Freedom Writers (opening January 5 throughout San Diego) is based on the true story of Long Beach high school teacher Erin Gruwell and the at-risk students she taught in room 203. Their success story pays tribute to the dreams of Martin Luther King and his desire for a future when people will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.
Hilary Swank and the real Erin Gruwell
Gruwell, a white, well-educated woman who had once thought of pursuing a career in law, grew up with an awareness of the Civil Rights movement. Fueled by that decades idealism, she entered the teaching profession in the hopes of reaching out to troubled kids and using education to open doors to a brighter future for them. In the film, Gruwell is played by Hilary Swank. The Oscar-winning actress ever-smiling portrait of a teacher who faced classroom fights, gang violence, and erratic attendance by her less than enthusiastic freshmen English class may seem too optimistic to be believeduntil you meet the real Erin Gruwell who speaks so passionately about changing the world and creating a revolution in education that you start to believe it can happen.
Gruwell, flashing the broad smile that Swank captures so well in the film, hosted a preview screening of Freedom Writers in San Diego last year. She was accompanied by one of her students, Maria Reyes as well as one of the actors, Jason Finn. Gruwell and company were introduced at the screening by San Diego Unified Schools new superintendent Carl Cohen, who had worked with Gruwell when he was a school administrator in Long Beach.
At the screening, Reyes explained that her experiences in Gruwells room 203 have lead her to believe that she too can make a difference in childrens lives by teaching. But as a rebellious student back in 1994, Reyes remembers Miss G as being nave for thinking she could change anything. I hadnt met people like her before that were young and felt that they could change the world, says Reyes, I felt that her intentions were good but that there was no way I was going to give her a chance to change my life and to make her feel good about herself. But no matter what we did to her, she came back into class everyday and had a smile on her face and was ready to teach, and it was refreshing. At some point we had to believe that she cared about us and where we all come from you have to give some type of respect to that.
As we see in the film, Gruwells persistence eventually pays off. The way she finally connects with her diverse students was through literature such as The Diary of Anne Frank that they could identify with.
Hilary Swank plays teacher Erin Gruwell in Freedom Writers
She was smart enough to know that we were not going to relate to her that there was going to be this wall, says Reyes, so she brought in great characters and she brought them to life in our classroom. I truly believe that that was the breakthrough with me. She let the characters and the literature and the words speak for her. All these great books were really about ordinary people that were put in a really difficult situation and instead of fighting back with their fists or with a gun they actually picked up a pen and wrote about what they saw and documented their lives. In a sense I understood the power of the written word without her having to preach to me. And I understood that when you wrote something down no one could take that away from you.
Making that connection with a student like Reyes kept Gruwell going. I think every time a light bulb goes on for a student, says Gruwell, it feeds my soul. Ive always said that teaching is psychic income. Teachers dont make a lot of money. Our jobs are so noble and were richly rewarded when a student does get it.
A key factor in helping her students get it proved to be writing in journals. Gruwell gave the students composition books and asked them to write about their lives. The students, inspired by the Freedom Riders of the early 1960s, dubbed themselves the Freedom Writers. The eventual publication of their journals in 1999 then provided the basis for the film.
Unlike many Hollywood films based on real stories, the filmmakers of Freedom Writers wanted to keep the real people involved. Gruwell recalls that writer-director Richard LaGravenese shared his various drafts of the script over the years and made Gruwell and her students consultants to insure that their stories would be accurate and true.
Richard didnt have to ask our opinions, Reyes notes, but he encouraged us to be involved especially with the dialogue and with the music anything that he felt would make the movie more real and that gave us a sense of validation.
Gruwell and LaGravenese also worked together to cast the film with young people that looked like real kids. This search for create a classroom for the film lead to the discovery of Jason Finn, who like the character he plays, was a victim in a shooting incident. He immediately connected with the role and sensed that making the film would be something special.
I always wanted in high school to have someone reach out and help me like Miss G, says Finn, I like to read, I like to write but I never had no one believe in me. Now I have all these positive people surrounding me. He looks to Gruwell and Reyes and adds, They feel like they can conquer the world so if I can help any kid out there, it will be a blessing in my life.
After watching Freedom Writers, audiences may also feel like they can conquer the world or at the very least make a difference in it.
Companion viewing: The Blackboard Jungle, To Sir with Love, Up the Down Staircase, Conrack, Stand and Deliver
