Being All American Quotes

When Quinn refers to himself as “All American,” he means he is a straight, white, athletic male with good grades and a selfless attitude. He mentions what he thinks being “All American” is when he describes his role as his father’s son, “the All-American boy with an All-American fifteen-foot deadeye jump shot and an All-American 3.5 GPA.” (Reynolds and Kiely, 27). He lives in the shadow of his father, the deceased war hero who spent his spare time in soup kitchens feeding the homeless. Quinn calls himself All-American because his father was All-American.
On the other hand, Rashad’s ex-cop father would not describe Rashad as All-American. Rashad is a black man with sagging jeans, so he can only be a criminal. Even though he is not the type of person who would do anything against the law (besides underage drinking at Friday night parties), Rashad is automatically someone to keep an eye on because he is black.

He realizes how being All-American is about speaking out against injustice and fighting for a cause, even if you have to make sacrifices. Quinn recognized that being All-American was not about having pale skin or good grades, it was about defending people’s rights and doing the right thing even if no one else was doing it. Quinn wondered if anyone watching the protest thought it was unpatriotic, and thought, “It was weird. Thinking that to protest was somehow un-American. That was bull****. This was very American, godd*mn All-American.” (Reynolds and Kiely, 294). Before, Quinn thought he was All-American because of his genetics and how most people thought he was a good kid. However, he soon realized that his family did not make him All-American, it was his actions that made him an All-American boy. Quinn and Rashad have grown into the new interpretation of All-American by standing up for themselves and others, and fighting against injustices that minorities struggle