‘Freedom Writers’ movie, book show magic of putting pen to pad
“You’re smarter than that.”
Those were the first words that rang in my head when I missed my mark of having this article in last week’s Advance and wanted to toss this idea like a torn page from a notebook. But it’s also one of the phrases that is personally remembered from my freshman English teacher.
By far one of the more distinguishable teachers that I had in school — both K-12 and college — I always remember them whenever the movie, “Freedom Writers” comes into play. So, when I thought of binning this article, I thought of those words.
“You’re smarter than that.”
What about the movie?
The movie released back in Jan. 5, 2007 but the project makes it known that it’s based on the biographical fiction book of a similar name, “The Freedom Writers Diary.” To give a quick rundown of the movie, it’s about a teacher — Erin Gruwell — who is hired to teach the English subject to students who at first glance seem to not only be giving up on, but they, too, have given up on themselves.
Today’s term of the day class is: “At-risk students.”
This teacher, who is played by Hilary Swank — who you might have seen in “Million Dollar Baby” or “The Next Karate Kid” — starts from the bottom up with these students during the 90s in Los Angeles. From the start, the students are portrayed as angry and somewhat aimless. In a sense, they’re a product of their environment. Although the movie doesn’t take place in Texas or the Valley for that matter, similar themes are seen as kids are no strangers to danger, gang affiliation, access to drugs and more.
Places of poverty pretty much welcome trouble to come along. So, you can see how these students from Los Angeles may have some things in common for someone from here — even if the setting for “Freedom Writers” is based in the 90s — post-Rodney King riots.
Hidalgo County has a poverty rate of 26.9%, according to the United States Census Bureau, with information pulled from 2023’s Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. Cameron County sits at 23.5%. Starr stands at 28.8%. Willacy walks in at 27.8%.
Then, there’s correlation with that in education.
Those who are a high school graduate from the years 2019-2023 in Hidalgo County were at 69.3% of the population. Cameron County had 71.6%, Starr with 60.1% and Willacy with 67.7%. The numbers for those with at least a bachelor’s degree are at lower marks. Take for example with Hidalgo County at 20.3%.
For teachers, the state is having a shortage. According to a Texas Tribune story from September with the headline, “Texas schools are hiring more teachers without traditional training. They hope the state will pay to prepare them.” the article has an alarming statistic that 13.4% of teachers left the profession between Fall 2021, as well as Fall 2022.
The theme of morale is evident in the classroom — whether it’s from the students’ perspective or through the teachers. It’s portrayed in the movie quite well. More so, since the movie takes place after the Rodney King riots, division is one of the focal points of the film. Division in the sense of race. In the film, those of a certain race stick together.
Gruwell, played by Swank, is off-put by the fights breaking out between races in the courtyard and that transitions into the classroom. When the film begins, either students don’t show up to class or they refuse to sit next to one another if they aren’t of the same race. It isn’t until a crude drawing of one of the students gets passed around where the protagonist breaks the “nice teacher” act and gives an anecdote on how the Holocaust bred similar tactics of hatred.
More so, the movie has a scene where she says that those who were antisemitic depicted Jews with big noses. In the film, one of the students is seen drawn with a misshaped head and big lips.
It isn’t until the diaries are implemented in her unorthodox teaching methods where the film picks up and the focal points then shifts from student to student. Students write grim tales of their friends being killed through violence, wanting to be part of a gang, getting by, homelessness, domestic violence and more.
You see the growth of each student as they write in their diaries, but also, you see how Gruwell grows as an individual — despite the criticism she receives for her attempts and methods.
The film was produced by Paramount Pictures, as well as MTV Films (IMDb). So, that said, the demographic for this film was to cater to adults, as well as the younger teen group. The film has a darker shade to it to show how “unforgiving” the surroundings are. If you ever seen the basketball movie “Coach Carter” — which was released Jan. 13, 2005, coincidentally — it follows the same aesthetic formula. The story is similar to “Freedom Writers” as well.
In addition, they got singer Mario to play one of the students — which is common for films from MTV to get a music artist and have them act. The music for the movie has a bunch of older hip-hop to it. So, if you’re a fan of Digable Planets, Gang Starr, Common, or Naughty by Nature’s “Hip Hop Hooray,” then the soundtrack bumps.
Of course, they had to have a Tupac song in there for the West Coast love.
What about the book?
Now, it’s always easy to say that “the book is better than the movie.” But, we aren’t going to do that here. Each work in their own respective medium does the job that they’re supposed to.
There are some differences though between the two. In the film, it has a lot of screen time on Gruwell or Hilary Swank. Yes, it does show scenes where we see glimpses of the students but the book is composed mainly of the students’ diaries with Gruwell having her own entries. If you’re reading the book, it’s like reading vignettes from different students. However, if one pays close attention, a reader can see which student is writing. The students in the film weren’t real people, rather they were based on the entries.
Some of the problems that the students face don’t make it into the movie. While the movie focuses a lot on racism and gang affiliation, the diaries in the book talk about alcoholism, suicidal thoughts, being shamed for one’s weight and more.
The cover art for the movie has some more flash with a huge profile pic of Hilary Swank fading into the words of her students — while some of them pose below her. It’s an MTV movie so it passes. However, for the 1999 book, they went with a more minimalistic approach. The cover has a candid photo of Gruwell with some of her students smiling. The cover contrasts with the content, since if you get to page 8 and 9, racial terms are annotated, as well as profanity.
The cool thing though, with the decade anniversary releases of the book, they keep the cover the same.
Editor’s note: The Freedom Writers Foundation was founded by Erin Gruwell, in which the mission is to “provide educators with tools to empower all students to succeed,” according to its website. To donate or learn more, visit Freedomwritersfoundation. org.
Also, since the movie and book does take place in Los Angeles, consider donating to organizations, such as the Red Cross, to help those affected by the recent wildfires. Visit redcross.org for more information or call the South Texas Chapter at (956) 423-0523 and (800) 733-2767.
Any recommendations?
I love diving into new movies or books — whether it’s classics from the past or something recent and new. Any recommendations can be sent to me at The Advance’s email at advancenewspaper@gmail.com.