RUNNING HEAD: PRIDE AND NATIONAL IDENTITY

Pride and National Identity Stefan Liotchev Queens University of Charlotte

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Race has always been a defining theme for Americans. Race is what shapes the values of this country. We all come from all different walks of life. Some of us are white, wealthy, come from families that are well known and respected. Others are black, come from families of fewer means. Some of us are first generation immigrants who have moved here for the chance at a better life than the one back home. Some of us are second generation American families who are living the American Dream. America is one big melting pot; it is by far the most diverse country in the world. No other country can say that there are people from every country in the world who live in that one country. The U.S. can however. Thanks to this diversity we have so much and that is what makes the country function. Remove that and we have a very monotonous culture. The U.S. is very accepting of other cultures and encourages diversity; however that hasnt always been the case. The history of the U.S. has been one of white supremacy and the oppression of other races and minorities. The history goes way back to when the Europeans were settling the North American continent in the 16th century. The white men from Europe came and conquered everything they saw and claimed it for themselves. The native Americans, who were the original inhabitants of America, were all of a sudden forced to move away from their homes to make room for these strangers. The natives were shown no respect at all, as the Europeans would christen them Indians, although they were not at all related to them. The native Americans would try to retaliate and protect their land, however the Europeans were too much for them to handle. The Europeans had much more advanced technology than the natives, most notably guns and ammunition which easily defeated the bows and arrows of the Native Americans. Many natives were killed off by the Europeans, others were enslaved, and those who werent killed or enslaved were forced to move west. This conquering and depletion of the Native Americans
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continued well after the U.S. was formed, to there only being small Native American reservations still existing today. And so, racism was born on the new continent. (Polk, 2006) The other group to be affected the greatest by racism were African Americans. Now that the Europeans had conquered the land, they needed people to do the work for them. There were a few places where you could look for labor. They could look to get work from their own kind; however they would have to pay them. No, they wanted labor that was very inexpensive to them. The Europeans turned their heads to Africa. And thus, the African slave trade was born, and black people were brought over to the new continent. These Africans were treated with no rights being sold left and right, many being separated from their families as a cause of that. They were not citizens, and they could not vote. They had to work from sun up until sundown, most often in the fields doing farm work, there were those few who were lucky enough to stay in the house and do work there. It all depended on the slave owner who oversaw them, some were nicer than others. The slave trade was only getting bigger and bigger well into the independency of the U.S. The third U.S. president, Thomas Jefferson owned slaves himself. There wasnt much concern and questioning over the morality of having slavery in the U.S. white people just viewed it as something that was necessary. If white people werent going to do something about slavery, the blacks were going to have to do it themselves. Leaders such as Harriet Tubman who led the Underground Railroad helped set many blacks free by leading them to the north. Some were successful, while others were not, being caught by their slave owners and being severely punished for trying to escape. These actions by the slaves were raising attention among the public. People finally began to question whether slavery was a moral thing to do. The northern states were primarily free of slavery, while the southern states were very slave driven. This caused a rift in the country. (Barnes, 1983)
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The South seceded from the North, and thus the Confederate States of America was born. It was up to the 16th president of the U.S., Abraham Lincoln to help preserve the Union. Lincoln himself was racist, saying that slavery was A necessary evil. The Union and the Confederates went to war with each other, known as the Civil War. The Union eventually prevailed, as a result the Confederate states returned to the Union. The 13th amendment was passed stating that slavery was illegal, thus making blacks free. The 15th amendment gave blacks the right to vote. This was a great effort led by the black community to gain their freedom, however blacks and other minorities were nowhere close to having the same rights as whites. (Barnes, 1983) Jim Crow Laws were enacted, under these laws; blacks had separate, but equal facilities. Those facilities were indeed separate, but nowhere close to being equal. Blacks were forced to attend separate schools that were broken down, restaurants and other facilities that were nowhere close to the nice, clean, new facilities that the white people enjoyed. Just like during slavery, it was time for blacks to start fighting for their rights once again. (Barnes, 1983) The Civil Rights Movement was led by the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Protests and boycotts, such as the Montgomery Bus Boycott that was enacted after Rosa Parks declined to get out of the white section of a bus and being arrested for not complying with the police. Many of these boycotts and protests went on, with many blacks losing their lives for what they believed in. MLK Jr. lost his life for fighting in what he believed in. Blacks were trying to make a name for themselves, because very few were treated with any type of respect. Even with the Civil Rights legislation that was passed in the mid 1960s, segregation and the discrimination of blacks and minorities continued. Blacks were trying to make a name for themselves and prove to whites that they also belong in society and that they are equal and in some cases better than whites in certain aspects. (Barnes, 1983)
