Melvin B. Tolson: Who is the judge? Samantha, Henry Lowe, James Farmer Jr., Hamilton Burgess: The judge is God. Melvin B. Tolson: Why is he God? Samantha, Henry Lowe, James Farmer Jr., Hamilton Burgess: Because he decides who wins or loses. Not my opponeent. Melvin B. Tolson: Who is your opponent? Samantha, Henry Lowe, James Farmer Jr., Hamilton Burgess: He does not exist. Melvin B. Tolson: Why does he not exist? Samantha, Henry Lowe, James Farmer Jr., Hamilton Burgess: Because he is a mere dissenting voice of the truth I speak! ________________________________________________________________________________ The Great Debaters (2007) More at IMDbPro

ad feedback Samantha: The state is currently spending five times more for the education for a white child than it is fitting to educate a colored child. That means better textbooks for that child than for that child. I say that's a shame, but my opponent says today is not the day for whites and coloreds to go to the same college. To share the same campus. To walk into the same classroom. Well, would you kindly tell me when that day is gonna come? Is it going to come tomorrow? Is it going to come next week? In a hundred years? Never? No, the time for justice, the time for freedom, and the time for equality is always, is always right now! Share this quote James Farmer Jr.: [opening package] Five dollars? Lowe, I got five dollars! Henry Lowe: Yeah, I did too. It's called per diem. Want me to hold it for you? James Farmer Jr.: No, not MY five dollars. Samantha: [walks into the room waving her money in the air] I got five dollars! I got five dollars! Henry Lowe: Yeah, me too. Samantha: Well, mine is crisp.

[watches James gulp down a strawberry] Samantha: James, this is high tea, all right? We nibble, we do not DEVOUR. James Farmer Jr.: How do you know? Samantha: [smiling] I don't. Share this quote James Farmer Jr.: We do what we have to do in order to do what we want to do. Share this quote James Farmer Jr.: In Texas they lynch Negroes. My teammates and I saw a man strung up by his neck and set on fire. We drove through a lynch mob, pressed our faces against the floorboard. I looked at my teammates. I saw the fear in their eyes and, worse, the shame. What was this Negro's crime that he should be hung without trial in a dark forest filled with fog. Was he a thief? Was he a killer? Or just a Negro? Was he a sharecropper? A preacher? Were his children waiting up for him? And who are we to just lie there and do nothing. No matter what he did, the mob was the criminal. But the law did nothing. Just left us wondering, "Why?" My opponent says nothing that erodes the rule of law can be moral. But there is no rule of law in the Jim Crow south. Not when Negroes are denied housing. Turned away from schools, hospitals. And not when we are lynched. St Augustine said, "An unjust law in no law at all.' Which means I have a right, even a duty to resist. With violence or civil disobedience. You should pray I choose the latter. Share this quote Samantha: [after James protests his inability to debate with Samantha or Henry] James, you're the best researcher I've ever seen. We couldn't do this without you. James Farmer Jr.: [angrily] Oh, there's PLENTY you do without me! Share this quote Melvin B. Tolson: I am here to help you to find, take back, and keep your righteous mind. Share this quote Ruth Tolson: [hands Tolson a letter] Here, this came. Go on, open it. Melvin B. Tolson: [noticing the broken seal] Hmm, looks like someone already opened it. Ruth Tolson: [smiling mischievously] Not me.

Share this quote Dr. James Farmer, Sr.: [after Tolson is unjustly captured and imprisoned] Since you have no evidence, I suggest you let him go. Sheriff Dozier: Are you threatening me, boy? Dr. James Farmer, Sr.: No, sir. I wouldn't do that. But I cannot speak for those people outside. [points toward the riotous mob gathered outside the sheriff's office] Share this quote Melvin B. Tolson: We're holding tryouts for the debate team. Henry Lowe: You sure you want somebody like me? Melvin B. Tolson: No. That's why you're trying out. Share this quote Samantha: James, you know I value your friendship... James Farmer Jr.: How can you value something you never had? Samantha: So... we were never friends? James Farmer Jr.: Maybe I don't want to be just your friend. Maybe it HURTS me to be just your friend! Share this quote Melvin B. Tolson: We'll be one of the first Negro colleges to ever debate a white college. If we beat them, we beat the best. Share this quote Harland Osbourne: This debate is stirring up a lot of excitement. It's going to be broadcast all over America. Share this quote [Samantha just slapped Henry hard across the face] Melvin B. Tolson: Resolved. Share this quote Melvin B. Tolson: Who is the judge?

Samantha, Henry Lowe, James Farmer Jr., Hamilton Burgess: The judge is God. Melvin B. Tolson: Why is he God? Samantha, Henry Lowe, James Farmer Jr., Hamilton Burgess: Because he decides who wins or loses. Not my opponeent. Melvin B. Tolson: Who is your opponent? Samantha, Henry Lowe, James Farmer Jr., Hamilton Burgess: He does not exist. Melvin B. Tolson: Why does he not exist? Samantha, Henry Lowe, James Farmer Jr., Hamilton Burgess: Because he is a mere dissenting voice of the truth I speak! Share this quote James Farmer Jr.: We can't win without him! [Melvin Tolson] Samantha: You're wrong, we can't win without him. [as she tosses a book at Farmer] James Farmer Jr.: Thoreau? Share this quote Henry Lowe: A brilliant young woman I know was asked once to support her argument in favor of social welfare. She named the most powerful source imaginable: the look in a mother's face when she cannot feed her children. Can you look that hungry child in the eyes? See the blood on his feet from working barefoot in the cotton fields. Or do you ask his baby sister with her belly swollen from hunger if she cares about her daddy's work ethics? The Great Debaters Script [fast gospel] [Man] My soul is a witness Soul is a witness - My soul is a witness - Yeah, yeah

- Soul is a witness - Oh, yeah - Before l go - Oh - Before l go - 'Fore l go Before l go, soul is a witness [Speaker] Heavenly Father, we come before Thee, knee bent and body bowed in the humblest way that we know how. Father, who controls and knows all things, both the living and dying of all creatures. Give us the strength and the wisdom to do Thy work. ln God's name we pray. And all God's people say, ''Amen.'' - My soul is a witness - Amen. - Water, wine - So high - Water, wine - Wine

Water, wine, soul is a witness Soul is a witness Soul is a witness - Soul - Soul is a witness - Soul - Witness - Witness - Witness - Witness - Witness - Witness - Soul is a witness [Man] When Agave sobered up, she looked down and saw the head of her son Pentheus - right there in her hands. - She thought he was a wild animal. That's how Dionysus got his revenge. You a heathen, Henry. You know what l got right here? - What? - Some of that very wine. ''When l was a child, l spake as a child. ''l understood as a child.

''l thought as a child. ''But when l became a man, l put away all childish things.''

[gospel continues]

- Early one mornin' - Early one mornin'

- Down the road - Early one mornin'

- Early one mornin' - Early one mornin'

Down the road

[continues]

[Speaker] Freshman class...

l believe we are the most privileged people in America,

because we have the most important job

in America:

The education of our young people.

l was traveling

Partner too

Goin' down the road

Goin' down to say

My soul is a witness

- Souls are born - Goin' home

- Soul is a witness - Goin' home

Souls are born

- Soul is a witness - Witness

- Before l go - When l go

- Before l go - Go

[gasps] Trudell!

- Who the hell is he? - Oh, he's just my husband.

l'm gonna cut your head off.

[Speaker] We must impress upon our young people

that there will be difficulties that they face.

Come on, Trudell. Come get this whuppin', boy.

- [Man] Get him down, Trudell. - Scared, ain't ya?

Huh? You with the razor and twice my size?

[Speaker] They must defeat them!

They must do what they have to do in order to do what they want to do.

[Man] Come on, now.

[Woman] Come on, baby!

[Speaker] Education is the only way out.

[grunts]

Come on, baby. Get up! Get up, baby. Come on!

[Speaker] The way out of ignorance--

Like cuttin' people, huh, boy?

Want to cut people, Trudell, huh?

Get your hands off me!

The way out of darkness!

lnto...

the glorious light.

[ends]

Come on, now! Give it back!

- Give it back! - ''To our precious Hamilton--''

This isn't funny. Come on. Dunbar, give it back.

Who do you think you are? Jesse Owens?

[Man] Have a seat.

''l am...

''the darker brother.

''They send me to eat in the kitchen when company comes.

''But l laugh, and l eat well,

''and l grow strong.

''Tomorrow, l will sit at the table when company comes.

''Nobody'll dare say to me,

'''Eat in the kitchen' then.

''Besides, they'll see how beautiful l am,

''and be ashamed.

l, too, am America.''

Who wrote that?

Langston Hughes, 1924.

1925.

''Hating you shall be a game played with cool hands.''

''Memory will lay its hands upon your breast, and you will understand my hatred.'' Gwendolyn Bennett wrote that. She was born in 1902.

Unofficially.

You see, in most states,

Negroes were denied birth certificates,

which means l can lie about my age the rest of my life.

[laughing]

You think that's funny?

To be born...

without record.

Mr. Reed, hand these out.

l'm going to introduce you to some new voices this semester.

There's a revolution going on.

ln the North. ln Harlem.

