Race representation in American sport culture in the films: Remember the Titans (2000) and Glory Road (2006)

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Esther Idowu

Race representation in American sport culture in the films: Remember the Titans (2000) and Glory Road (2006)

Issues of race and sport in the United States are certainly still prevailing and obvious; many would rather have these issues not be addressed. Some people may choose to ignore them, perhaps stemming from a belief that if we single out the black athletes for discussion, we only heighten stereotypes. As a result, American culture urges us to see through two lenses -a lens that insists that we see the black athlete as someone “different” and a lens that sees the black athlete as athletically superior but academically inferior .But maybe, these perceived ideas exist simply because race in general is such a powerful societal force-the struggle to understand those that are “different”. In this essay, I would be exploring the representation of race within the American sport culture for the films remembers the titans (2000) and glory road (2006)

Hollywood has latched onto race and sport partially because it could be argued to be an area of contemporary American culture which is rich for exploration. The films glory road and remember the titans depict not only the black athlete’s experience, but also the overall ideological belief of how the game doesn’t care about ones colour. What seem to matter are collective hard work, passion and setting to achieve common goal and trust.

Glory road is the story of Haskins, head coach of tiny Texas western university in El Paso, Texas. Set in the 1960’s, a time in which college basketball in the south was segregated, Haskins made history by starting five Americans in the 1966 national championship game against national power Kentucky’s team that did not have one black athlete. Haskins decision was not a reflection of his desire to be a racial pioneer, he’d later say, but simply to put the five men on the court that he believed would give Kentucky the most difficulty. And they did-Haskins team upended Kentucky 72-65, shocking the college basketball nation .At this time, racial unrest in the United States was at a high .Most college coaches were unwilling to have a black majority on the court at any one time, due to their own prejudice or fear that their program would become the target of public scrutiny that could probably hurt recruiting efforts .Starting five black players simply wasn’t done, especially not on college basketball’s grandest stage.

 In comparison, remember the titan’s is the story of high school football in Alexandria, Virginia. Set during the 1971 T.C Williams high school season, several race –oriented issues arose, heightened during training camp when black and white players clash in racially-motivated conflict. The films protagonist, head coach Herman Boone, is a black man hired to head the football team in place of bill yoast, a white man that stays on board to fill an assistant coach capacity. Boone not only has his work cut out for him to coach and rally a football team, but also to convey to his team that a winning attitude  stems from intolerance  and embracing each other, not racial intolerance. The titans went on to win the Virginia high state school championship, a testament to the athlete’s willingness to celebrate diversity.

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Glory road and remember the titans are films made as Hollywood feel –good success stories; they are not about winning but the winning process. They both are structured linearly, where there is initial discomfort with racial differences. As the story progress, characters become more comfortable with one another and understand that the sport they engage in is their common bond.

The second scene in remember the titans show Boone encouraging racial integration on the bus ride to camp by requiring that a black player sit next to a white player and learn details about one another. Players did not warm up to ...

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