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This mini history lesson leads me into discussing how the 2007 movie Pride relates to race and how it has everything to do with American sport and national identity. Black people have shown that they belong in sports. Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in baseball, and now his number is retired throughout Major League Baseball, and Wilt Chamberlain redefined how to play basketball, scoring an impressive 100 points in a single game once. Baseball and basketball have become sports that many blacks play now. Sports like swimming however, to this day are mostly practiced by whites and very few blacks. This is what makes Pride a very impressive and interesting story because race barriers are broken through swimming and it is loosely based on a true story. Pride revolves around a black man, Jim Ellis, and him coaching the nations first all-black club swim team in 1974 suburban Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This team has to overcome so many obstacles to accomplish the things that they did. The movie opens with a flashback of Ellis in 1964 getting ready to swim at a meet for Cheney State College. Elliss coach approaches him in the hallway before he goes out to the pool deck and warns Ellis that the other teams are threatening to boycott the meet because he was swimming. Ellis pleads with his coach, telling him that hed trained so hard for this moment and that he wasnt about to have some white people steal his dream. His coach, who is white, tells him to go out there and swim as fast and hard as he can. Ellis goes out, walking towards the starting block, all of the spectators, swimmers, coaches, and officials who are white, stare down Ellis in a very mean and unwelcoming way. Many of the spectators were shouting What is this negro doing here?! Clearly Ellis wasnt welcome there. He was still going to swim regardless of what the people around him were shouting. The starter calls for the swimmers to step up on the blocks, all of them do so. The starter calls for them to take their mark, all of them do so. The starter fires the gun, only Ellis jumps in to start the race. The remaining seven swimmers who
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were going to participate in the race step off of the blocks, simply refusing to race against a black person. Meanwhile, Ellis is swimming the freestyle and by the time he gets to the first wall, he notices that the other swimmers didnt start the race. Ellis angrily and reluctantly stops, takes off and throws his goggles, just shaking his head. Clearly here we see that this was not the first time something like this has occurred, probably something like this has occurred to Ellis more times than not at swim meets. When Ellis gets out of the pool, he angrily walks away to chants of Get that Negro out of here! That is exactly what the police officer does with Ellis; however Ellis wasnt going down without a fight as he traded swings with the officer screaming how it just wasnt fair before finally being taken down. This wasnt uncommon at all in sporting events during this time period, especially in sports that are more expensive and considered more upper class such as swimming. Swimming requires a pool, swimsuits, goggles, and people to maintain the pool. These things cost money, for you to have access to a swimming pool to train in, you have to pay a swim club for training and the pool, those two things are more expensive than not. With blacks back then who came from mostly poor neighborhoods had no access to such privileges, those who did have the money, were not welcome, since most pools only admitted whites to swim in them. Blacks had to resort to playing cheaper, more accessible sports such as football and basketball, in the 1960s and 70s that was where blacks were seen to belong. Ellis was just out of his place by being a part of that swim meet. Those other swimmers there didnt see Ellis as being worthy enough to swim against them because of this, and thus he was wasting their time. After this incident, the movie switches over to 1974 Philadelphia. Ellis is sitting in a bus sweating in the dead heat of summer going to the office of human services in hopes of finding a job. Once he gets there, there is a long line of unemployed black people looking to get whatever
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job they can get. Ellis gets his number and patiently waits in line. Once Ellis name is called, he goes up to the counter and begins explaining to the person what kind of qualities he has. Ellis says that he has a degree in mathematics and that it took him a little longer than four years to get it, but he got it. The guy at the counter apologizes to Ellis, telling him that there was nothing for him as he was simply over qualified. Ellis looked dejected, but he made one last plea to the person, saying that he has looked all over the place for jobs and that he was rejected everywhere. The guy at the desk finally feels some sympathy for him, and he assigns Ellis to the job of making the necessary preparations for closing down the outdated Marcus Foster Recreation Center. Ellis thanks the guy at the counter, thankful for the opportunity that he was given, and finally landing a job. The next day we see a group of black teenage boys playing basketball outside of the recreation center. One of the boys shoots an air ball and on accident breaks another group of peoples radio. The boy is quick to apologize to the older man who looked very angry that his radio was broken. The apology was not enough as the man says that the boy will have to pay up eventually, and with that the man leaves with his group. Right after this Ellis arrives at the scene. Everybody is looking at Ellis as if he was an alien because he had nice clothes on, his shirt tucked in; clearly he wasnt from this part of Philadelphia. Ellis walks into the old recreation center to find it in shambles. It looked like a complete train wreck, definitely unsuitable for operation, and so Ellis starts to dismantle the place. While moving some old boxes, Ellis encounters Elston, the janitor. Elston asks Ellis why he is here and when Ellis explains to him, Elston is quick to say that he cant get rid of his home. With this encounter the two of them quickly became enemies.