They're changing the way Negroes in America think.

l'm talking about poets like Hughes, Bennett,

Zora Neale Hurston, Countee Cullen-''Some are teethed on a silver spoon, ''with the stars strung up for a rattle. ''l cut my teeth as a black raccoon--..for implements of battle.''

Meet me after class.

[sighs]

What's a professor doing in the middle of the night

dressed like a cotton-chopper?

What is a student doing in the middle of the night

throwing his life away?

lt's funny. l thought l was defending myself.

Mm.

l remember you.

Couple of years ago. Then you disappeared.

What happened?

l come and go whenever it suits me.

- Suspensions? - Leaves of absence.

Why'd you come back?

School's the only place you can read all day.

Except prison.

l want you to come by my house tonight, 7:30.

- Corner of June and Campus. - Why would l do that?

Holding tryouts for the debate team.

- You sure you want somebody like me? - No.

That's why you're trying out.

7:30.

June and Campus.

[muttering]

''Driven by the wind and tossed--''

Do well tonight, Junior.

[Professor] Of the 360 students here at Wiley College,

only 45 of you were brave enough to try out for the debate team.

Of that 45, only four of you will remain standing when the tryouts are over-- why?

Because debate is blood sport. lt's combat.

But your weapons are words.

[knocking] Come on in.

Now that Mr. Farmer has joined us, we can begin.

Sit down, Mr. Farmer.

Not right there. Over there.

- Yes, sir. - James. Right this way.

Good evening, Mrs. Tolson.

- Evening. - Excuse me.

We're waiting for you, Mr. Farmer.

l'm going, sir.

Thank you, Mr. Farmer. You smell very good, Mr. Farmer.

- Thank you, sir. - You're very welcome.

Gentlemen and lady.

This is...

the hot spot.

You will enter it at your own risk.

Mr. Tolson, what about the debaters from last year?

Don't ask a question you already know the answer to.

Get up here. You'll be first.

Get right here. Hot spot.

Debate starts with a proposition.

With an idea-- ''Resolved:

Child labor should be regulated by the federal government.''

The first debater argues the affirmative.

Affirmative means that you are for something.

Mr. Reed will argue the affirmative.

The second debater argues the negative.

Negative means that you are what?

Against.

Brilliant, Mr. Burgess.

You shall argue the affirmative, Mr. Reed. Go.

Well, sir, l'd begin with a quote from the poet Cleghorn.

''The golf links lie so near the mill,

''that almost every day,

''the laboring children can look out and--

and--''

And watch the men at play

ls that what you learned from last year, Mr. Reed?

To start something, and not finish it?

- ls it? - No, sir.

Sit down.

Who's next? You? Stand up.

Stand up.

lt's getting late. How much longer can you hide?

l'm not hiding, sir. l transferred from my college

just to come here and try out for your team.

l am deeply moved. What's your name?

Samantha Booke.

- Book? - With an ''e.''

Arise, Miss Booke. With an ''e.''

lnto the hot spot, Miss Booke with an ''e.''

You know, there's never been a female on the debating team, ever.

Yes, sir. l know that.

What makes you think

you should be the first?

Because, sir, l am just as qualified as-- Quit stammering, Miss Booke. - ...anybody else here.

- My gender has nothing-- ''Resolved:

Welfare discourages hard work.''

- You'll argue the negative. - All right.

Welfare takes away a man's strongest reason for working, which is survival.

And that weakens the will of the poor.

How would you rebut that, Miss Booke with an ''e''?

l would say it does not.

Most of the New Deal goes to children, anyway,

and to the handicapped, and to old people--

- ls that fact, or conjecture? - lt is a fact.

- Speak up. - lt is a fact.

- What's your source? - The president.

- Of the United States? - Yes, sir.

That's your primary source? You spoke to President Roosevelt personally?

Of course not. l did not speak to him personally,

but l listened to his Fireside Chat.

- Oh, a radio broadcast. - Yes.

- Any other sources? - Well--

Any other sources?

Yes, there are other sources.

Like that look in a mother's eyes when she can't feed her kids.

Without welfare, Mr. Tolson, people would be starving.

Who's starving, Miss Booke?

- The unemployed are starving. - Mr. Burgess here.

He's unemployed. Obviously, he's not starving.

l drew you in, Miss Booke.

You gave a faulty premise, so your syllogism fell apart.

- ''Syllogism''? - Your logic fell apart.

Major premise: the unemployed are starving.

Minor premise: Mr. Burgess is unemployed.

Conclusion: Mr. Burgess is starving.

Your major premise was based on a faulty assumption.

Classic fallacy. Who's next?

[whispers] You were right.

[Tolson] Tell us your name.

l'm Henry Lowe. With an ''e.'' All right, Mr. Lowe. l will name a subject. You speak a few words-a pertinent quote from world literature. Go ahead. Beauty. ''l heard the old, old men say, all that is beautiful drifts away, like the waters.'' Very good. History. And name the author this time.

''History is a nightmare, from which l am trying to awake.''

James Joyce.

Self-pity.

''l never saw a wild thing sorry for itself.''

D.H. Lawrence.

[whispers] l love D.H. Lawrence. Have you ever read--

Mr. Farmer.

Yes, sir?

l have eyes in the back of my head and ears on both sides. Stand up.

Tell me the irony in the name ''Bethlehem Steel Corporation.''

Bethlehem is the birthplace of Jesus, Prince of Peace,

and Bethlehem Steel makes weapons of war.

Very good. Sit down.

Good.

[Tolson] Who's next?

That went well. How will we know how we did?

- [chattering] - Samantha.

Samantha.

Tolson's tough, isn't he?

He sure is.

l'm James.

ls your father Dr. James Farmer?

Yes... yes, he is.

l'm taking theology from him, and that man speaks in tongues.

French, Greek, Hebrew, Latin--

How many languages does he speak?

- Seven languages. - ''Seven languages.''

He must be the smartest man in Texas.

Well, that's not saying much.

So why do you want to be on the team?

- l think it would be good training. - For what?

Bein' a lawyer.

Lawyer? That's great.

You know how many Negro women practice law in this state?

- Two. - Exactly.

One of them's my aunt.

Well, look at you, Mr. Farmer.

How old are you, anyway?

l'll be 16...

in 21 months. [chuckles]

Young lady. James. l just wanted to thank you.

For what?

Well, for your performance tonight. l mean, how many other students ever stand up to Tolson? - l did. - No. You answered a question, and l spouted a few quotes.

Miss Booke with an ''e,''

- she fought back. - And lost!

But you didn't have to lose.

Why isn't a Fireside Chat a legitimate source?

Because Tolson says so?

Nobody has better access to those statistics than the president.

Now, if you'd have called Tolson on that, you would have won.

l don't know. l'm sure that man would have come up with something.

Good night, James.

[Samantha] Can you believe he's

- Good night, Samantha. - 1 4 years old, and he's in college?

You are gifted, all of you.

So l want you to know that l chose this team for balance,

and none of you should take it as a failure...

as a denigration of your intellect.

Denigrate. There's a word for you.

From the Latin word ''niger,''

to defame, to blacken.

lt's always there, isn't it? Even in the dictionary.

Even in the speech of a Negro professor.

Somehow, ''black'' is always equated with failure.

Well, write your own dictionary.

And mark this as a new beginning,

whether you make the team or not.

The Wiley College Forensics Society of 1935-1936 is as follows:

The debaters...

will be Mr. Hamilton Burgess from last year's team--

- Yea! - Sit down, Mr. Burgess.

Mr. Henry Lowe.

Our alternates.

Miss Samantha Booke. With an ''e.''

And finally--

Junior, slow down.

- Where's Dad? - Quiet. He's writing a lecture.

- Dad. - Junior.

What is the greatest weakness of man?

Not believing? Doubt?

That's it. Thank you, Junior.

Matthew 1 4:31 .

- That will be the lesson. - Dad.

''O you of little faith, why do you doubt me?''

Dad?

What is it, son?

l made the debate team.

Well, congratulations.

And who is on your team?

Um, there's four of us. l'm one of the alternates.

Who's ahead of you?

Hamilton Burgess and Henry Lowe.

And the other alternate's Samantha Booke.

There's a girl?

She wants to be a lawyer.

- A lawyer? - She's very intelligent.

ls she pretty?

l don't know. l never really noticed.

Because extracurricular activities

like the debate team are fine,

but you must not take your eye off the ball, son.

- Yes, sir. - Hmph.

So what do we do here?

We do what we have to do, so we can do what we want to do.

What do you have to do right now?

- My homework. - So get to it.

Yes, sir.

[Woman singing opera]

My daddy owns a grocery store that has apples, bananas, cookies,

doughnuts, eggs, figs,

and ''gonzola'' beans.

Right. What's a gonzola bean? [laughs]

- [Dr. Farmer] Hogwash! - Hogwash!

''Gonzola'' bean?

Ready, set, go!

- Apricots, uh-- Hogwash.

What, no apricots?

Look out!

[switches off motor]

What was that?

l'm not sure.

[barking]

Sit down.

- You stay put. - [barking continues]

Be still.

What is it?

lt's a pig.

- Hit a pig. - [screen door slams]

Shut up, dog!

Junior, get in the car.

What the hell happened to my hog?

Sorry about that. Came out of nowhere.

l didn't see it coming.

You done killed my hog, boy.

Truly sorry. Gladly pay you for it.

How much-How much you want?

lt's gonna cost you $25.

