Repressive Institutions Inhibit the Development of Individual

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“Repressive institutions inhibit the development of individual identity “ A repressive institution is an organization which limits freedom of expression. Part of the identity of an individual is who you are, and who feel you are. Repressive institutions can either enhance or stunt the growth of your identity, depending on the individual. In the film “Skin” Sandra is faced with a repressive institution that hinders her identity as person. Police state is also used by a repressive government to confine freedom of expression. Repressive institutions are organizations in which freedom of expression is prohibited. They are often supported and enforced by society and its institutions and they are often used to regulate or control a group of people or an individual. Schools, families, hospitals are all examples of institutions, and when used in a doctrinaire way, they can be repressive institutions. For instance a family bounded by fundamentalist values or a school regulated by strict rules can conflict with individual freedom. This is evident in the film “Skin” where Sandra, the protagonist is forbidden by her father to see the person she loves, because of their skin difference. It is also evident when the school she attends isolates her from the rest of her peers and mistreats her. Sandra as a character was hindered by her family and government from developing her own identity; she was faced with an unfortunate circumstance in an unfortunate era to appear colored, and as resulted she does not come in to terms with her identity. A media that chooses to broadcast propaganda is also a repressive institution that limits freedom of information. This is could be done so that one side of a political spectrum can gain more favorably than the other. For instance “The Australian” an openly right wing newspaper, often portrays the current Labor government as

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