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The movie then goes on to a few days later as the preparation for the closing down of the recreation center continues. The boys are playing basketball and a worker comes to take off the basketball hoops. Clearly the boys were very upset, their pride and joy in basketball was taken away. Ellis takes notice, and it looks like he has an idea. Ellis then goes to a room where there used to be a pool. The entire room is full of graffiti and other junk, a far cry from being suitable for a swim. Ellis takes upon himself the daunting task of trying to fix up the pool. We then see different clips of Ellis scrubbing the pool of graffiti and dirt, re-painting the room, and refurnishing everything to finally getting a hose and filling the pool up with water. With this done, Ellis invites the boys outside for a swim. Ellis pays good attention to the boys playing around in the water; he even gives basic advice to the boys on how to swim better. One of the boys challenges Ellis to a race, after being annoyed by Ellis criticizing how they swam. Ellis gladly accepts. He asks the boy what his name was, he says Hakim. Hakim and Ellis are set to race; Ellis pulls off his pants to reveal a pair of Speedos. The boys start laughing, referring to Ellis swim attire as being panties. With all of the joking aside, Ellis lets Hakim have a head start letting him get to the other end of the pool before he starts. Ellis then jumps in and easily beats Hakim. All of the boys look in amazement and ask Ellis to teach them how to swim like him. Ellis rejects and walks away. Elston who has been watching everything that is going on confronts Ellis. This time he persuades Ellis to teach these kids swimming, because they dont really have anything else going for them. Ellis finally gives in and agrees to coach the boys. Hakim, Andre, Puddin Head, Reggie, and Walt among others begin swim practice. The first day was very rough as the boys were crashing into the pool and just struggling to stay afloat. As the days go by the boys become better swimmers to where they ask Ellis to be entered in a
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meet. Elston gladly takes on the task of helping create an official team as well as coordinate a meet. And so the nations first ever all-black swim club was created, the Pride, Determination, Resilience (PDR) team. With all of the events going on now, Ellis decides to convince the city council to keep the recreation center from closing. That will not be an easy task as Ellis and Elston will have to try and convince Council Woman Sue Davis who is Hakims older sister to keep the center open. Davis already doesnt like Hakim hanging out at the center and even bans him from going to swim practice, making him focus only on his studies. Ellis even personally goes to Davis house to persuade her to let Hakim rejoin the team, she says no. Hakim however decides to sneak out and keep going to swim practice. It is now time for the teams first ever meet, against an all white team that will later become their rival. The team travels to the opposing teams pool, and while on the bus the boys proclaim how they are going to beat all of those white boys, sounding very cocky. Before the meet, Ellis gives each boy a pair of Speedos; however they all refuse, saying they dont wear panties. The cocky PDR team shows up and swims in their baggy shorts and get embarrassed by the other, much more experienced and disciplined team. Ellis and Elston were not happy at all. After the bus ride home, Ellis gives the boys an emotional speech. Ellis said that because they acted like Negroes and clowns they got beaten badly. They lacked everything that PDR stands for (Pride, Determination, and Resilience) and that if they dont start displaying those values, the team would fall apart. This would prove to be a turning point in the movie. Many examples of national identity have been presented up to this point. Ellis cleaning up the pool and the recreation center displays

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American determination. Ellis was motivated to clean up the pool and give a positive environment for the boys to be in after their basketball hoops were taken away. Everything the team stands for; Pride, Determination, and Resilience are what Americans are about. Americans are always proud to represent their city, state, or country in athletic competitions. Americans are always determined to win, no matter how long shot the odds are. Determination is shown most of the time by the underdogs, America loves its underdog stories. This team in the film is definitely an underdog. Lastly Americans are definitely resilient. Americans dont let anything stop their normal way of life. The September 11 attacks are a perfect example of American resiliency. The terrorists hoped to interrupt the American way of life, however their plan backfired as Americans went on with everyday life, going to work, watching and playing the sports they love, etc. While there was great damage done, the American spirit was still intact, and that is something no terrorist will destroy. The PDR team is definitely resilient. Yes, they are going through tough times, drugs, prostitution, and corruption going on in the neighborhood, the recreation center scheduled to be closed, and not being respected by the other teams, yet they still have each other and will keep fighting, taking in every bullet. Back to the movie, we see the boys swimming on their own before practice in their Speedos. Ellis walks in to a complete surprise. Things finally start turning towards the positive for the boys as they are perfecting their skills and finally are starting to become respectable swimmers. Ellis and Council Woman Davis relationship begins to get better. One night at a diner, Ellis and Davis talk, Ellis is able to persuade Davis to have Hakim rejoin the team. Ellis explains that he personally will make sure that Hakim does all of his studies and stays out of trouble.