Only have a few bucks on me right now, but l can--

l do have a check.

My monthly check, for Wiley College in Marshall.

lt's for $1 7.36.

You may have that.

l will endorse that over to you.

You'll do what?

l will sign the check over to you.

Well, let me see it.

lt's in the car, with my wife.

Gonna walk to the car now.

Junior, get in the car.

Give me that salary check, Pearl.

We need that money, James.

Just give me the check.

Go on.

His wife has it.

[Mother, whispering] l thought it was in here.

[Dr. Farmer] Just relax. lt's all right.

lt's in here. You'll find it.

Here it is.

Here it is.

[Man] That check better be good, boy.

lt's good.

Well, pick it up!

Here it is.

Whoa, whoa, whoa! Where the hell do you think you're going?

You got to help us get this hog in my truck.

Come on. Grab the tail end of that, boy.

All right, on three.

One, two, three! [grunting]

Town niggers. They think they're too good to get their hands dirty.

- Dad-- l told you to get in the car.

When l tell you to do something, Junior, you do it.

[Tolson] Who's the judge?

The judge is God.

Why is he God?

Because he decides who wins or loses,

not my opponent.

Who is your opponent?

He doesn't exist.

Why does he not exist?

He's merely a dissenting voice to the truth l speak.

Who's the judge?

- The judge is God! - The judge is God!

Why is he God?

Because he decides who wins or loses, not my opponent!

Who is your opponent?

He doesn't exist!

Why doesn't he exist?

Because he is merely a dissenting voice to the truth l speak!

[laughing]

Who's the judge?

The judge is God!

Why is he God?

Because he decides who wins or loses, not my opponent!

Who's your opponent?

He doesn't exist!

Why does he not exist?

Because he is merely a dissenting voice to the truth l speak!

Who's the judge?

The judge is God!

Louder!

The judge is God!

Why is he God?

Because he decides who wins or loses, not my opponent!

Who's your opponent?

He doesn't exist!

Why does he not exist?

Because he is merely a dissenting voice to the truth l speak!

Speak the truth!

Speak the truth!

Yes, sir, l do like to talk.

ls that a virtue or a vice?

Well, l have to admit l've always wanted to be the quiet, mysterious type,

only l couldn't keep my mouth shut long enough.

Would you punch yourself in a street fight, Mr. Burgess?

No, sir.

Then don't punch yourself in a word fight.

You don't have to make fun of yourself.

Use your humor against your opponent.

Mr. Farmer!

Yes, sir.

Happy Mr. Farmer.

Tell us one thing we don't know about your father.

He was the first Negro Ph.--

One thing we don't know about your father, Mr. Farmer.

He walked from Florida to Massachusetts to go to college at Boston University.

He graduated magna cum laude.

Mr. Lowe!

Tell us about your father.

Why don't you tell us something about your father?

We're trying to get to know each other, Mr. Lowe.

l was trying to get to know you, Mr. Tolson.

l'm not the one on the debate team.

Are we not engaged

in a debate right now?

All right.

l'll take the affirmative.

Take the meanest... most restless nigger,

strip him of his clothes

in front of the remaining male niggers, female niggers,

and nigger infants.

Tar and feather him.

Tie each leg to a horse facing an opposite direction,

set him on fire,

and beat both horses until they tear him apart

in front of the male, female, and nigger infants.

Bullwhip and beat the remaining nigger males

within an inch of their life.

Do not kill them, but put the fear of God in them,

for they can be useful for future breeding.

Anybody know who Willie Lynch was?

Anybody? Raise your hand.

No one?

He was a vicious slave owner in the West lndies.

The slave-masters in the colony of Virginia

were having trouble controlling their slaves,

so they sent for Mr. Lynch

to teach them his methods.

The word ''lynching'' came from his last name.

His methods were very simple, but they were diabolical.

Keep the slave physically strong but psychologically weak

and dependent on the slave master.

Keep the body, take the mind.

l...and every other professor on this campus

are here to help you...

to find, take back,

and keep your righteous mind...

because obviously you have lost it.

That's all you need to know about me, Mr. Lowe.

Class dismissed.

[big band]

Hey!

[no audible dialogue]

[song ends]

[slow jazz]

Here you go, honey.

Thank you.

Want to dance?

Yes.

Come on.

You're a good dancer.

Thank you. l--

l practice in my room.

Keep at it.

Excuse me.

Your punch.

- Thank you. - Mm-hmm.

l guess l better go get me some punch.

Here, you can have mine if you want.

lt's good.

All right?

You know l can take you to a place

that plays real music, right?

l'm not leaving here, Henry.

Just for a spell.

l'll bring you right back.

And what would my chaperone say?

We'll be back before she ever knows you're gone.

Mm-mm, mm-mm, mm-mm.

What's the matter? You afraid?

What's the matter?

You afraid?

Excuse me.

[creak]

Mr. Tolson?

Mr. Tolson!

[twanging blues guitar intro]

Hoo

Woo-hoo

[glass breaks, laughter]

l remember down on block number 9

Couldn't hear nothin' but them old convicts whine

Singin' ''How long

Before l can change my clothes?''

lt's time. Let's go.

[Tolson] ...break your back all day.

[horse sputters]

And it's not right when they lie to the government

and tell them that sharecroppers are just wage earners

so they don't have to split their farmer's subsidies with you.

And that's why the Southern Tenant Farmers Union

wants you to organize:

to make things right.

[sharecropper] How? Strike?

Hell, they'll just bring in the Mexicans.

We'll organize them, too.

Yeah, so they can shoot us all down: white, colored, and Mexican.

That's exactly what they want you to believe.

The farm bosses want you to believe they'll make war.

They won't. They may be fools, but they're smart businessmen.

And once we're organized,

they'll see even guns can't stop us.

Stopped them in Elaine.

Why don't you talk about that?

About how they killed a hundred colored sharecroppers

for trying to organize.

That was 1919, friend.

And that was my daddy they gunned down, friend.

We're sorry about that.

But those men stood alone.

That's my point.

This is 1935.

We've got the National Labor Relations Board.

We've got the AF of L.

You ain't got shit!

He ain't got shit!

[all talking at once]

[trucks approaching]

Here they come! Here they come!

Get the lights! Everybody get down!

Get down. Shh!

Shh!

[all shouting]

[neigh]

Come on!

[Man] Let's get out of here!

This way! This way! This way!

Come on!

[shouting]

Come on. Come on!

Come on!

All right. All right.

[panting]

What are you doing out here? Huh?

l saw you-- l was walking by your house,

and l saw you dressed funny.

l'm dressed like them, son.

You think they'd listen to me if l was wearing a tuxedo? Huh?

No, sir.

Listen to me.

You listening?

You cannot tell anybody what you saw tonight.

You understand?

Not even my wife knows about this.

l won't tell anybody, l promise.

l promise on a stack of Bibles--

Jesus.

... l won't tell anybody.

Come on.

Junior?

Are you just going to stand there?

No, sir.

Sorry l'm late.

You're sorry?

lt's 1 :00 in the morning.

l've been looking everywhere for you.

l went to Mr. Tolson's house after the dance.

l thought you might have done that.

That's why l went over there.

And l talked to Ruth.

She said Tolson was gone and that you weren't there.

So l'm going to give you another chance.

Where were you?

l can't tell you, sir.

Good Lord, boy.

We've been worried to death about you.

Junior--

where were you?

l can't tell you, sir.

Why not?

l don't know.

''l don't know.''

''l don't know'' is not an acceptable answer, Junior.

Junior.

Silence is not an option, either.

Son, you been drinking?

Honey--

Because you must've been drinking coming up in my house

talking about you don't want to tell me where you been at 1 :30 in the morning?

Baby, tell me, what's the matter?

Mom, nothing's the matter.

Something's the matter!

Something is wrong!

Were you with that girl?

- You were with that girl. - No.

Because you're 1 4 years old, Junior.

You've got plenty of time for girls later.

l wasn't with Samantha.

Junior.

Then where were you?

Where were you, honey?

You don't want to talk?

Fine.

But you're not leaving this house.

What do you mean?

Just what l said.

You're not leaving this house until you tell me the truth!

What about school?

Don't go questioning what l just said, boy!

Mom, what about school?

And don't raise your voice!

l'm not raising my voice!

You raising your voice in the house?

Apologize to your father.

l'm not raising my voice!

You get a job, pay your own way?

You're a man now?

l'm not raising my voice!

Just apologize!

l didn't say anything!

Why should l apologize?

Like you apologized to that pig farmer?

What did you say, boy?

You go to your room.

Okay, Junior--

l'm not going to be weak on this, Pearl.

l know.

l can't allow my son to be corrupted.

You're right.

Let's just go to bed.

l'll take him to school in the morning.

All right?

All right.

l'm going to be honest with you, boys.

l'm not well.

l'm not well at all this morning.

l'm sure sorry to hear that, sir.

You look well to me.

Don't he look well, Sam?

Yes, sir. He looks real good.

Now, we got some white fellas from up north come into our town.

They're stirring up trouble between our coloreds and our whites.

They say that we need to make a union:

the sharecroppers and the workers all together,

colored and white.

They need to make a union?

How do you boys feel about that?

l don't know, sir.

l really ain't thought much about that.

Well, it's a bad idea.

lt's a bad idea, take my word for it.

