Remember the titans Why do you think we watched the movie? Personally, I believe the reason as to why we watched the movie ‘Remember the Titans’, which is based on a true story, is because this movie is one that clearly speaks volumes on a very important issue that is, against racism. The movie contains action and comedy to grab the viewers’ attention however with all its excitement it intertwines a great lesson about being against racism.
The movie demonstrates the segregation between the black and the white population, the struggle between the two sides to obtain a shared happiness, as well as illustrating how each side was criticised for it. Therefore, I strongly believe that we watched this movie to learn from the lessons that it has to teach us. For example, the segregation between the black and the white communities, in the movie it shows that the people acted the way they did because they did not know any better.
If the people were willing to look past and beyond the skin colour, then everything would have been simpler. This issue, racism, is extremely important to be aware of, as there are always such problems in the society that we must deal with. Thus, by watching this movie it did not only teach us to accept everyone for who they are and where they come from but the lessons that this movie teaches can also be applied to other issues as well, as long as we remember that in order to make things right we need to be united as one, even if that is not the way everyone feels.
We just have to “Remember the Titans’ and hold true to our spirits and our beliefs. What issues or problems do the people in the movie face/ experience? The movie portrays several serious social issues that were popular then and has still remained relevant in today’s society, such issues are racism and discrimination. Initially, racism is the belief that all members of each race have characteristics and abilities that make them individuals, especially to differentiate it as inferior or superior to other racial groups.
An example of racism that was portrayed in the movie is when Julian met Bertie, Gerry’s girlfriend, and she refused to shake his hand simply because of his colour. Another example of racism from the movie is when the white boys did not want to play for a black football coach and called the coach a coon. From these examples, the issue of racism is evident and throughout most of the movie racism is a key message. Likewise, discrimination is also another issue that the people in the movie experience.
In the movie, the term discrimination is expressed by showing that certain traits are not acceptable and therefore people with that trait are treated as a lesser member of the group or society. Such traits can include sex, age, income or religious beliefs. In the movie ‘Remember the Titans’ sexual discrimination is portrayed in the scene where Bertier calls Ronnie Bass “Sunshine” because he is homosexual. Another example of discrimination is when the group feels uncomfortable with using the same change rooms as Ronnie, again simply because of his sexuality.
These examples illustrate that discrimination is another issue that the people in the movie face. How did some people’s attitudes change? In the movie, it is evident that the attitudes of the football players from both teams gradually change through they spend more time with one another and learn more about each other. In the movie, two football teams with different ethnic are joined together due to two schools with different ethnic backgrounds being combined. However, both teams dislike the other race mostly because of their upbringing: they do not understand the other way of life.
This type of attitude weakens the unity of the group however through the experience of football, the two teams learn equality, when head Coach Boone teaches everyone to see each other as an individual rather than each other as a group member. The Coach manages to teach the team members this lesson at the beginning of the football training camp when he sets a black student to meet with a white student, individually, and both students must learn personal details of the other.
Furthermore, Coach Boone also makes it clear that the best players will get the starting positions, regardless of their race. Another method is that the group must have a common goal. A goal that is difficult enough that individuals cannot achieve on their own but can be achieved as a team, meaning the Titans have to unite and work together as a team to win each football game and more importantly grow as a team and win the championship. This method helps the students to learn about the other race and thus the stereotypes about “those people” become meaningless.
Eventually, through these steps the attitude of the two teams changes and they become good friends with one another despite their differences. How have you experienced racism in your life? Racism has been around us as long as humankind itself. Personally, I have experienced racism in my life. Before coming to Australia, I was living in Iran as a refugee and I was never accepted as an Iranian citizen because of my nationality being Afghan. Therefore, not being accepted as an Iranian citizen introduced racism to my life especially at school and in the community.
Initially, having to study became hard because the teachers and the students were not accepting of where I came from and thus I was not allowed to participate in some of the school activities and also I was not allowed to choose some of the subjects they had to offer. Furthermore, the community that I was living in was also not accepting of my cultural background and thus communication became hard because the community would use offensive language towards my family and I about our culture and beliefs. Ultimately, all these racial comments made living in Iran extremely difficult and tiring.