The Glass Shield

Charles Burnett
,
US
,
1994
,
35mm
,
colour
,
104'

Michael Boatman plays a young, naive African American man who is the first of his race to be assigned to the Los Angeles Edgemar station, located in the heart of the beleaguered inner city. He finds himself in a precinct where violent, racist and corrupt cops have closely bonded against outsiders or any interference. The new recruit’s only ally is the sole woman (Lori Petty) in the Edgemar ranks. Burnett’s hard-hitting film examines what it really means to be persona non grata in one’s chosen profession and community, and what a man will give up to fit in.