Yes, sir.

And they say that there was some kind of secret meeting

last night down near the lake.

Now, do you boys know about that?

No, sir.

You don't know about that?

- Samuel?

- No, sir.

- You didn't hear about that? - No, sir.

- You swear to me? - Yes, sir.

Yes, sir, l swear.

All right, then.

See you later.

Our first debate

is one week from today.

- One week? - That's right.

l thought Prairie View was first.

Prairie View is tough, so l thought we needed a warm-up.

With the best Negro college in the state?

That's right, Mr. Burgess.

Does that frighten you?

Yes, sir.

One week's not enough time to write our arguments.

You do the research. l'll write the arguments.

Wait. You--

You write the arguments?

And you deliver them, Mr. Lowe.

What the hell do l look like, a mailman?

Hell is where you're headed if you question me again.

ln theory, you look like a student.

So what you're saying is l'm not capable.

lt's not a matter of competence.

lt's a matter of experience.

How do l know you write--

l write the arguments!

That's the way it's been!

That's the way it's going to be!

Any more questions?

One week.

[Moderator] l bring to you

our first affirmative debater:

from Paul Quinn College, Otheree Hubbard.

Resolved: unemployment relief should be ended

when the Depression ends.

lf the Depression ends.

l traveled back through history to 1536,

when the first Poor Laws of England were mandated.

ln those days, the dole-or welfare, as we call it--

was funded by voluntary contributions.

But, as time passed,

the English devised the Allowance System,

the first unemployment relief,

only now it was paid with involuntary contributions,

more commonly known as taxes.

[audience laughs]

The Allowance System was a disaster.

The only real unemployment relief is to give a man a job.

But to do that, you have to give the economy life,

not tax it to death.

When capitalism was young,

the old puritanical concept of duty

was, ''He who does not work shall not eat.''

That made sense when there was more work

than men willing to do it.

But those days are gone.

Now there are millions who want to work,

but find themselves standing in breadlines.

Now, should they not eat because there are no jobs?

People, today we need a new concept of duty:

the right of the individual to demand from society

just as much as he gives to society.

We clutch at anything that even looks like a solution.

$60 million a month for public relief?

Pay it out if it'll sweep the hoboes off the streets.

One seventh of the population of the United States on welfare.

Fine, as long as it ends our misery.

A nation as desperate as this

is a danger to itself.

- [applause] - [audience member] That's right.

Once,

a Roman general brought peace to a rebellious province...

by killing all its citizens.

Even his fellow Romans were shocked.

One of them wrote,

''Solitudinem faciunt, pacem appellant, ''

which means ''They create desolation and call it peace.''

Now, for all their facts and figures,

the Paul Quinn debaters would also create desolation and call it peace.

They would allow the unemployed to die so the economy can live.

[applause]

A brilliant young woman l know

was asked once to support her argument in favor of social welfare.

She named the most powerful source imaginable:

the look in a mother's face when she cannot feed her children.

Can you look that hungry child in the eyes?

See the blood on his feet

from walking barefoot in the cotton fields?

Or do you ask his baby sister with her belly swollen from hunger

if she cares about her daddy's work ethic?

[applause]

He's good.

Wiley! Wiley! Wiley! Wiley!

Wiley! Wiley! Wiley! Wiley!

Wiley! Wiley! Wiley!

Had a little girl

She's little and low

She used to love me

But she don't no more

You got to step it up and go, yeah

Yeah, and go

The only thing that matters is that big fish eat little fish,

and the color of the fish does not count!

...step it up and go

lf the state of Mississippi would have turned their heads

each and every time a Negro was lynched,

shouldn't the federal government intervene?

Yeah, and go

Well, you can't stand pat

l declare you got to step it up and go

Front door shut, back door, too

Blinds pulled down, whatcha gonna do?

Wiley! Wiley! Wiley! Wiley!

Wiley! Wiley! Wiley! Wiley!

Well, you can't stand pat

l declare you got to step it up and go

Got a little girl

Her name is Ball

Gave a little bit, but she took it all

You got to step it up and go now

Yeah, go

[Moderator] And the winner is...

l declare you got to step it up and go now

Wiley College!

Me and my baby walkin' down the street

Tellin' everybody 'bout the chief of police

You got to step it up and go now

Yeah, and go

Well, you can't stand pat

l declare you got to step it up and go

lf you see my woman, tell her ''Hurry home''

Ain't had no lovin' since she been gone

You got to step it up and go now

Wiley! Wiley! Wiley! Wiley! Wiley!

Well, you can't stand pat

l declare you got to step it up and go

Well, l'll sing this verse

Ain't gonna sing no more

Hear my gal call...

[Dozier] That's right, Captain.

l think l've got the ringleader.

Uh, all right, if that's what you want.

Yeah. Okey-dokey, then.

Bye-bye.

Shit.

[Deputy] Who was that?

Captain Wainwright.

Texas Rangers?

Mm-hmm.

He wants me to, uh, hold off on picking this fella up

until him and his boys get up here.

Shit. Wants to get his picture in the paper.

Yeah.

We do all the work, they get all the glory.

Yep.

[sigh]

l guess that's just the way the world is.

lsn't that right, Samuel?

l have an announcement to make. Excuse me.

Recently, l-- uh, we--

Mm-hmm.

...sent some letters to some major universities.

Told them all about us, our team,

what we've been doing,

and, uh, yesterday we got a response.

From Oklahoma City University.

Aren't they--?

Anglo-Saxon? Yes. Yes.

We'll be the first Negro college in America--

well, one of the first Negro colleges in America--

to ever debate a white college.

All right!

University of Oklahoma!

Not University of Oklahoma. Oklahoma City University.

The debate will take place at an off-campus site.

Wait. An off-campus site? Why?

Because sometimes, Mr. Lowe,

you have to take things one step at a time.

So what you're saying is the crackers in Oklahoma

ain't gonna let us on their campus.

No, what l'm saying is you have to take things one step at a time.

This is a great opportunity.

Thank you very much.

Master is going to give us a crumb off his plate, huh?

What? Wha--

l think Lowe here is afraid.

What am l afraid of, James?

l think you're afraid to debate white people.

- Anglo-Saxons. - Anglo-Saxons.

Thank you very much.

Mr. Tolson, let me debate.

l mean, l'll debate Anglo-Saxons anywhere:

in a dark alley, with no light,

with a candle lit and people chasing you down with guns.

Hell, l'll debate Anglo-Saxons anywhere.

l ain't afraid.

l am.

[sigh]

Mr. Tolson, when l came here today,

l saw the sheriff outside watching your house.

What's going on?

Maybe you should ask the sheriff.

l've been hearing a lot of rumors about what you're doing.

My dad just called the Dean last week

and asked, ''What is a communist doing

teaching at a good Methodist college?''

My politics are my business, Mr. Burgess,

and l promise you that they

will not endanger the team.

But, sir, it is being endangered.

l came to Wiley College to be educated, not investigated.

l understand that.

l don't want to be dragged into anything.

- You're not-- lf my parents find--

l'm sorry.

Mr. Tolson, please.

Just tell me you're not a communist. Otherwise--

Otherwise what?

Otherwise what?

My father says l have to quit.

Nobody wants that.

Then tell me.

As l said, my politics are my business.

l guess l have to resign.

Mrs. Tolson, thank you

for a wonderful dinner.

You're welcome, Ham.

Good luck in Oklahoma, y'all.

l know you'll win.

All right. Well,

if anybody else wants to quit, l'll understand.

Resolved:

Negroes should be--

should be admitted--

l can't hear you!

Speak up!

[louder] Resolved--

Negroes should be admitted to state universities.

My partner and l will prove

that blocking a Negro's admission to a state university

is not only wrong, it is absurd.

The Negro people are not just a color

in the American fabric.

They are the thread that holds it all together.

Consider the legal and historical record.

May 13, 1865:

Sergeant Crocker, a Negro,

is the last soldier to die in the Civil War.

1918: The first U.S. soldiers

decorated for bravery in France

are Negroes Henry Johnson and Needham Roberts.

1920: The New York Times announces

that the ''N'' in Negro would hereafter be capitalized.

To force upon the South what they are not ready for

would result in nothing but more racial hatred.

[audience member] What?

Dr. W.E.B. DuBois--

he's perhaps the most eminent Negro scholar in America.

He comments...

''lt's a silly waste of money, time, and temper

''to try and compel a powerful majority

to do what they are determined not to do.''

My opponent so conveniently chose to ignore the fact

that W.E.B. DuBois is the first Negro

to receive a Ph.D

from a white college called Harvard.

Dr. DuBois, he adds,

''lt is impossible-impossible for a Negro

to receive a proper education at a white college.''

The most eminent Negro scholar in America

is the product of an lvy League education.

You see, DuBois knows all too well the white man's resistance to change.

But that's no reason to keep a black man out of any college.

lf someone didn't force upon the South something it wasn't ready for,

l'd still be in chains,

and Miss Booke here would be running from her old Master!

[applause]

l do admit it.

lt is true.

Far too many whites are afflicted with the disease of racial hatred.

And because of racism,

it would be impossible for a Negro to be happy

at a southern white college today.

[Woman] That's true.

And if someone is unhappy,

it is impossible to see how they could receive a proper education.

That's right.

