ABSTRACT
This chapter examines how the East Side's absence— a geo-political absence signalled metonymically in the title— becomes present. It suggests the blacks and Puerto Ricans in New York because this was the time of the appearance there of teenage gangs, and the problem of juvenile delinquency was very much in the news. The first scenes of the film establish the dramatic conflict: two gangs fight for social spaces, public territories, and institutions. The first to appear are the Anglo-Americans, the absolute owners of the open spaces, that is, the streets and the basketball court. Most of the Anglo-Americans are blond, strong, dynamic, and healthy and so embody the ideologerne: "All-American Boy." On the other hand, the Puerto Ricans are black haired, dark skinned, and skinny. This first representation installs the spectator within ready-made, stereotypical models of race and socio-cultural behavior.
