Review of "The Great Debaters"
African American History Lessons in Film
The movie immediately grabbed me when I heard the opening lines of my favorite poet's, Langston Hughes, creation "I, Too, Sing America." Not only did this movie give the audience English lessons through poetry and quotes of prominent African Americans, but it also gave some very important African American history lessons about topics like civil disobedience, the connection between Willie Lynch and lynching in the south, communism versus Methodist practices, the contradictions of W.E.B. DuBois, hinted at the story of Emmitt Till along with other young, black boys who were tortured before being lynched, a disturbing scene where the students came face to face with a lynch mob and a young, black man burned and hung from a tree, and how a sheriff in the town they lived in was the ringleader in a peaceful protest.
The tale is real. Some characters are fictional but ideas from their personalities are based on characters that Tolson actually knew. Other characters center on characters that went on to become outstanding leaders in today's society, such as James Farmer Jr., who in real life is the founder of Congress of Race Equality (1942) and an essential protestor for the Civil Rights Movement.
Movies like these, especially for African Americans, don't come around often, but they are surely appreciated, much like another incredible movie (Something the Lord Made), which was aired on HBO. The education within "The Great Debaters" is what is shunned in American history books, rarely heard about even during Black History Month, and I probably would've never heard of before Christmas of 2007, when the movie released. In addition to the historical lessons and political and social arguments debated within this movie, the audience watches a tale of a young man and a young woman, and how racism can break a young man's spirit not just through education but in his relationship with her. We witness a young man whose father deals with a belittling and repulsive situation with a car accident and learns what it's like to deal with racism in the 1930s. The audience is introduced to Tolson, who refuses to back down on the lessons he teaches, where he takes on debates, and his views on race and religion because of the color of his skin.
I'm sure audience members came away with different lessons learned and various favorite scenes. There was a scene where one young man kissed the inside of a young woman's hand, and it was the most romantic and innocent scene that I've seen in films for quite some time. But, the most powerful scene for me was not that of seeing the firsthand lynching, how a black man was treated for trying to have an intelligent negotiation with two men too uneducated to know what endorse meant, or the end result of the debate at Harvard. The most powerful scene for me was during a debate on integration for schools when several white southerners left a debate without listening to the pros of letting black people and white people enter school together. Instead of taking the time to listen to both sides of an argument, people who were so set in their ways and continuous practice of racism wouldn't even give the students the chance to speak up, even if it was for an academic cause.
One of the white debaters said that because of violence, integration wouldn't be a good decision because the south is too stuck in its ways. This remark reminded me of the Jena 6 case, in which people should easily see how two equal people were given unequal treatment, Justin Barker along with his sister jumped Robert Bailey Jr. and after Bailey Jr. was beat up, Bailey Jr. was told by police to get back to his side of town. But when the tables were turned and Barker was jumped, then six black boys and men were arrested, one (Mychal Bell) spent 10 months in an adult male jail, and is currently doing time at a juvenile center. It never ceases to amaze me how racism is still so prevalent in this country, the same country that turns a blind eye to slavery and African American history in its books, wants Black people to get over slavery, where people think Black History Month is racist instead of a celebration of more of American history that was widely ignored for decades and the culture, language, and names were beaten out of Africans during the Middle Passage, all while making a big ordeal of celebrating holidays like Columbus Day, St. Patrick's Day, President's Day, Lincoln's Birthday, Washington's Birthday, and almost every page in American books for education.
How about instead of ignoring America's ugly past, we take the time to acknowledge it in our history and literature books the same way that this movie does? Use this type of education to improve our current state instead of saying get over it, especially considering there are those who are royally pissed to this day about an O.J. Simpson case, when that man was legally found innocent. Now, how is it that people are so outdone by Simpson being released for accusations of killing his wife and the media constantly reminds readers and listeners of him allegedly committing this crime, but cases where the media also plainly stated that a crime was committed against the killers of Emmitt Till along with other racial murders is to be ignored? Until all people are treated equally in the legal system, in education, and in the media, I hope films like this about issues within the African American community continue to be documented and released for those who are open-minded and want to learn more about the history that Americans rarely get to see, read, or hear. And even then, people like me still won't get over it, but I will take each lesson and learn from it.
Published by Shamontiel
Shamontiel is the author of Round Trip and Change for a Twenty, and in mid-October became the Chicago Tribune s Digital News Editor. She works on National Travel, Health and occasionally Breaking News, and w... View profile
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28 Comments
Post a Comment...would've expected people like Frederick Douglass to mention it sooner or later. The more I discuss it, the more I'm starting to lean you all's way on it being a myth. On another note, NOTE TO READERS (CORRECTION): In this sentence on page 5 "This remark reminded me of the Jena 6 case, in which people should easily see how two equal people were given unequal treatment, Justin Barker along with his sister jumped Robert Bailey Jr. and after Bailey Jr. was beat up..." THIS SHOULD SAY JUSTIN SLOAN, NOT JUSTIN BARKER. I apologize for the misinformation.
Treadwell and Ronald, I went to the DuSable Museum on Monday in honor of MLK's birthday (you can check that article out if you like), and in exchange for visitors filling out a survey, we got a poster of the Willie Lynch speech. This continues to confuse me because for the DuSable Museum to have SO much information on African and African American history, why would they pass that out? I've talked on Amazon.com and on here with people who continue to disagree that the Willie Lynch speech is real. My father was blown away when I told him the discussions I've had on here, and although I was very stubborn about it being real before because I felt like some leader had to come around to get it to become legal (regardless of it being a part of British history), one very good point that Darryl made was how no slaves ever mentioned this man. Even when they couldn't read and write due to being beaten for trying to get an education, oral history never ceased, so somewhere along the line, I...