Yes, a time will come

when Negroes and whites will walk on the same campus

and we will share the same classrooms.

But sadly, that day is not today.

As long as schools are segregated,

Negroes will receive an education that is both separate and unequal.

By Oklahoma's own reckoning,

the state is currently

spending five times more

for the education of a white child

than it is spending to educate a colored child.

That means better textbooks for that child than for that child.

Oh, l say that's a shame,

but my opponent says today is not the day

for whites and coloreds to go to the same college,

to share the same campus,

to walk in the same classroom.

Well, would you kindly tell me when is that day gonna come?

ls it gonna come tomorrow? ls it gonna come next week?

ln a hundred years?

Never?

No, the time for justice,

the time for freedom, and the time for equality

is always, is always, right now!

Thank you.

[coughing]

What is this?

l told you it was holy wine.

Put hair on your chest.

lf you say so.

Good, ain't it?

[cough] Uh-huh.

You know where the bathroom is if you need it.

Yeah. [cough]

[general chatter]

And my weapons were words.

l didn't need a gun. l didn't need a knife.

You see--

Meet me outside in five minutes.

And then what?

Yes, l did, honey,

and nobody knows that better than you know.

Oh, l'm fine.

How are you doing, Pearl?

Pearl!

Yes, l do. Where's your husband?

- He's in the study. - Okay.

Dr. Farmer.

Congratulations, Melvin.

Thank you.

You've put us on the map.

Well, your son is doing a great job.

His research is impeccable.

That's good to hear. That's good to hear.

Listen, there are people around town

who aren't very happy with your off-campus activities.

They're calling you a radical.

ln fact, l wouldn't be a bit surprised

to find out one morning when l woke up

that you were strung up to a tree.

They'd have to catch me first.

This is serious, Melvin.

Very serious.

A hungry Negro steals a chicken, he goes to jail.

A rich businessman steals bonds, he goes to Congress.

l think that's wrong.

Now, if that makes me a radical, a socialist, a communist, so be it.

Amen-- Amen on that.

- Jesus was a radical. - Careful.

Yes, He was. Jesus was a radical.

Mental institutions are filled with people

who have confused themselves with Jesus Christ.

l'm not confused.

You're convinced you're Jesus Christ now?

- No. - You're convinced you're Jesus Christ?

You know what words do.

- Okay. - Come on now.

Amen.

Don't want to confuse yourself with Jesus Christ.

l'm not confused. l'm convinced.

l'm not, uh, l'm not judging you.

l'm just concerned about your methods.

What methods?

James was there that night, wasn't he?

He was not with me.

ls he involved in this?

Of course not, James.

l've done everything in my power to keep him out of this.

- To keep him out? - Yes.

Are you telling me he wants to be involved?

Maybe this is something you should discuss with him.

l'm discussing it with you right now,

and l don't feel like l'm getting a straight answer.

You're getting a straight answer.

l think that you were there with him that night.

He was not with me.

He's a 1 4-year-old boy.

l understand that.

l'll do whatever l have to do to protect him.

ls anybody thirsty?

Here you are.

Thank you. Thank you, Ruth.

- You're welcome. - Mm-hmm.

Okay.

Ruth, this is a fine party.

- Thank you. - Mm-hmm.

l think it's time for some sweet potato pie.

Please.

l'll help you with that.

Not the time to talk about it.

Congratulations.

Thank you.

lt's so beautiful out here.

Mm-hmm.

Yeah.

l was born near here, a little further up the lake near Jefferson.

l've been coming here since l was a little boy.

Your parents still live around here?

No, no. They're, uh, they're gone.

My grandparents raised me.

And my Pah-Pah, he, uh,

spent his life doing the levees around here--

for free, of course.

- Mm. He was a slave? - Mm-hmm.

My grandma was always telling me to be good

or else the Confederates would rise up out of Marshall Cemetery and get me.

Boy.

What?

l've just never seen this side of you before.

What side?

You seem so calm,

so peaceful.

lt's what the lake does to me.

l'm happy when l'm out here, you know?

lt's funny.

Part of me wants to just stay out here by the lake, you know?

Read books all day and hunt and fish when l get hungry.

And the other part wants to go everywhere,

you know, see everything.

l want to go to New Orleans and New York and Chicago and even San Francisco.

l just want to go...

walking down the road and...

just disappear.

Well, maybe you could take me with you.

[''When the Saints Come Marching ln'']

- Lord. - What?

lt's the school band, and they're outside.

What? Jesus!

l thought you said nobody ever comes around here.

Nobody ever does come here, Samantha.

- [knock on door] - Hold on! Hold on!

Henry, come on!

[knocking]

Henry.

Get dressed.

What's going on?

We're gonna go get Mr. Tolson and Samantha,

head back to the campus, and have a pep rally.

Come on, get dressed.

You know what? You go get Tolson,

and l'll meet up with y'all later on campus.

Come on, Lowe.

You know it's going to be fun.

l guess l'll tell them you're going to join us later?

He's going to join us later.

He just has to clean his house, that's all.

[sigh]

Great news. Great news. Great news!

My phone has been ringing off the hook.

University of Michigan wants to debate us.

So does SMU. So does Georgia.

Where's Mr. Lowe?

When do l get to debate?

Sooner than you think, James.

Sooner than you think.

When?

When you're ready.

l'm ready now.

Mr. Tolson, l do not mind if James--

What's wrong?

Maybe l'm tired of this.

Of what?

Of watching other people debate.

When am l going to get a chance to prove myself?

You're our best researcher, James.

We could not do this without you.

You do plenty without me.

Excuse me.

- James! - What?

James, you wait!

That was so mean what you said in there.

All right, uh, look,

l don't want to lose your friendship.

How can you lose something that you never had?

You were never my friend?

Maybe l don't want to just be your friend.

Maybe it hurts me to be your friend.

- What's going on? - What's going on?

[all murmuring]

[Officer] Grab his hands.

Mr. Tolson!

Where is he?

Calm down, Henry.

Have you seen him?

No, they won't let us.

They didn't do nothing to you, did they?

- No, we're fine. - Deputy,

l'm Dr. James Farmer of Wiley College.

This is William Taylor, Mr. Tolson's attorney.

And this is his wife Ruth.

Hello.

l'd like to see my client, please.

William!

Sheriff Dozier. Dr. James Farmer--

Hello, William. How you doing today?

Fine, sir, thank you. And you?

Oh, not too bad, not too bad.

Me and William, we go way back.

l knew William when l was a boy.

Could l see my client now, Sheriff?

Your client?

Well, the fact of the business is, William,

your client is kind of busy right now.

Busy doing what?

[Deputy] Sheriff. Sheriff.

[whispering] We have a situation.

[shouting outside]

Get some of your boys out there.

[Deputy] All right, men.

Let him go! Let him go!

Let him go! Let him go!

Let him go! Let him go!

Let him go! Let him go!

Let him go! Let him go!

Let him go! Let him go!

Let him go! Let him go!

Let him go! Let him go!

They with you?

That's right.

See? This is what happens to a town when you let the unions in.

Starts trouble.

People get all riled up about nothing.

One of them's liable to get hurt, if you catch my drift.

Sheriff, since it's clear

that you have no evidence to arrest Mr. Tolson,

l suggest you let him go.

You suggest it?

Who the hell are you?

Couple of months ago,

there was a raid on Floyd Tillman's barn.

lt was a peaceful and lawful

gathering of sharecroppers

who were brutally attacked by a gang of violent vigilantes.

Now, witnesses say that you were there.

lf you led that raid, Sheriff,

you're the one who broke the law, not Tolson.

Are you threatening me, boy?

No, sir.

l wouldn't do that.

But l cannot speak for those people outside.

An unjust law is no law at all.

What does that mean?

A mass slaughter

of citizens, both white and colored,

by Texas Rangers?

ls that really what you want as the Sheriff of this county?

Now, if you let Tolson go home,

l believe--

l believe that these folks outside, they'll go home as well.

[cheering]

That pig wasn't worth $25.

What?

You owe my father some money.

Have a seat, Mr. Farmer.

Oh, Lord.

Um...

SMU has cancelled.

University of Georgia sounds like they will follow suit.

Why?

l've been blacklisted.

They're talking about censuring me.

Dean Clay and the board have asked me

to stop working with the sharecroppers, or else.

They say that it is not my fight.

So...things are bad.

My academic career's in jeopardy.

My debate team has nowhere to go.

Anyone know who Antaeus was?

Sure. He was a gigantic wrestler in Greek mythology.

His mother was, uh, Gaea, the goddess of Earth,

and, uh, l mean, he was unbeatable

because anytime someone threw him down to the Earth,

it would make him stronger.

That's correct.

lt would make him stronger.

Defeat would make him stronger.

You are my students. l am your teacher.

l think that's a sacred trust.

So what do l say to you now?

Quit because the Dean says so?

Because the sheriff says so?

Because the Texas Rangers say so?

No.

l am diametrically opposed to that.

My message to you is to never quit.

We are not quitting.

Good.

What do you want us to do?

Debate Harvard.

- Harvard? - Harvard University.

They're the reigning national champions.

lf we defeat them, we defeat the best.

Mr. Tolson, sir, with all due respect,

um, Harvard ain't going to debate us,

not little old Wiley College in Marshall, Texas.

They know who we are, Henry.

l've been writing them letters, sending them articles.

