Atlanta (TV Show) - Jewish Lawyer

S02E11 "Crabs in a Barrel"

[PhoebeJCPSkunccMDsImagitorium]

Debating deleting this video now that all the new comments are about Kanye being a Nazi

[MoisesHernandez-swpt]

One thing I like about Atlanta is that the people come across as somebody you can find in real life with and have a genuine conversation about topics. You can notice the hesitation on the jewish guy at the counter to answer Earns question. The way he answered the question with a nuanced take was honestly something youd see too in a discourse about the subject .

[jcnot]

3:50 man was sorting through every possible answer like Dr Strange in Infinity War and came out with the best possible response.

[BossAttack]

It's kinda odd how some people miss the point of this scene with the Jewish guy. Earn is not asking randomly or because he's trying to gauge how well the other black attorney can be. He's questioning himself and his role. You already saw earlier in the season how Luke, Clark County's manager, who is a white dude is supposedly pretty good at his job. Clark even tells Paper Boi how Luke hooked him up with all these advertising contracts and how Luke can do the same for him. Earn understands the world he lives in and as Paper Boi moves up he's wondering whether Al will need him much longer if he can't deliver.

The question isn't about the attorney per se, but whether ANY black professional can be as good as a white professional in a field where connections are paramount. The answer confirms what he already suspected, that he is at a disadvantage since he does not have access to the same connections a white manager, like Luke, can get. And so now he's left wondering whether he truly can be the best manager for Al and whether Al is justified in replacing him. We see at the end of the season that Earn finds his place and Al understands his value and what he can do. Unlike the white professionals, Earn understands where they are coming from and will fight even harder for them to remain on top and do things other professionals wouldn't think of, such as trying to frame Clark County with the gun. That is the value Earn brings that Paper Boi can't get anywhere else. Family, trust, and a level of ruthlessness that comes with being family.

It's a great scene and essential the Earn's journey for the season.

[xSlackAlot]

$350 isn't expensive for a SAME DAY passport replacement/update. It's roughly $200 and it takes around two weeks.

[nyaakewebo]

Darius' random conversations elevates the comedy in this show.

[EdoKwin]

2:24 - I love everything about this scene, especially lawyer conversation and the ending. It reminds of Jerry Seinfeld saying that writing a great joke on a touchy subject is like dodging laser beams. Earn's question got everybody shook, but the passport guy handled it perfectly.

[dominiqueodom]

Ya know, Atlanta could've been just a show about Donald Glover the manager and his struggles as he tries to make it big and no one really wouldve thought about asking for anything more than that tbh....but then small moments like the last piece of dialogue with this Jewish Lawyer elevate this show into being one of the most well written, Powerful, mind-boggling deep, and provocative shows ever made.

[TooSmalley]

"... for systemic reasons" eh. At least he's being honest.

[graydubs]

I like how the first lawyers name is literally Christian

[plentyofmalk]

"You said I have a crafty, Jew brain." "Nobody knows how to take a compliment anymore."

[iamski]

A lot of folks are a bit confused but still point out the significance of this scene specifically with the word "systemic" because it has a deep undertone and meaning to into it. So... tapping into a question that goes back hundreds, if not a thousand years ago, let me break some shit down for y'all.

I'll primarily focus on the Middle Ages to keep things short and for the lack I don't want to bore you guys with 10 paragraph story. With that said: Religious attitudes were reflected in the economic, social, and political life of medieval Europe. In much of Europe during the Middle Ages, Jews were denied citizenship and its rights, barred from holding posts in government and the military, and excluded from membership in guilds and the professions. To be sure, some European rulers and societies, particularly during the early Middle Ages, afforded Jews a degree of tolerance and acceptance, and it would be an error to conceive of Jews as facing an unchanging and unceasing manifestation of anti-Jewish oppression throughout this period.

Sounds pretty shitty right? Well here's how you make lemonade with lemons...

As European commerce grew in the late Middle Ages, some Jews became prominent in trade, banking, and moneylending, and Jews’ economic and cultural successes tended to arouse the envy of the populace. This economic resentment, allied with traditional religious prejudice, prompted the forced expulsion of Jews from several countries and regions, including England (1290), France (14th century), Germany (1350s), Portugal (1496), Provence (1512), and the Papal States (1569). Intensifying persecution in Spain culminated in 1492 in the forced expulsion of that country’s large and long-established Jewish population. Only Jews who had converted to Christianity were allowed to remain, and those suspected of continuing to practice Judaism faced persecution in the Spanish Inquisition. As a result of these mass expulsions, the centres of Jewish life shifted from western Europe and Germany to Turkey and then to Poland and Russia.

Because premodern Christianity did not permit moneylending for interest and because Jews generally could not own land, Jews played a vital role as moneylenders and traders. Where they were permitted to participate in the larger society, Jews thrived. During the Middle Ages in Spain, before their expulsion in 1492.

If I've lost you at this point it's ok, what I'm trying to allude for Jews living in Europe, they had very little opportunity to run a successful business during those days, however, they were permitted to handle MONEY. This included banking. This included law firms. The Jewish community was very tight knit and goal oriented so naturally over 500 years they cultivated these niche skill sets that were permitted and it led them to become experts in their fields, developing relationthips with corporations, governments, social entities, and celebrities alike. Those are POWERFUL connections.

That quote you heard, "for systemic reasons..." it's brief but very powerful in it's message because you have to understand history and the nuances of hundreds of years of developing a specific skill because the Catholic church and a majority of European countires marginalized and made it diffulct for Jews to thrive. Why else do you hear that silly anti-semitic stereotype about Jews running the world. NO! It's because that was their only opportunity to survive in a world that didn't give them a chance. Just like African Americans since the end of Jim Crow, they've had less than 100 years to adapt to a world that treated them sub-human. The problem and solution is systemic because systemic means it's built into the cake. It's endemic and repeats each cycle. Your father is a doctor so you're going to be a doctor. because your cousin and uncle are also a doctor. It's built into the cake.

Sadly for Earn, while he was befuddled by the Jewish kids candor and bluntness, he couldn't argue his point because he is correct in every assessment. Black lawyers can easily play the game as Jewish lawyers. However... they're playing a game which Jews have been doing it since the Renaissance period.

Hope this makes sense for y'all.

[SorFig]

As a Zimbabwean, the most offensive part of this whole video is that they pay only $350 for a same-day passport replacement. We pay twice as much to hopefully get it in a month. First World problems are so adorable.

[Capcoor]

One thing for sure – connections are a very important part of life.

[morsumbra]

"Its $350"
"Oh that's why"
- Glover nails delivery.

[callumyoung]

"Alright, thank you, I love you" 😂 Darius really cracks me up!

[filmdude]

"Black people just don't have the connections that my cousin has. For systemic reasons."
The fact that they're jewish lawyers makes it ambiguous which systemic advantage he's referring to. Is it the stereotype of law being dominated by jews, or is it the whole "white" thing? Either one could really apply. But the fact that this all starts with Al preferring a jewish lawyer probably means he's referring to the former.

[asifsba]

Whoa. This show and this scene alone is such a master class in framing cinematography dialogue acting storytelling everything. Man. I’m now a convert to this show. 😍

[seanwalsh]

3:25 Having connection is unearned, but it makes a person a lot better at the job of "entertainment lawyer." What the clerk is saying is that even a great black lawyer who lacks the family connections (the cousin's dad is an entertainment lawyer) will struggle to compete with someone who was born with those connections. Systemic.

[warmlettuce]

The dude lookin in on the boxers convo’s reactions are so funny