Stereotypes In Freedom Writers

Ever since Wilson High School opened its racial integration program, it changed from a prestigious, high achieving school to one filled with “at risk” students. Those new students get in fights often, skip school regularly, and have been in and out of jail throughout their lives. Because of their sketchy background, most of these students were treated differently and unequally than the other students at school. This issue has definitely gotten much better over time, and in today’s era we barely see much segregation at all.

“Freedom Writers” is a powerful film that is based on a true story about a teacher named Erin Gruwell, who struggles to connect with her students to make them believe that they can succeed in life, and to show them that their lives, experiences, and knowledge is valuable, all while attempting to unify them and to overcome racial segregation and gang violence that is part of their daily lives. Gruwell focuses on introducing the concepts of discipline and obedience in her classroom. She gradually begins to earn their trust and buys them composition books to record their diaries, in which they talk about their experiences of being abused, seeing their friends die, and being evicted; Gruwell refers to the composition books as “The Freedom Writers Diary.”

High school is often considered a microcosm of society. Beliefs, social order, and current issues present themselves through student’s interactions and the environment they learn in. One of the oldest and still prevalent issues in the United States today is race and equality. So it is no surprise when racial issues are exposed in public education. Although many believe the civil rights era fixed most discrimination, racism remains in schools. Even after court ordered integration, classroom disparities have led to harmful segregation to continue within schools.

In the mid-to-late 1950s African Americans were not allowed to be in the same breathing space as a white person, let alone the same school. Now today, any individual of any race can freely enter into any building and still receive quality teaching. A special thanks are for the nine brave history changers; Minnijean Brown, Terrance Roberts, Elizabeth Eckford, Ernest Green, Thelma Mothershed, Melba Patillo, Gloria Ray, Jefferson Thomas and Carlotta Watts. If it wasn’t for these students who endured the discomfort, students today will not be able to enjoy the comfortableness of being a high school student.

Racism is an obstacle that continues to play an active role in daily lives across the global. Currently, Americans are outraged by the actions of white police officers toward black men. In Ferguson, Missouri an unarmed, black teenager was shot by a white police officer and a black man was choked to death by a white officer in New York City. Racial tensions run deep in the United States, but race is social construction that is learned. Sociologist Amanda Lewis’s book, Race in the Schoolyard: Negotiating the Color Line in Classrooms and Communities defends the notion that schools are institutions in which children learn about race and maintain racial inequality.

Despite Mah’Ria’s mother’s efforts, there was nothing she could do to improve the situation for her daughter, which is the case for most parents who don’t have the connections and power in society that comes as a result of wealth. It was sad to see that when Normandy kids finally had the opportunity to attend school in a different district, the Francis Howell district parents were unhappy and stereotyped them without knowing their struggles. The first step to changing policy is awareness of the disparity due to economic ability, and awareness was a something the parents from the Francis Howell district lacked. In this podcast, we see the systematic racism that still exists in today’s society. If it weren’t for the Normandy school district losing its accreditation, Mah’Ria would still be stuck in a school that scored 0 Points for academic achievement. There is evidence that school segregation improves test scores and attendance among students and is a program that should be valued for the success and equality it could bring low-income

In Freedom Writers, the perceptions made by the characters are challenged by Mrs Gruwell. She does not see the students the way that other faculty see them. Mrs Gruwell then teaches the students how similar they actually are; using the concept of a ‘line game’ which helps the students grow closer together. Similarly, in To Kill a Mockingbird, straight after Lula’s racist comment towards Scout and Jem, says, “QUOTE.” which helps to show the children that they can be accepted in a different coloured community.

Jane Elliot’s, “A class divided”, exhibited a daring lesson being taught to an all-white class about the struggles people who are discriminated face through a firsthand experience. Through the use of vivid demonstrations and expression of wording, Jane Elliot made a powerful stance establishing how discrimination is not okay and affects people’s capability to succeed.