But how do we get a letter back?

By continuing to win.

Dr. Farmer has informed me

that Howard University is going to be at Prairie View next week.

We annihilated Fisk.

lf we eliminate Howard, we will have beaten

the two best Negro colleges in America,

and l can guarantee you that l will see to it

that Harvard does not ignore that.

All right?

Yeah.

You guys, scoodle um skoo

Oh, baby, let's scoodle um skoo

Come on, Mama, and scoodle um skoo

Scoodle um scoodle um, and scoodle um skoo

[Tolson] Just look for it on there.

You see it on there?

[Henry] l've been looking the whole time.

Prairie View, Texas. The 127.

You show me where to look because it's not on--

127 near Waxahachie.

lt's not there.

lt's there. You just can't find it.

l see 2, and l see 7.

Right. Now look for a 1 in front of it, and you got it.

[Henry laughs]

- After 126-- Okay.

Before 128.

l really don't think--

You don't see it.

When did you get this map?

What are you doing?

l'm gonna cut him down.

Get back in the car. Shut the door.

Nobody move.

Just get down.

Get down, get down.

Get down, too. You get down, too.

There's niggers in that car!

Come on, come on!

Get out of the car!

Get out of that car!

Stop that car right now!

[lynch mob shouting]

All right. Everybody sit tight,

and, uh...

l'll get the keys.

How you doing, Miss Becker?

l'm fine. You all right?

Yes, ma'am.

l got your rooms all ready.

- Thank you. - [door closes]

Henry.

Henry!

Henry!

[car stops]

[laughter]

[chatter]

They ain't going to wake up.

Come on.

Ha!

[woman laughing]

[laughing]

See you.

All right. Be good, all right?

Hey, baby. How you doing?

Why are you still up? You waiting on me?

What's the matter, baby? Come on!

Hey!

Samantha!

Shut up. Let's go.

Hey, preacher boy.

Shut up. Let's go.

Come on.

Where are we going?

Back to our room.

Got him, Mr. Tolson.

They come from Shevelstown

Shh!

Devil knocked my daddy down

- Run, nigger, run - Shh!

Master's gonna get you

- Run-- Shh!

Okay. Just sit-- sit--

Not in that bed, though. Get up.

Come here.

Give me a hug.

Stop!

[laughs]

Look down yonder, what do l see?

Great big nigger hangin' from a tree

Run, nigger, run

You're worthless.

What?

You think you're the only one hurting?

Um...

[sigh]

Okay, l'm sorry...for everything.

For, uh, for drinkin', yeah,

l apologize.

l'm not talking about me.

You're right.

l'm gonna go talk to her.

No, no, you won't, Lowe.

She doesn't need to see you like this, okay?

l'm just going to talk to her.

Leave me alone.

Lowe!

Calm down, boy!

Stop! Stop!

l'm not playing with you.

Calm-- Calm down!

You crazy?

You're never gonna forget what you saw

out there, do you understand?

You're never gonna forget what you saw out there.

Hanging's the easiest part of it sometimes.

Sometimes they cut the little fingers off,

your toes, your nose, your ears.

Sometimes they cut your privates off.

Sometimes they skin you alive.

You'll never be able to forget.

[clatter]

What do you think he did?

He didn't have to do nothing, James!

He didn't have to do nothing!

ln Texas they lynch Negroes!

Do you understand?

So it doesn't matter how good we are, does it?

What are you talk-- What?

This is all useless.

What are you talking about?

l mean we're just a bunch of Negroes

debating each other on subjects we all agree on.

Now, James, don't talk like that, all right?

- Why not? - Because you can't!

Not you.

[liquid gurgles]

Bye! God bless you!

Where's Samantha?

She's not going with us.

Why not?

Why do you think?

l took her to the bus station.

She wanted to go back to school.

You wanted your chance.

This is it.

[applause]

[Student] But how can any Negro

defend the punishment of prison

when he's seen so much oppression in his own life?

[Man] Yeah!

How?

Because crime itself is a form of oppression,

and Negroes fall victim to more violent crime

than any other race in America.

[applause]

For us,

prison not only offers protection, but retribution.

[audience member] Yes, indeed!

And for the criminal, it is a dark gift:

the hardship that introduces

a man to himself,

that rouses his passion for freedom--

[audience member] Yes, sir!

...his hope for redemption!

Oh, yeah!

[loud applause]

[Moderator] Our next debater from Wiley College,

Mr. James Farmer, Junior.

Mr. Farmer?

Mom?

Mom!

Honey.

Hey.

Hi.

Oh!

Mmm!

So?

We lost.

Oh. l'm sorry.

Uh, this came.

Harvard.

Wonder what it says.

Go on and open it and read it.

- Looks like somebody opened it already. - Not me.

You didn't open it already?

No.

You are not a good liar.

Out loud.

''Dear Mr. Tolson,

''thank you for informing us

''about your historic victory over Oklahoma City.

''l'm sure you realize our season is nearly over,

''but today we received another letter from Wiley College

written by Mr. Henry Lowe''?

Mm-hmm.

With an ''e''?

''He told us from a student's perspective

about your''-- ahem-''about your undefeated season.''

Well, we're not undefeated anymore.

Don't matter.

''We wish to extend an invitation to--''

''We wish to extend an invitation

''to debate Harvard Crimson here in Cambridge.

Let us know if this is agreeable to you.''

Honey--

Don't you tell anybody.

No.

[Henry] No, you don't have to thank me.

l just wanted to show you l could write, too.

That's good. Thank you.

But you could do me a favor.

What's that?

Keep Samantha on the team.

Why would l do that?

Mr. Tolson, it was a rough night.

Yes, it was, Mr. Lowe, for all of us.

And she walked out on us at the last minute.

No, sir. She did not walk out on us.

She walked out on me.

lt's good tea.

Resolved: Capitalism is immoral.

We will be arguing the affirmative.

[Henry] To a bunch of Wall Street bankers.

[knock on door]

Mr. Tolson, l owe you and my teammates--

You're late. Come in. Sit down.

Samantha, l am not--

Resolved.

[''Wiley College Fight Song'']

Okay, you got macaroni and cheese, fried chicken,

black-eyed peas for good luck,

red beans and rice, corn bread, candied yams.

l put some peach cobbler in there, too,

and some bread pudding.

l know you don't like bread pudding, but l put it in there anyway.

Thank you, Mom.

Okay.

Good luck, son.

Dad?

Yes, Jim.

You give Boston my regards.

You hear?

Yes, sir.

[Henry] James!

Come on! Train's leaving.

Coming!

- Bye, Mom. - Bye-bye.

l love you.

Bye, sis.

Love you!

Love you, too.

[bell rings]

[Conductor] All aboard leaving for Texarkana, Little Rock,

St. Louis, and all points north!

All aboard!

l'm not going with you.

What?

l cannot leave this state.

lt's a condition of my bail.

You can't let them stop you.

They're not stopping me.

l just don't want to jeopardize your opportunity.

You can win without me.

This is what you wanted to do all along, isn't it?

He's right.

Why didn't you tell us this before?

Because l didn't want to hear your arguments.

l knew they'd be too good.

[train whistle blows]

All right, Mr. Lowe, you're in charge.

Whatever your instincts tell you, you listen.

Yes, sir.

Let's go.

Let's go.

What are we supposed to do without you?

Win.

[train whistle blows]

[Man over P.A.] Chicago Express, with service to Hartford,

New York, and Philadelphia,

now boarding, Track 29.

l thought somebody was supposed to meet us.

Wiley College?

- Yes. - Yes.

l'm Harland Osbourne.

Harvard has put me in charge of you for the time that you'll be here in Boston.

- How you doing? l'm Henry Lowe. - Mr. Lowe.

- James Farmer, Jr. - Mr. Farmer.

- Samantha Booke. - Of course. Miss Booke.

We should be going. My car's out front.

l've got it.

Oh, thank you.

Just so you know,

you'll be staying on campus in Douglas Hall.

l've got to tell you,

this debate is stirring up a lot of excitement.

- Really?

- Oh, yeah.

lt's gonna be broadcast all over America.

Can we see where we're going to debate?

Of course.

[door opens]

Hello, Harvard!

[laughter]

[handclaps echoing]

[clicking tongues, echoing]

Excuse me.

You supposed to be here?

l guess we'll find out, won't we?

Ah!

Well, look.

''Mr. Farmer.''

$5.00?

Lowe, l got $5.00.

Yeah, l did, too. lt's called per diem.

Hoo-hoo!

You want me to hold it for you?

No, not my $5.00.

[knock on door]

[whistling]

l got $5.00. l got $5.00.

Me, too.

Well, mine is crispy.

James, this is high tea, all right?

We nibble. We do not devour.

- [knock on door] - How do you know?

l don't.

Hello. l'm Wilson.

This is for you.

Thank you.

l can't accept that, sir.

lt would be inappropriate.

lt would be inappropriate.

[laughing]

Who's it from?

lt's from Harvard.

Maybe it's more money.

Hmm.

''We have been informed by Tau Kappa Gamma

''that your team delivers--

''canned speeches:

''arguments written by faculty rather than students.

''Therefore, we are changing the topic.

''You will have the same amount of time

''to write new arguments as the Harvard team:

48 hours.''

Coaches help students all the time.

[James] Yes, sir.