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While all seems to be perfect, Ellis sees Reggie and Andre going into some strangers car, Ellis runs out of the diner and stands right in front of the car. It turns out the stranger is actually the man whose radio was broken and that he wanted Andre and Reggie to do some illegal operation for him to pay him back for his broken radio. Ellis disgusted, opens the back seat where Andre and Reggie are sitting and he tells them to get out and go back home. Then Ellis goes up to the man and threatens him that if he ever messes with his kids again, he will call the police. The man tells Ellis that this isnt over and he will be back. Ellis then returns to the diner to finish his discussion with Davis who is very impressed by his actions. The next day Elston comes to Ellis with very good news. The recreation center will be sanctioned to host a meet. They will face the same team that embarrassed them a few weeks ago. The entire community comes out to support the PDR swimmers, including Davis. The swimmers are shocked by all of this support and now are determined to put on a good show for the audience. The opposing team comes and their coach goes up to Ellis and tells him that all of their swimmers had caught the flu thus the meet has to be rescheduled at a different site most likely. Ellis and the PDR swimmers basically got the message that the other team did not want to swim at some black peoples pool. So the competition leaves, leaving the swimmers discouraged, and the crowd outraged over this. The boys decide that they still have to put on a show for the crowd. First Andre steps up on the block, says his name and that he swims for Ellis and PDR, Ellis says on your mark and shoots the gun, Andre goes in the water to race. Hakim steps up to the blocks, says his name and that he swims for Ellis and PDR, Ellis says on your mark and shoots the gun, Hakim goes into the water to start his race. Every single swimmer steps up on the blocks and proclaims the same thing, eventually bringing Ellis to tears and captivating the crowd making them chant P-D-R over and over again. The community starts going to every single meet, and
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meet after meet, PDR is climbing up in the standings. This team has gone through hardships and finally things are looking up for them. This last sequence of events shows us how these boys are maturing into better people. Ellis is like a father figure for these boys. He makes sure that they are doing their work and staying out of trouble. By having them swimming, Ellis teaches the boys discipline and structure. If it werent for Ellis, these boys would be lost, getting themselves into trouble like the guy whose radio was broken. Sports play a big part in teaching discipline in American society. There are many athletes who credit sports to saving their lives and keeping them off of the streets, drugs, and other negative things. To participate in athletics, you have to have good grades in school, behave, and attend practices regularly. There is not much time to do any other things. Sports teach you many life skills that you will use in the real world: teamwork, punctuality, discipline, leadership, and attentiveness. The boys in this movie have displayed all of these things. This team is more than just a sport for this community. These boys are offering hope and restoring life to a poor black community. By willing to break barriers into a white dominated sport and gaining success in the sport, this instills hope and promise to the people in the community. If these boys can break racial lines in swimming, the people in the community can break the barriers too and find good jobs. The community is inspired by the teamwork shown by the boys and they all know that if they work together as one community, things will definitely turn for the better. The white team refused to swim at the PDR pool because they hadnt garnered their respect yet, however that is all about to change with PDR winning meets all of a sudden.

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The PDR swim team has reached second place in the regional rankings and is getting ready to compete in the Eastern Regional championships the next day. Ellis is also given a very pleasant surprise when Elston comes in and tells him that council woman Davis has ruled that the recreation center can stay open. The Philadelphia local news even decides to make s segment about the recreation center, how Ellis saved it from closing, and how the PDR swim team has had success and their preparation for the championships. Ellis and his team are filming the segment, touring the recreation center and once they get to the pool they meet their adversary who wants revenge on his broken radio. We see him urinating in the pool, and his assistants are tearing down things and spraying graffiti on the walls. Ellis has had enough with this guy, Ellis runs and pushes the radio guy and his assistants into the pool, then Ellis jumps in there and begins to drown them. Everyone is in shock, eventually Elston and the swimmers see that Ellis is taking this way over the line, so Andre and Hakim jump in and physically restrain Ellis and bring everyone out of the water. What should have been a night of celebration has all of a sudden turned into one of sourness. The next morning, the day of the Eastern Championships, Davis and Ellis have an emotional talk. Davis tells Ellis that she found out he has had a criminal history in the past, and that even though his actions the previous day didnt bring charges against him, he showed a bad example to his swimmers. Davis said that Ellis demonstrated everything that those boys shouldnt be by exerting that kind of violence and almost killing them. Ellis then tells her that the time he did get arrested was for a good reason, he tells her about the first scene in the movie were none of those swimmers wanted to race Ellis. Ellis told Davis that life isnt fair for blacks and that she should know. Davis walks away in tears while Ellis is dejected.

