The House I Live In (2012)

From the dealer to the narcotics officer, the inmate to the federal judge, a penetrating look inside America's criminal justice system, revealing the profound human rights implications of U.S. drug policy.

Director:

Eugene Jarecki

Writers:

Eugene Jarecki, Christopher St. John (additional writing)

Stars:

Eugene Jarecki, Michelle Alexander, Mark W. Bennett

4 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Eugene Jarecki	...	Himself - Narrator / Interviewer
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Michelle Alexander	...	Herself - Author, The New Jim Crow
Mark W. Bennett	...	Himself - U.S. Federal Judge (as Hon. Mark Bennett)
Joe Biden	...	Himself (archive footage) (as Joseph Biden)
Michael Bien	...	Himself - Civil Rights Attorney
Charles Bowden	...	Himself - Investigative Reporter
Mike Carpenter	...	Himself - Chief of Security, Lexington Corrections
Betty Chism	...	Herself - Kevin's mother
Michael Correa	...	Himself
Michael Correia	...	Himself - Commanding Officer, Narcotics (as Lt. Michael Correia)
Eric Franklin	...	Himself - Lexington Corrections Center (as Warden Eric Franklin)
Glendon Goldsboro	...	Himself - Providence Police (as Lt. Glendon Goldsboro)
Maurice Haltiwanger	...	Himself - ID# 03678-029
Carl Hart	...	Himself, associate professor of psychology, Columbia University
Elzie Hooks	...	Himself, inmate, Lexington Correctional Center

Storyline

From the dealer to the narcotics officer, the inmate to the federal judge, a penetrating look inside America's criminal justice system, revealing the profound human rights implications of U.S. drug policy.

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Plot Keywords:

u.s. mexico border | despair | american history | judge | federal judge | 

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Taglines:

An inside look at America's longest war.

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Genres:

Documentary

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

BBC [United Kingdom] ITVS [United States]

Country:

Netherlands UK Germany Japan Australia USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

5 October 2012 (USA)

Also Known As:

American Ghetto: Mayaku-sensô to sabetsu no rensa

Filming Locations:

New Haven, Connecticut, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$16,453, 7 October 2012, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$210,752, 10 February 2013

Company Credits

Production Co:

Al Jazeera Documentary Channel, British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), Charlotte Street Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min (total run time)

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

Himself - Physician, Addiction Expert: America's drug problem - a result of hundreds of years of history, economic policy, social policy, and misunderstanding. So let's not make the most physical manifestation of it - that is to say, people being out there on the street and using - the problem. It's not the problem. It's simply a manifestation of the problem. It's simply a symptom. It's sort of like saying that the problem with pneumonia is that you cough. "Let's suppress the cough, and that's okay." Well you can suppress the cough....

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Connections

Featured in Storyville: The House I Live In (2013) (2013)

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Soundtracks

DEATH OF A SALESMAN
Written and Performed by Pete Miser
Published by Big Brother Lin Drum Music

User Reviews

Good look at the pros and cons of the drug war, it feeds off of class, race, culture and society.

No matter what side of the drug war your on even if you want legalization or the total ban of all drugs, one thing for sure it's an interesting and tough topic that splits many. "The House I Live In" the eye opening new documentary from Eugene Jarecki looks at the many sides of U.S. drug policy and how it interacts and feeds off one another from the street dealer to the narcotics officer to the inmate and federal judge. It's true that the use of illegal drugs has destroyed many countless lives, yet still the media, and political people have overblown the drug problem into a money making business. Making the jobs of law enforcement employees very hard as much of their focus is now on fighting drugs instead of trying to solve more important crimes like murder. And the lock up rate has grown crazy as the U.S. now has 25% of the world's prison population. It's an easy game lock up someone quick and easy for a drug possession crime and spend more tax payer money build more prisons and more lock ups as prison and crime is now a money making machine that makes a job for someone. As evidenced from the correctional officer that was interviewed during this doc.

Even more revealing is how Eugene Jarecki examines the history of drugs and how it's always been more the case that the poor and those that are black will be arrested for drug crimes. It's clear that many that live in a race and culture of downtrodden ridden history and black have simply became a statistical number for law enforcement to arrest. All while politicians on both side profit and get fat from fighting the drug war. Clearly they don't understand they need to stop locking people up for small drug offenses to save prison space for more serious criminals. Overall good doc that questions the way we are handling business in fighting the drug war it's educational and thought provoking no matter what your stance on the drug policy is.