[Henry] ''Both teams will be delivered

the same reference books.''

Yes, sir.

''Our new topic: Resolved:

''Civil disobedience is a moral weapon in the fight for justice.''

Wiley College will be arguing the affirmative.''

Thank you, sir.

l can't reach Mr. Tolson. Nobody knows where he is.

They're setting us up to lose.

We can't win without him.

You're wrong. We can't win without him.

Thoreau?

[Henry, reading] ''...less desponding free spirits,

is in her prisons--''

''Under a government which imprisons any unjustly,

the true place for a just man--''

Here's your coffee, sir.

Thank you, Mr. Wilson.

Just Wilson.

Thank you, Wilson.

''...has provided for her freer

''and less desponding spirits--''

But you have to use the Massacre at Amritsar.

Agreed, James,

but we'll save it for the rebuttal.

We're going to save the best for last

because you have to leave the audience--

l think we should get into Gandhi's concept of Satyagraha.

l don't agree.

l don't think people are gonna understand what--

what-- Sadagara?

Sactchmaget? Sactchma--

Satyagraha.

From the Sanskrit.

Meaning truth and fairness.

l told you.

lt's-- lt's obvious to me

that we should begin

the debate with Gandhi.

That's exactly why l won't do it.

Why should l do the obvious thing?

Because that's what wins debates!

Listen to what you're saying. This is Harvard, okay?

The first thing you think when you think civil disobedience is what?

That's why we should use Gandhi!

But Gandhi is a strong point!

l want to win! Do you want to win?

Yes, l want to win, but he's right!

This is not getting us anywhere!

Tolson told me l was in charge!

He didn't put you in charge!

You're ''in charge'' does not mean--

So l can make decisions.

We're not starting with Gandhi!

Yes, we are!

Do you hear yourself? You sound like a kid!

Well, you are a kid!

Fellas, come on!

- l'm an idiot? - Yes!

To hell with you! To hell with you!

To hell with this debate!

To hell with me? To hell with me?

Just because l disagree with you?

lf you're gonna walk out, fine!

We're not chasing you!

We are so tired of chasing you!

He's coming back, isn't he?

See if l care!

[distant train whistle blows]

[horn honks]

How you doing, man?

[honky tonk piano]

You're beautiful when you're asleep.

Henry, l--

Yeah, l know, l know.

But you can't stop me from looking at you.

Can everybody shut up and go to bed?

James, come on, wake up.

No.

James.

Come on, James, get up.

What?

What is this?

That's my notes.

What are you giving them to me for?

Because you're debating, not me.

What?

lt's your turn, James.

You serious?

You're crazy.

At 1 4, you're just as good as me.

The judges will love you.

No. No. You can't quit.

l'm not quitting, Samantha.

Tolson made me captain, and he said you were ready.

Yeah, but you saw me at Howard.

l was horrible.

That's right. You did terrible, didn't you?

Stunk up the whole joint, right?

So you should just quit, right?

You should just give up.

No.

Who's the judge?

What?

Who's the judge?

The judge is God.

And why is he God?

Because he decides who wins or loses, not my opponent.

And who is your opponent?

He doesn't exist.

Why doesn't he exist?

[both] Because he is a mere a dissenting voice

to the truth that l speak.

That's right.

Speak the truth.

Direct from Harvard Memorial Hall

in Cambridge, Massachusetts,

this is WNBC Radio, bringing to you live

tonight's history-making debate

between little Wiley College from Marshall, Texas,

and the Harvard University Debate team,

the first time ever

a Negro college has faced the national champions.

Harvard's Dean of Students

is making his way to the podium now.

The crowd, as if on cue, falls silent.

[Dean] On this historic occasion,

we welcome the distinguished team from Wiley College,

our illustrious judges, you the audience,

and through the wonder of radio, the nation.

Harvard University celebrates its 300th anniversary this year,

and, in Franklin Delano Roosevelt, its fifth President of the United States.

But no university, no matter how grand or august in its history,

can afford to live in the past.

So, in the spirit of tomorrow,

l introduce to you today.:

the debaters from Wiley College:

Miss Samantha Booke,

Mr. James Farmer, Junior.

[applause]

What?

Mr. Farmer will argue the first affirmative.

Resolved:

Civil disobedience is a moral weapon

in the fight for justice.

But how can disobedience ever be moral?

Well, l guess that depends

on one's definition of the words.

Word.

ln 1919, in lndia,

10,000 people gathered in Amritsar to protest the tyranny of British rule.

Has it started?

- Shh!

- Your brother's talking.

Just sit down.

General Reginald Dyer trapped them in a courtyard

and ordered his troops to fire into the crowd for ten minutes.

379 died--

men, women, children--

Shot down in cold blood.

Dyer said he had taught them a moral lesson.

Gandhi and his followers responded not with violence

but with an organized campaign of non-cooperation.

Government buildings were occupied.

Streets were blocked with people who refused to rise,

even when beaten by police.

Gandhi was arrested,

but the British were soon forced to release him.

He called it a moral victory.

The definition of moral:

Dyer's lesson or Gandhi's victory?

You choose.

[applause]

From 191 4 to 1918,

for every single minute the world was at war,

four men laid down their lives.

Just think of it.

240 brave young men were hurled into eternity

every hour of every day, of every night,

for four long years.

35,000 hours.

8,281 ,000 casualties.

240.

240.

240.

Here was a slaughter

immeasurably greater than what happened at Amritsar.

Can there be anything moral about it?

Nothing...

except that it stopped Germany

from enslaving all of Europe.

Civil disobedience isn't moral because it's non-violent.

Fighting for your country with violence

can be deeply moral,

demanding the greatest sacrifice of all:

life itself.

Non-violence is the mask civil disobedience wears

to conceal its true face--

anarchy.

Gandhi believes one must always act

with love and respect for one's opponents,

even if they are Harvard debaters.

[laughter]

Gandhi also believes that lawbreakers must accept

the legal consequences for their actions.

Does that sound like anarchy?

Civil disobedience is not something for us to fear.

lt is, after all, an American concept.

You see, Gandhi draws his inspiration

not from a Hindu scripture,

but from Henry David Thoreau,

who l believe graduated from Harvard

and lived by a pond not too far from here.

My opponent is right about one thing.

Thoreau was a Harvard grad,

and, like many of us, a bit self-righteous.

[laughter]

He once said, ''Any man more right than his neighbors

constitutes a majority of one.''

Thoreau the idealist could never know

that Adolf Hitler would agree with his words.

The beauty and the burden of democracy is this:

no idea prevails without the support of the majority.

The people decide the moral issues of the day,

not a majority of one.

Majorities do not decide what is right or wrong.

Your conscience does.

So why should a citizen

surrender his or her conscience

to a legislator?

No, we must never, ever kneel down

before the tyranny of a majority.

[applause]

[applause]

We can't decide which laws to obey and which to ignore.

lf we could...

l'd never stop for a red light.

[laughter]

My father is one of those men

that stands between us and chaos:

a police officer.

l remember the day his partner, his best friend,

was gunned down in the line of duty.

Most vividly of all,

l remember the expression on my dad's face.

Nothing that erodes the rule of law can be moral,

no matter what name we give it.

Bravo!

Why doesn't he say something?

Shh!

ln Texas...

they lynch Negroes.

My teammates and l

saw a man strung up by his neck

and set on fire.

We drove through a lynch mob,

pressed our faces against the floorboard.

l looked at my teammates.

l saw the fear in their eyes...

and worse...

the shame.

What was this Negro's crime

that he should be hung, without trial,

in a dark forest filled with fog?

Was he a thief?

Was he a killer?

Or just a Negro?

Was he a sharecropper?

A preacher?

Were his children waiting up for him?

And who are we to just lie there and do nothing?

No matter what he did, the mob was the criminal.

But the law did nothing,

just left us wondering why.

My opponent says

nothing that erodes the rule of law can be moral.

But there is no rule of law in the Jim Crow South,

not when Negroes are denied housing,

turned away from schools, hospitals,

and not when we are lynched.

St. Augustine said,

''An unjust law is no law at all, ''

which means l have a right,

even a duty, to resist...

with violence or civil disobedience.

You should pray l choose the latter.

Bravo!

[Dean] ln tonight's debate

between Harvard University and Wiley College...

And the winner is...

[sigh]

Wiley College.

Yeah!

