerily similar precedent to the show. Carter never physically harmed the victim, much like Victoria. Also like Victoria, one of the greatest criticisms of Carter has been that she does not seem remorseful enough and her actions lacked humanity . As of right now, her sentence has been stayed until she has exhausted the state appeals available to her, which was a decision not met with a lot of enthusiasm. Carter's age, 20, could be seen as a mitigating factor in her sentencing, whereas Victoria seems more middle-aged. Now, I am not arguing that Victoria, or our contemporary Carter, deserve what would happen to them in Justice Park. Rather, that as a class we discussed how every day Black Mirror seems more and more like an actual mirror to our society and less like a what-if TV show. So if we are ever going to have a White Bear Justice Park, it seems to me that the based on the nature of her crime, the widespread media attention to it and her subsequent conviction, Carter seems like a notable step in making this situation a reality.
...And if we already had a privatized prison system and a park ready to go, she looks an awful lot like our "White Bear" protagonist.
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