Themes of Documentary For this video critique, our class watched a documentary called “Stand,” directed by Joslyn Rose Lyons. This documentary is centered on Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf’s story, from his childhood to his life after being blacklisted from the NBA. Many themes were discussed throughout this movie which related directly towards Abdul-Rauf but can relate to anyone in the world. The themes that stood out were racial prejudice in the south, challenges with Tourette Syndrome, media attacking for stories, and religious differences in the NBA. Racial Prejudice One major theme that can be seen throughout this documentary was racial prejudice. As mentioned in the documentary, Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf was raised in a segregated Gulfport, Mississippi. Growing up in Mississippi during the 70s, he faced a lot of racial prejudice because of the way he looked. Unfortunately, he still experienced the harsh realities of racism when he went away for college at LSU. One instance of this shown in the documentary was when LSU played at Mississippi State. The crowd began to boo Mahmoud and chanted “Who’s your daddy” while waving around confederate flags. Mahmoud became …show more content…
Tourette Syndrome is a condition that affects the nervous system causing sudden uncontrollable twitches, movements, and sounds. At first, Mahmoud grew up not knowing why he would do the things he did. Mahmoud said that when he was in third grade, it would take him 45 minutes to get dressed since he would put on his clothes then remove repeatedly. Mahmoud would also throw his arm and pop his neck until he felt severe pain. Later in his basketball career, his ticks would be an advantage for him as his opponents couldn’t tell if his “head-popping” was a head-fake or his Tourette’s when making a move. Nonetheless, through the experience and knowledge of his disability, Mahmoud was able to overcome the challenges associated with