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These were some powerful scenes that showed some great emotion. Finally, through doing positive actions, they draw attention from the media, which is white. They get their positive exposure ruined by this guy who has nothing better to do than torment Ellis and his swimmers. When Ellis had his speech about his team acting like Negroes he meant that they acted like this guy who was vandalizing their pool and home. Ellis swimmers have progressed from being Negroes to being good young men who have gotten their lives back on track and demonstrated tremendous actions of discipline back at the pool to stop Ellis from drowning those men. When Ellis and Davis had their talk, to some extent Ellis justified his violent actions at the pool. While he was setting a bad example for his swimmers, the problem with race relations among white people and even people within their black race were difficult and that when words cannot solve the problem, and the other side is being extremely irrational, unfortunately you have to turn to violence to get your point across during that time period. The swimmers are boarded on the bus and Ellis gets on and tells them that he is suspending himself from the meet for his actions the previous day. Ellis tells them to remember the three words PDR stands for: pride, determination, and resilience. If they do those three things, then Ellis is certain that they will come out on top. The swimmers arrive in Baltimore and are greeted by the entire neighborhood. Hakim and Andre take the initiative to lead the team in Ellis absence. Ellis on the other hand, is sitting on the stairs outside of the pool in Baltimore waiting anxiously for the meet to end so that he finds out the results. Meanwhile in the pool it is neck and neck for PDR and the other top teams as they trade wins in the events. The action gets too much for Davis and Elston to take, so they leave the pool and go join Ellis outside, all three having an emotional reunion after all that theyve been through.
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Back in the pool, the score is all knotted up between PDR and the team that embarrassed them in their first meet. The 4X100 meter freestyle relay was all that was left to swim, winner takes home the championship. There is a problem for PDR, Walt who is the starter for the relay has a pulled hamstring and cant swim the relay. This makes Andre, the relays anchor to make himself the starter and put Reggie into the relay as the anchor. Reggie says that Andre is the fastest and that he should be the anchor, however Andre tells Reggie that he really believes in him and he will win it. The relay starts and it is neck and neck for both teams, PDR comes up with a slight lead after the third leg, now all Reggie has to do is hold on for the win. Both anchors jump in and the end proves to be a photo finish. Meanwhile, Ellis and company are waiting outside in great anticipation. Reggie and the team walk out; Ellis asks what happened Andre pulls out the trophy and shouts we won! The opposing coach, who didnt give Ellis any respect throughout the movie, finally comes and shakes his hand, acknowledging that his team lost to a very good team. Ellis team finally had the hardware to be respected and proved that they belong in the swimming world. This final frame showed the culmination of a great journey for all of these young men. Yes they won the championship, but how they got there was even more significant. Belief in your teammates is a big thing. In American life when someone cant get the job done for whatever reason, you have to believe and have faith in the replacement to come in and get the job done. Reggie was able to preserve the win for PDR because his teammates really believed in him and gave him the adrenaline that he needed to finish the job. If his teammates and fans didnt show the belief and cheer for him, there could have been a good chance that Reggie could have lost the relay. At the end the opposing coach shaking Ellis hand was very significant. Yes, unfortunately throughout the course of history, if you were black, the only way to earn some
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respect was to do something big like win a swim championship. As this movie shows it is certainly possible, no matter who you are and where you come from. The effects that this team had on the community will always stand. These men did not become professionals, however thanks to Ellis they did go on to college and get good careers. This also had an impact on the entire community as this positive news made them believe that they can do anything if they just have the desire and belief in themselves. To this day Jim Ellis still continues to train minorities at the Marcus Foster Recreation Center where at least one swimmer from his club has qualified for every U.S. Olympic trials since 1992. This is a story of great inspiration that really many people in this country can relate to and can learn a valuable lesson from. If we all take in some Pride we can do great things in anything that we pursue.

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Works Cited Barnes, C. (1983). Journey from jim crow: the desegregation of southern transit. New York, NY: Columbia University Press. Polk, W. (2006). The birth of america: from before columbus to the revolution. New York, NY: Harper Collins.

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