Why so Racist? It's Just a Game!

     Sports play a big role in racism. This should be obviously shown in history. With integration and segregation making its way to the field or court many famous events ended up conjuring. Jackie Robinson, the legendary Titans, Texas Western, all resulted from sports and racism crossing paths. In the end sports ended up winning and I'll say why. Let's slow down a second and look back. First a question, Do sports help with racism?

     Yes, sports help with racism. Why? because they break down the barriers between races by establishing common ground. The common ground here is to play the game. Baseball, Football, Basketball, whatever. The love of the sport and the goal to win is what eventually got whites and blacks to put aside their differences and accept each other as teammates and players rather than white-guy and black-guy. Some people didn't completely end their racial prejudice in sports after this idea though. Some merely tucked it away for the sake of the game and when the game is done, they are back to racism. However, players like that wouldn't last long and would either be kicked off the team or scolded by their teammates for so long they left on their own. One movie, 42 about Jackie Robinson, showed most of Jackie's teammates not being prejudiced at all. The ones who were got traded almost in no time. Some players would even warm up to their black teammates and renounce their racist ideals. This is seen in the movie Remember the Titans between the black team captain and the white captain who were at each other's throats and after awhile became best friends. Sports were one of the best methods out there to kill away racism.

     Another big question is "Do sports have a responsibility to establish a moral high ground?" Absolutely! When being on a team with others, you have an obligation to love and respect each other like a second family with the coaches as your parents. And when the players get out of line and begin to be an issue, the coach gets strict and punishes. In the movie Glory Road, the coach was really hard on his players, both black and white. When they felt prejudiced or wanted to quit for having to be with blacks, he would get on them and discipline. He wouldn't be physical but would instead motivate and remind them of what they are giving up for doing something so dumb.

     Racism and sports have a strong love-hate relationship. Their marriage has lasted a long time and there were many divorce scares, but together they stand to this day. Movies do a good job of showing the relationship and remind us of the great things that we can all accomplish if we just end racism. We are all human first and there should be no second or third on skin color or sex. Sports tell us all that and many need to listen, or we all might as well give up living.

     Man that was depressing! Just don't be racist people. Come on now when the aliens come we will all have to unite anyway. Let's get a head start and unite as one!

Holding Out for a Hero, with a bowl of popcorn !

     Movies and the hero archetype, oh how they never go away. There will always be a guy going on a quest to save his lover (imagine a creepy old guy with a scruffy beard and a comb over and a hoarse voice say that word slowly, it's funny). Maybe he's trying to save his home, or to get revenge, or even trying to find knowledge, etc.. We have watched many movies that cover these ideas mainly because it is seen so much and it is a great theme. An incredible movie that fits this archetype (that we watched in class) is Star Wars: A New Hope.

     In star wars, Luke Skywalker is the hero and he's on a journey with his friend Obi-Wan Kenobi, the droids C-3PO and R2-D2, and their guides Han Solo and Chewbacca. The journey was to bring the droids to Alderaan along with Obi-Wan for Princess Leia. However they get captured and brought to the Death Star because the Empire destroyed Alderaan. Turns out the Princess is a prisoner on the space station and Luke, Han, and Chewbacca decide to free her and escape. Later Obi-Wan gets killed(though it was more lie suicide as you learn in Star Wars: Empire Strikes Back) and everybody flees to the moon of Yavin 4 where there is a rebel base. Luke and a bunch of Rebel fighter pilots attack the station and eventually blow it up(with  help from Han and Chewbacca who do a drive-by on Darth Vader with the Millennium Falcon).

     As you can see from my half-assed summery of star wars 4 you can make connections between the archetype of heroes and the movie. Luke is the hero, Leia is the damsel in distress, Darth Vader is your villain, destroying the Death Star is the mission and the droids are the comic relief. There are more connections but I am tired so I will stop here. Have a nice day and prepare the ship for LUDACRIS SPEED! Aw crap that's a parody my bad, gotta love Spaceballs.