I personally believe that there is nothing more discouraging (historically) than the so-called Willie Lynch papers/speech or whatever it is SUPPOSE to have been. I believe that it is a "hind sight is 20/20" document made up to give us (read Black Folk) yet another crutch to lean on. Basically a "see how de man done kept us down..." piece of drivel. Many of it's inaccuracies came about after Welfare had kicked in (1935 through the CLINTON era) - if mom is on welfare - dad can't be around...high yella blacks versus the darkies...athletically gifted versus intelligence...even down to snitching (as the misguided youth of today call it)...It is a piece of garbage that had no business being in such a great movie as "The Great Debaters"...just my "old head" (well over 40) take on things...
I liked "The Great Debaters," but one of the things that detracted from the film for me was the "Willie Lynch" stuff.
The so-called Willie Lynch Speech or Willie Lynch Letter is a modern-day fabrication. Allegedly delivered by a Caribbean slaveowner to Virginia slaveowners in 1712, this document clearly was composed in the 20th Century: Terms that are used in the speech/letter like "self-refueling" were first used in the English Language in the 20th Century. More, there is no historical record of this document prior to the late 20th Century: Pioneering black historians such as Carter G. Woodson, W.E.B. Du Bois, and others never mention it, and it can not be found anywhere in the historical archives of the State of Virginia or in the archives of HBCUs such as Fisk or Howard, both of which are major repositories of information on African Americans.
Book Girl, I am excited to see this post--although some paragraphs get a bit wordy. I've read an article on the movie on a christian website where the reviewer made disparages between the races. She felt that blacks were portrayed positively and ALL caucasians negatively. What was disturbing to me about the review--for which I did comment--was the fact that she blatantly chose to show her biases on a Christian website with no regard to how patriarchy within the Bible should have made her stand to attention at the victimization of women. Yes, I guess we all at times see things through rose-colored glasses. Nonetheless, her article demonstrates that racism in 1935 is just as alive and well in 2008. I applaud the movie because it shows that HBCU schools have forever been a seat of intellectualism. Even if there is some license taken to tell the story or protect the guilty or innocent, we should all be aware that history is reconstruction, and our story [(his)story] has always been absent
I read in the latest copy of JET magazine that the reason that they used Harvard instead of Southern California was because the Great Debaters really did beat that school in 193, but since Blacks were not allowed to officially compete since Pi Kappa Delta wouldn't allow them in the honor society, Wiley College was never able to claim the title. I don't understand why they didn't use them anyway because now people will be trying to contact Harvard to figure out the truth of the deal.
I loved the movie. The acting was amazing, the cinematography top-notch, and the scripting was nearly airtight. The reason I focus on the Willie Lynch issue at all is that I think it undermines the portrayal of Tolson, and cheapens an otherwise remarkable movie. I've read Tolson's poetry and prose. He was a brilliant man who would not have resorted to "Willie Lynch" (which, again, no one heard of before 1993) to argue with his students. The movie shows, in fact, that he was well-versed in logic, history, and facts, which is why he was able to train amazing debate teams that destroyed the competition. In fact, I wish the film had shown more of the debates, and kept the final historical opponent--USC--in the picture, rather than Harvard. Having Harvard drives home the point, mainly because it was and is the nation's most prestigious university, but it was unnecessary.
My daughter loved the movie to death, and became even prouder of her heritage as a result. For me, that's the greates
Shamontiel, my disagreement with you has nothing to do with respecting professions or professionals; it has to do with respecting facts and evidence. The evidence against the letter's authenticity goes well beyond language; did you read the information at the link I mentioned? One of the points that this historian and others make is pretty damning: if the letter were real, someone among even the formerly enslaved who wrote narratives about the horrors they experienced and witnessed would have mentioned it. Historians--especially someone as thorough as Du Bois--would be all over it, and at least one would have discovered it. If you do not understand or believe that, then you do not know how the discipline of history works. One bit of evidence is never enough. Your professor, at best, made a mistake; at worst, he was ignorant or incompetent. He does not stand in for all historians.
I loved the movie. The acting was amazing, the cinematography top-notch, and the scripting was nearly ai
Darryl, your information on slavery was something I already explained. Us going back and forth over whether the Willie Lynch letter is accurate or not is counterproductive. The point I made about my professor fit right into why I'm willing to believe that some form of this documentation came around. Just like my professor did not know that there was language before Greeks, there's a possibility that some of the words in the letter did exist, or like the Bible, was translated over and over again into common language of today. You don't have to believe what I believe, nor do I you. Disagreeing doesn't bother me, but I'm not taking someone's opinion as gold because of their profession. If that was the case, I'd believe everything in a history book, and time and time again, I find out that history books bend to what they want you to believe. Okay, we both have differing views. That's fine. It happens. But going back to the rest of the movie, what did you think of the film?
These are people who are better than you or me at discovering information. As one historian notes, if this letter did exist, the historian who discovered or wrote about it would make a name for himself or herself in the academic world. It's been almost fifteen years since the letter first appeared, and nothing of the sort has happened, because it has all the signs of a hoax, as the link above outlines.
In short, there's no need to *believe* anything; it's more important to have the facts and evidence. In this case, you don't need a ringleader to explain slavery and lynching. People like Ida B. Wells-Barnett and W.E.B. Du Bois, among many others, have already explained why that horrible institution and practice existed and persisted. Read them, not some letter found on the internet.