Why McFarland USA P*****d Me Off

Why McFarland USA P*****d Me Off

  December 08, 2015    Verenice Gutierrez, PhD

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I recently watched Disney's McFarland USA for the first time. Even though I had wanted to see it when it was released in theaters for some reason I didn't get around to it. Thanks to Direct TV I have been able to watch it more than once in a week. The first time I was angry after watching it. Now, just after the second time I am still angry.

There are a lot of "feel good" movies about beating the educational odds. The first one I ever watched was Stand & Deliver.

Jaime Escalante saying a bunch of hood rats through the magic of Calculus. Turned Garfield High's stats around and gave the barrio kids a shot at a future.

Another one that made a mark on me was Coach Carter.

Carter returns to his alma mater to bring back the "student" in student athlete. His son sacrifices a high quality education at a private school to play for his father. Again the athletes are so inspired that they beat the odds, get scholarships and change the path of what was destined to be a bleak future for kids from the hood. What stuck with me the most was, "What is your deepest fear?" 

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.

Marianne Williamson

There's Lean on Me, Dangerous Minds, Freedom Writers, Spare Parts...

All with the same premise: students who live in the "hood" have bleak futures full of gang banging, violence and drugs until someone comes to save them from their ill fated destiny. I struggle with two things: 1. The White savior and 2. Random acts of greatness in a system that needs to have standardized excellence.

McFarland USA plays on so many stereotypes that perpetuate systemic racism, marginalization and oppression of migrant workers. The boys refer to themselves as "pickers". One congratulates Coach White for being fired from coaching football saying, "Congratulations Blanco they are treating you like a picker!" Cringeworthy moment that made me grind me teeth.

There are the low riders with paint jobs, sound systems and hydraulics. All being driven by brown young men with goaties, tank tops and bandanas who call each other "ese". Nice touch that the lead has his girlfriend portrayed as the Virgin Mary on the hood of his prized low rider. They didn't forget the obligatory gang turf conflict in which the White quinceanera's life is the one that is portrayed as the most precious.

Also obligatory - taking the boys to the ocean because they had never seen it. What is it with saviors and their thinking that brown folks need to see a body of water to be complete? If I had a $100 for every teacher that wanted to save kids by showing them a body of water...

The scene that almost made me lose my mind was when Tomas was speaking to his father about possibly going to college. He of course tells him to get his nose out of the books because they will ruin his eyes. Most disturbing is the quote, "Nadie nunca necesito un libro en el campo (Nobody ever needed a book in the fields)." A father resigned to giving his son a future that is limited in opportunity or possibilities. In 20 years experience I have never met a parent who wants to limit their child(ren)'s opportunities. Every parent/guardian I have ever met wants more/better for their child(ren).

I don't want to diminish what the team was able to accomplish or Coach White's transformation through his experiences at McFarland. Until this movie, I had no clue where McFarland was located or what had transpired there. It's amazing that the young men accomplished much and came back to give to their community.

What upsets me is the messaging as I stated above: 1. Marginalized and oppressed students of color need a savior to improve their lives and 2. The savior has to create a random act of exceptionalism in order to save these poor marginalized and oppressed students of color from their destiny. What if...just what if every single classroom, every single school in every single community engaged inSYSTEMATIC EXCEPTIONALISM every single day of every single school year?

There are teachers across the public school systems that are doing amazing things and dedicating countless hours to educating their students. There won't be movies made about their efforts but they are making a difference in the lives of their students. That's what most of us who are educators do: we dedicate our days to ensuring that we provide all students with the best possible educational opportunities.