Sunday * February 24, 2008
MAIN MUSINGS: Yesterday, I saw the movie, The Great Debaters, with my mom and nephew. What an incredible film! The entire cast was brilliant – Denzel Washington, Forest Whitaker, Nate Parker, Jurnee Smollett, Denzel Whitaker, and Kimberly Elise. The storytelling was excellent. There wasn’t a moment of boredom – the pacing was just right. We had three generations represented and we all enjoyed it!
The story held special significance to my family for a few reasons. First, both of my parents were involved with debate teams at some point in their lives. My mom has always spoken fondly about her experience debating at Howard University. Much earlier on, my dad was a professor at Prairie View A&M College and Texas College in Texas, Hampton Institute in Virginia and Morgan State College in Maryland. In the late 1940s and early 1950s, he led debate teams for many of those historically Black colleges. Being in the South, he had many of the challenges depicted in the film. Later, at Brooklyn College in the 1950s/1960s, he led all-white debates teams. My mom had to act as the chaperone because the school administration was afraid a Black man (my dad) would rape the white female debaters!
The character of Melvin B. Tolson even reminded me of my father. His style of teaching was similar – in your face, always demanding mental/academic excellence. It made my nephew better understand why education is so important to the family and why grandpa was so adament about proper communication. Another irony in the film is that Denzel Washington was one of my dad’s students at Fordham University in the 1970s. One day, I would be interested to know what Denzel thought about my dad as a teacher. Yet another revelation from the movie is that my parents knew James Farmer, Jr.!
Now I see where my love of quotes comes from. Both of my parents are/were lovers of words. Mom as a journalist and Dad as a professor of Communications and Theatre Arts. What is your favorite quote? Do you have a personal mantra? How do you train your mind? Develop a habit of study. Read often. As Ralph Waldo Emerson said:
There is no knowledge that not power.
With Purpose & Power,
Terri
