11832789 February 6, 2019

Fernandez, Sophia Anne C. LCENWRD C47

Sr. Auria Arabit, SdP, Ph.D

FREEDOM WRITERS

The characters in the movie, Freedom Writers, represents the non-white people who are
being treated as minorities in the United States. Most often, the divide would be in between the
white Americans and the African-Americans but this movie showed a whole new perspective.
Freedom Writers tackled the issue of inter minority racism, the discrimination between racial
minorities. At the start of the movie, we can see that there is a violent conflict between the Mexican
Americans and Asian Americans. As the movie progressed, there are scenes wherein we could see
racially motivated attacks among these different groups which also includes the African
Americans.

Seeing that the main characters are people of color, there were a lot of stereotypes that were
manifested in the movie. There was one scene wherein Jamal, uses the racial stereotype that all
Asians are Chinese. Most often, when people hear the word “Asian”, they would automatically
categorize Asians as a sole group, all coming from China, when in reality Asians consist of various
racial groups. Another stereotype that was shown in the movie was the notion that all non-white
people are violent and destructive. Ms. Campbell, along with the honors instructor Brian Gelford,
generalized that the students from Ms. Gruwell’s class are incapable of academic excellence and
are only good at breaking laws and destroying school property. It is very disheartening and at the
same time infuriating to see how these teachers denounce and condemn their students. In school,
students should feel welcomed and accepted no matter what color or race are they from. They
should not be deprived of proper eduction nor should be treated as an outcast in the society.
Campbell and Gruwell are the ills who make our world problematic and toxic. People like them
take advantage of their place in the society to power trip and use their privilege to step down on
other people just for their own pride and satisfaction. What I didn’t expect from the movie was the
contrast against the stereotype about Asians. Usually in movies and television, Asians are
portrayed as socially inept people. It is unusual they are to be involved in gang violence. Typically,
they are depicted as boringly studious people who would rather bury themselves with books.
However in the movie, the Asians were given more authority and power.

In terms of the theme of the movie, the values of compassion and hope were very much
highlighted. Erin Gruwell didn’t stop until she was able to break down the walls of her students.
Despite the disrespect and ill manners she received from her students, she was firm in her decision
to get through them one by one. If I were in her shoes, I don’t think I would have had the courage
to do what she did. To her, it was more than just a job. From what I had watched, Gruwell never
felt obligated to help her students, she did it out of her own will. She was more than willing to get
an extra job just to provide materials for her students. Although in the movie she rejected the
thought of playing a maternal role for her students when Marcus addressed her as “Ma”, what she
had done for her students is a form of a mother’s love. What she did goes beyond the duties and
responsibilities of a teacher. Even if she won’t admit it, she became a mother to those kids.

Another thing that was emphasized in the movie was heroism. Miep Gies called the kids
heroes because each and every one of them were fighting their own battles. In words of Miep Gies,
real strength is being able to carry on when times are hard. Despite how grave their situations
were, the students were still able to continue on with their lives. With the help of Erin Gruwell,
the students were able to see the light, regardless of the darkness that had surrounded them. If I
were to be asked who was my hero, the first person that I could think of is someone from my past.
She was my friend whom I loved so dearly. The last couple of years were very rough for me, I
was so close to hitting rock bottom. But one day, I received a anonymous note from someone, it
was simple yet very sweet. Day after day, I would always received something, may it be a note or
a gift, but was always from an anonymous sender. Little by little, I was able to get back up on my
feet. As the months passed by, I was able to unravel her identity. Even though I dragged her down
with me a couple of times during the darkest of my days, she was able to keep us afloat. Although
we have been through a lot, I am very thankful to have met her. She is and always will be my hero.

In my opinion, being a hero doesn’t really require you to save lives, just by touching lives
you can call yourself a hero. Having the moral courage to do the right thing makes you a hero. If
you see something wrong and you know you can do something about it, do it. This is important
especially now that there are a lot of issues that are happening in our chaotic country. One thing I
can do is to be socially aware. I must learn to see the true constructs and culture that surrounds me
and not just believe what the media is trying to show. As I end this paper, I would like to share a
quote that I believe is very much applicable to what has been discussed. In ROTC, we have a unity
code, and in that code there is a line that says, “I cannot do everything, but I can do something.
What I can do, I ought to do and what I ought to do, by the grace of God, I will do.”

References
Harbi, N. (2016). Inter-minority racial prejudice and AntiWhite bias: an underestimated
phenomenon. Retrieved from http://fac.umc.edu.dz/fll/images/expressions/Naima-HARBI.pdf

Fitriani, M. (2017). A sociolinguistic analysis of stereotypes in freedom writers movie. Retrieved

from http://journal.student.uny.ac.id/ojs/index.php/quill/article/view/9504/9155