[cheering]

[guitar]

Veil my face

Veil my face

Veil my face

Got two wings

Veil my face

Got two wings

Veil my feet

Got two wings

Fly away

Can't no man

Do me no harm

Got two wings

Veil my face

Got two wings

Veil my feet

Got two wings

Fly away

Can't no man

Do me no harm

Gather 'cause my soul is

Callin' out my name

Got two wings ready

And me just the same

Oh, brothers and sisters

Meet me in the air

lf my wings fail me

l'll get another pair

l got two wings

Veil my face

Got two wings

Veil my feet

Got two wings

Fly away

Can't no man

Do me no harm

Ooh-ooh

Ooh-ooh

Ooh-ooh

Ooh-ooh

Ooh-ooh

Ooh-ooh

Uh-huh-huh

Uh-huh-huh

Woo-ooh

Ooh-ooh

Woo-ooh

Woo-ooh

Woo-ooh

Woo-ooh

Hey, hey, hey

Hey, hey

Fly away

Fly away

Fly-y-y

Fly away

Fly-y-y

Fly away

Fly-y-y

Fly away

Fly away

Fly away

Mm-hmm

[piano]

Hmm

[gospel organ]

Hmm

Hmm

Hmm

Hmm

Hmm

Hmm-mm-mm-mm

Hmm

Hmm

Up above my head

Above my head

l hear music in the air

Music in the air

Up above my head

Up above my head

l hear music in the air

Music in the air

Up above my head

Up above my head

l hear music in the air

Music in the air

l really do believe

Yes, l do believe

Hey, hey

There's a heaven somewhere

Heaven somewhere

Up above my head

Up above my head

l hear music in the air

Music in the air

Up above my head

Up above my head

l hear music in the air

Music in the air

Up above my head

Up above my head

l hear music in the air

Music in the air

l really do believe

Yes, l do believe

There's a heaven somewhere

Heaven somewhere

Although "The Great Debaters" does not open until Christmas, I had the good fortune of seeing it at a preview -- and I can recommend it without reservation. It is a great story, based on real events that most of us never heard of, about a debating team from Wiley College, a small black institution in rural Texas, that performs extraordinary feats because the kids are good and the team is taught by Mel Tolson,

a real person, acted by Denzel Washington, who also directs. Forest Whitaker, like Washington an academy award winner, plays James Farmer Sr., the school president and the father of one of the debaters, James Farmer Jr. (yes, that James Farmer Jr.). The participation in this enterprise of Washington, Whitaker, Oprah Winfrey and the Weinstein brothers should draw crowds (provided the film isn't cursed by being described as "uplifting," though it is). The revelation in this film are the performances of the three principal debaters: Jurnee Smollett as Samatha Booke (with an "e", as she proclaims when she tries out for the debate team), Nate Parker as Henry Lowe (also with an "e" as he announces in response to Samantha's declaration) and Denzel Whitaker as James Farmer Jr. (It's an amusing coincidence, but he is unrelated either to Denzel Washington or to Forrest Whitaker.) You may have seen Jurnee Smollett earlier in her career when she was a "cute kid" and a promising actress. This film could be her portal to stardom. In addition to being a gorgeous young woman, she's also an accomplished actress, ready for bigger parts in the future. You'll also be impressed with her colleagues, people whose names you may never have heard. You don't have to be black to find this film engrossing; I'm not. All you need to be is (a) a human being and (b) someone who appreciates a good movie. I hope it makes a ton of money at the box office but it is, above all, a quality film. It just happens to be about a difficult period in American history, the rural South in the 1930's. It just happens to be inspirational and uplifting and all that good, boring stuff that cause your eyes to roll when that's how the critics describe it. But it's better than uplifting. It's GOOD and it's REAL.

The Great Debaters: An enlightened struggle against racial oppression during the Depression By Helen Halyard 13 February 2008 Directed by Denzel Washington, written by Robert Eisele, produced by Oprah Winfreys Harpo Productions The Great Debaters offers a fictionalized and limited account of the exploits of the award-winning Wiley College debate team headed by Melvin B. Tolson, an AfricanAmerican English professor, during the Depression years. Beyond his academic duties, Tolson was an accomplished poet, journalist and social activist. Before this film was produced, very little was generally known about Wiley, a small college with only 400 students, or its debating team. The team had a remarkable record, going 10 straight years without a loss from 1929 to 1939. Whats more, the teams opponents included much larger black universities, including Fisk, Morehouse, Virginia Union, Lincoln, Wilberforce and Howard.

Tolsons debaters became so well known that they were invited to participate in the first interracial debate ever permitted. The contest, which took place in Oklahoma City in 1930, pitted Wiley College against the University of Oklahoma. Five years later, before an audience of 1,100, Tolsons team won the national championship in a debate with the reigning champions from the University of Southern California. (In a seemingly unnecessary substitution, the film has a group from Harvard University as the opposing team for this historic event.)

Founded in 1873, Wiley College is one of the oldest black colleges west of the Mississippi River. It was established by the Freedmans Bureau in the period called Reconstruction during the immediate aftermath of the American Civil War, a time filled with hope among former slaves who yearned for equality, education and justice. This is the second film directed by Denzel Washington, following Antwone Fisher in 2003, a story about a youth embittered by traumas inflicted by the foster care system. While the subject matter of the current film raises important historical questions, its treatment tends to be predictable and clichd. Washington does an admirable job portraying Professor Tolson. The winner of three Oscars, including one for best supporting actor, playing a runaway slave in the 1989 film Glory, he brings out the best in the younger members of the cast as well. In The Great Debaters, Denzel Whitaker (no relation to Forest Whitaker) plays James Farmer, an early leader in the civil rights movement, whose conservative trajectory later found him joining the Republication administration of Richard Nixon as assistant secretary of health, education and welfare. Jurnee Smollett plays the role of Samantha Brooke, the only woman on the debate team. Brookes character is loosely based on that of Henrietta Bell. Still alive in Houston, Texas, Bell gave a number of interviews following the films release. She recalled in particular the power of Tolsons intellect and the struggle he conducted with students to read widely on questions of economics, history, philosophy and science. Some of the most powerful scenes in the film deal with the oppressive conditions of racism and the sheer terror of the Jim Crow system that dominated the South well into the twentieth century. The film opens with Professor James Farmer, Sr. (Forest Whitaker), one of the first African Americans to receive a Ph.D. from Boston University, being terribly humiliated in front of his family by two white farmers after he mistakenly hit a hog that ran in front of his car. Unable to defy the farmers, he never looks them in the eye and agrees to hand over his monthly pay of $25, which represents far more than the hog is worth.

In another scene, as the team is driving to participate in a debate, they encounter a black man hanging lifeless from a tree. The totally disfigured and barely human body is surrounded by whites who seem to take pleasure in what they have done. Lynching, organized as a community event, was commonplace as a means of terrorizing blacks and diverting and suppressing the anger of very oppressed sections of white workers. Texas was third among states, after Mississippi and Georgia, in the total number of recorded lynchings. Between 1885 and 1942, records indicate that 468 mostly black men were lynched in Texas. Another interesting episode, barely mentioned in reviews of the film, is Tolsons effort to organize the Southern Tenant Farmers Union (STFU), a broad-based protest movement made up of black and white sharecroppers who had been driven off their land and forced into day labor. As the farmers convene a meeting to discuss their strength in unity, they come under attack from a vigilante mob. It is revealed later in the film that the local sheriff participated in the raid, along with racist organizations like the Ku Klux Klan. While The Great Debaters touches on important historical issues, very little is explained in the film about what was a tumultuous period of American history. Unless one has former knowledge of the year 1935the height of the Great Depression in the US, a period dominated by mass unemployment, homelessness and hungerit is not brought across in the film that it was within this context that figures like Melvin Tolson emerged. The film implies that Tolson was involved with the Communist Party. While this author could find nothing written to indicate this was the case, both the CP and Socialist Party were involved at the time in efforts to organize the STFU, and Tolson certainly would have been familiar with the perspective and political arguments advanced in their publications. One of the films major weaknesses is that Wileys debate teams always argues for what could be called the correct, or progressive, side of the issue in dispute: integration of the school system, the right of poor people to social reform, the right of masses to conduct civil disobedience against racial injustice. While debates during the 1930s were organized differently from the way they are todaywhere coaches agree in advance to a particular subject, and then flip a coin to see which team begins with the affirmative sidein real life, the Wiley team did not always argue for progressive positions. The film would have been strengthened and its dramatic tension increased had the team been portrayed, even once, in defense of a reactionary position. It was Tolsons belief that the conditions of racism and inequality would be overcome through education, the power of ideas and social organization. The same convictions that drove his work with the Forensic Society of Wiley College were behind his efforts to unite black and white tenant farmers.

Unfortunately, this side of the story is presented in a rather one-sided way in the film. The more prominent white actors are cast in the roles of the racist farmers, a reactionary sheriff and arrogant white student debaters. There was certainly no shortage of such reactionary layers in the Deep South during this period. And while it is true the film script had to summarize events stretching over a long period of time, the way these characters are cast is to the detriment of both historical accuracy and dramatic depth. As an example, the film portrays the audience attending the 1930 debate at the University of Oklahoma as racially polarized: the black audience applauds the Wiley debaters and the white audience applauds their home team. Contemporaneous newspaper reports, however, give a far different account. At the actual event, the audience was caught up in the strength of arguments and intellectual integrity of the participants on both sides, regardless of racial characteristics and collegiate affiliation. Tolsons comments about the event, recorded in an article published immediately afterwards, specifically memorialize this astonishing social reality. When the finest intellects of black youth and white youth meet, he said, the thinking person gets the thrill of seeing beyond the racial phenomena the identity of worthy qualities. He went on to elaborate his vision of a moment in the future when the most eloquent and intelligent representatives of both races join forces in a united struggle against racial oppression. For that all-too-brief hour, he declared, the mixed audience seemed to forget their difference, applauding one team as readily as it applauded another. In the South, I have seen the children of ex-slaves shaking hands with the grandsons of the masters after the debate. The film would have been far more interesting had more of an effort been made by Denzel Washington and producer Oprah Winfrey to find a way to present the contradictory nature of relations. Insteadand certainly driven by the considerations of Hollywoodthe film sets out to present Tolson as a brilliant mi