Lies, that’s all I hear; that’s all I know in this life. All these deceptions swarm around my cranium. They swirl around and leap inside my ears and get stuck in the back of my head. Always replaying, like a broken record, pounding the back of my brain wanting attention. Like a little kid tugging on the hem of his mom’s lilac shirt, while they walk through the grocery store, craving for just one glance his way. Always replaying, never-ending.

In the movie, The Freedom Writers Mrs. Erin Gruwell (Hillary Swank) plays a role of a dedicated teacher who did all she could, to help her students learn to respect themselves and each other. She has little idea of what she's getting into when she volunteers to be an English teacher at a newly integrated high school in Long Beach, California. Her students were divided along racial lines and had few aspirations beyond basic survival. Mrs. Gruwell was faced with a big challenge when a group of freshmen students showed her nothing but disrespect which made it hard for her to communicate, teach and understand them. However, Erin Gruwell was determined that no matter the cost she would teach her students not only

The film Freedom Writers showed that the school didn’t care by not giving the class resources to learn they would receive condensed versions of books because the school felt they would not be able to understand them that were torn up and barely readable. By handing these books out in this condition showed that the school had given up. Not only do they receive terrible books their classroom and desk are in poor condition yet other classrooms in the school are in immaculate condition furthering the stereotype that they aren’t even worth a decent classroom or school supplies, how are they supposed to learn with school supplies in such poor condition, no wonder why they don’t try because they are taught that being of any other ethnicity then “white” they won’t succeed. The success in school is also stereotyped that only “white” students can be successful in school.

The film Freedom Writers directed by Richard La Gravenese is an American film based on the story of a dedicated and idealistic teacher named Erin Gruwell, who inspires and teaches her class of belligerent students that there is hope for a life outside gang violence and death. Through unconventional teaching methods and devotion, Erin eventually teaches her pupils to appreciate and desire a proper education. The film itself inquiries into several concepts regarding significant and polemical matters, such as: acceptance, racial conflict, bravery, trust and respect. Perhaps one of the more concentrated concepts of the film, which is not listed above, is the importance and worth of education. This notion is

In the beginning of the movie Freedom Writers, Ms. Gruwell’s students have trouble communicated with each other. This is because the characters are unwilling to associate with anyone outside their ethnic/racial groups. There could be multiple reasons to why the students would act this way but one of the main reasons is that they have been taught since birth that people will judge them based on their race or ethnicity. Because of this they have always been separate and grew up to be defensive and aggressive and they choose their groups or “gangs” who are within their racial groups. These “friends” also influence why the students are so afraid to associate with anyone outside that group by threatening to hurt them or beat them up. While with

The Freedom Writers is a movie directed by Richard LaGravenese that showed a teacher who used her position as a way to improve the lives of students who did not particularly have the best opportunities (Plot Summary). In the film, Mrs. Gruwell acts as a mentor to a group of actors that portrayed troublesome lives and issues at home. From daily fights between friend groups at school to drive-by shootings within gangs, the kids have seen it all. Mrs. Gruwell focuses on these hardships that the students face and uses them as a way to create coursework that is relatable to the lives of the students while promoting a safe learning environment. Not only did she create an interesting way for the kids to learn inside of the classroom, but she also went out of her way to enforce principles that were from outside sources. For example: Mrs. Gruwell created a lesson plan that involved her students writing letter to the woman who hid Anne Frank during the Holocaust, Miep Gies. After students had written their letters, Mrs. Gruwell was able to find and transport Mrs. Gies to the school in order to have an in-person interaction between her and the students. This proved to be one of the most impressive parts of Mrs. Gruwell’s career because the students were able to meet someone that they truly expressed gratitude towards. In a similar way, Mrs. Gruwell acted as a figure that the students were able to look up to and place trust in. Mrs. Gruwell was more than just a teacher to these kids;

Have you ever been discriminated or treated differently because who you are and what your color is? Well in the movie “Freedom Writers” the characters work on toleration and acceptance through reading and writing. Since they are from the city of long beach of California that wasn’t easy, considering all the racial tension/conflict that goes on there.